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From Maine about Viking Quest
Series

I just wanted to let you know how much I love your books! Especially the
Viking Quest books–

they are my favorite series! I have read them all multiple times! ….
They inspired me to learn

more about the Vikings, and they have become a great interest for me!
Because I live in ME,

I think they are especially fascinating, as there is the possibility they
could have come to my state!

I love Bree, Dev, Mikkel– well, all of the characters! If the Viking
Quest series was ever made into

a movie or movies, I dream of playing Bree! …. Maybe someday….

Tusen Takk for writing such great books!

Hannah, 14, Maine

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From Wisconsin about Freedom Seekers

Dear Mrs. Johnson,

I am 11 years old and have read both your series “Adventures in the
Northwoods” and “Riverboat Adventures” [now Freedom Seekers] countless
times! I was so excited to find your website!! I have looked for years to
find a way to contact you and tell you how wonderful your books are! You
have such wonderful books and I admire you so much!

I live near where Kate’s
stories took place. I have gone to Superior and went to many of the sites
Kate visited in one of the books. [#7: Grandpa’s Stolen Treasure set in
Duluth, Minnesota]

Your books are so inspirational and important to me. They
have really helped me with my Christian foundation and faith, especially the
series “Riverboat Adventures.” I am so much like Libby! I can relate so much
to her. I find that every time that I read about her, I usually learn with
her!

Thank you so much for all of the time and research that you have put
into your books. I hope that you have a blessed holiday season and may God
bless you and your family!

Jessica, Wisconsin

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From Germany about Viking Quest Series

Matthias: Dear Lois, My little sister really enjoyed the first
book of the Viking Quest Series. We are from Germany, and unfortunately only
the first book ist available in german. When will the other 4 books be
translated? We are so much waiting…

Lois: I suggested the Northwoods novels because all 10 of them are
translated into German.

Matthias: Dear Lois Walfrid Johnson, Thank You for your kind
answer. Yes we know the northwood novels and they are even the favorite
books of my sister. I have recently bought the viking quest series in
english, she is willing to train her english with those books, because she
is so much interested in the content. Kind greetings from Germany, Matthias

Lois: The German publisher, CLV- Christliche Literatur, is
planning to translate the six Freedom Seeker books. Look for the first
novel, Escape into the Night, about Christmas time 2014.

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Dear Lois,

I have 5 children and am always on the look out for well written,
engaging, Christian books. I came upon your Freedom Seekers series through a
home school catalog. I purchased them for my 15 yr. old daughter who HATES to
read. I have presented her with more books than you can imagine and your series
was the 1st that she sat down and gobbled up. For a week straight she snuck into
her room and could be found reading, begging, “Please just one more chapter.”
She is a competitive swimmer and gets up at 4 am to make it to practice–early
bedtime is a must, well not last week. She was reading under her covers until
well after 11 pm and couldn’t even put your book down. Thank you so much for
writing such incredible books that appeal to teens without the overload of
romance.

You recently heard from another one of my daughters, who’s lamenting the fact
that there are no more books in the series. She asked if I thought you’d
consider writing any more. I told her best way to find out was to email you,
which she promptly did. You are a wonderful writer and she has passed your books
on to all of her friends, who can’t believe she read a book and LOVED it!!!

Blessings, sunshine, happiness, and love back to you, Lisa

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I love your books! You always keep me breathless until the end. I love to
write and your books inspire me so much. Thank you! If you ever come Halifax
way, give me a shout!

From a faraway friend, Jordan    Jeremiah 29:11

Nova Scotia, Canada

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Hello there!

My twin sister Wendy and I grew up in Illinois, but when we married, she
moved to the Northwoods of Wisconsin! I moved to Wichita, Kansas. The Lord
didn’t lead us to our husbands until our 30’s, but we are so blessed, and they
love the Lord.

I just wanted to share how much my sister and I enjoyed your Northwoods
books! My twin sister and I fell in love with the characters, and even named our
children Kate (my 4-month old) and her Anders (9-months old).

We always loved reading your books and even read them to our husbands on
occasion today!

My little Kate underwent open heart surgery when she was six weeks old, and is
doing wonderfully. I hope she grows up to be like your ‘Kate’… I can tell she is
a very inquisitive child already.

Blessings,

Gayle

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Hi, Lois. My name is Tim. I live in Mo. I have your riverboat series and your
north wood series and I really like them. I really like to read.

Second message from Tim:

Dear Lois,

This is Tim again. I just turnt ten 2 sundays ago. and that viking quest series
I got at the libary thats geting them in I’ve read 1 & 2 and I like them. well I
got to go. Tim

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Hi I’m Olivia, I’m 12 years old, and live in Pennsylvania. I just wanted to
tell you how much I loved reading the series Viking Quest. I was very sad when
it ended. My younger sister is in the middle of reading Freedom Seekers and she
loves them. Thank you for writing such amazing stories. It’s nice to have a good
Christian book to sit down and read.

Sincerely,

Olivia

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About Riverboat Adventures in new edition: The Freedom Seekers Series with
study questions in every novel

I am so happy to see the Freedom Seekers series being reprinted! I read these
books aloud to my children in their lower elementary years and we loved them. I
was so sad they were out of print. Thank you for providing quality books that
are engaging and have a solid Christian content. I am excited to tell our
friends about them!

Shari

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Dear Mrs. Johnson,

Thank you for teaching me how to be a better writer. As I am reading your
books I see how well they are written and it gives me some great ideas on how to
write. I started to write a book a long time ago and it is REALLY improving. I
met you at the book signing at Heppner’s Legacy. Thank you SO much for signing
my books. I read them over and over!

…..I am getting Northwoods book number 7. And I cannot wait to read another
one of your Gr8 books!

Your number one fan,

Megan, 9

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More about Freedom Seekers

Hello I am Chloe and I am 9 years old. I’m on the second book in the Freedom
Seekers series.

I am really enjoying them. Thank you so much for writing them.

Sincerely, Chloe

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Viking Quest movie?

I, as well as hundreds of others, love your Viking Quest series!!! Do you
ever think that there will be a movie made of it? I would love to play Bree!!

Thanks for writing such good, Christian books!

Kelly, 14, California

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Hello Mrs.Johnson! I really love your books. I have read the Viking Quest
books a thousand times over and I’m working on Freedom Seekers now. I plan to
read the Northwoods next. I also like to write. I have characters, outlines, and
story ideas. But I am having trouble starting to write. I have the middle and
end worked out but the beginning is a problem. How do you think of good story
starters? I need some help. If you can please email me back and let me know.
Thanks! 🙂

Emma-Elizabeth

Lois answers: I think you’re doing great to have characters, outlines,
and story ideas worked out. The beginning is always the hardest. Keep thinking
about your characters and ask yourself, “What does my main character want? Then,
How can I say no?” See Writing Tips on my website,
www.LWJbooks.com for more ideas, okay?

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By pure chance, I happened to come across two of your Northwoods books when I
cleaned a corner of my attic two hours ago. There’s been a lot of water under
the bridge since I read them 15 years ago when I was ten, but just looking at
the covers brought it all back. I couldn’t tell you a thing about any of the
mysteries, but I could describe when Kate met Anders, that awful first day in
school, Kate’s organ, Tina climbing out the window with Kate, Kate falling in
the ice, some anger issue with Lars, and, of course, Anders crying when he
thought Kate had died.

Thank you so much for being a part of my childhood! I used to tune out to
other family members opening their presents Christmas morning and enter the
Northwoods right there on the floor. Please, can you tell me if Kate and Erik
got married?

Janna

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Hello Mrs. Johnson,

This seems so strange to find my favorite childhood author online! I was
thinking the other day about some happy memories from my childhood, and your
books crossed my mind. So I thought I would look you up online, and to my
surprise, found your site!

I grew up in a single-parent home, and my mother homeschooled my three sisters
and me. At a home school book fair she picked up a few of your Northwoods books
for me, and I couldn’t put them down. Our church library happened to have nearly
the whole series, so I checked and rechecked them, over and over. I can still
remember many of the stories by heart and can recall the mental pictures I
painted, based on your descriptive writing, of the farmhouse, of Kate and
Anders, of Kate’s mother and father, of Lars and Tina, of her schoolteacher and
classmates.

I felt like the characters in the Northwoods books were my friends. What I
especially appreciated about your books is that nothing in them violated my
conscience….

I related very much to Kate, and was blessed by the way the stories
communicated the way she learned to overcome her fears. As a child, I had many
fears, such as of the dark; and so I could relate to Kate and was comforted by
the underlying message of trust in God that was communicated through the books.

Children tend to try to copy or imitate what they admire, and the characters in
books hold an immense power over children that many authors do not realize.
Whatever the lead character in a book is, that is what children will think is a
standard for behavior. I am so grateful that when you created the character of
Kate, while you showed that she was human and had weaknesses to overcome, but
you did not portray her as a bad little girl who “got away” with doing blatant
wrongs. ….It makes me grateful that your books only influenced me to trust God
and learn to love others.

And further, your books never troubled me. The stories were so sweet, and
always had some kind of good resolution, so they didn’t leave me depressed or
disturbed, but rather happy.

I’m now almost 25, but I am wanting to buy the books again, and the others you
have since written, to bring me back mentally to the place and time of my life
that was so happy and peaceful. Your stories were such a bright spot of my
childhood. They were so excellently written, with such interesting and
captivating plots, characters, and settings.

May the Lord richly bless you, and may your gifted pen continue to be used to
bless multitudes!

In Christ,

Rebekah

Second message from Rebekah:

Dearest Mrs. Johnson,

I just returned from a month-long trip to England, Scotland, and Ireland, and
being in that beautiful setting made me especially want to get the Viking Quest
series of books you have written.

An author’s pen has so much power, and I am so glad you have continued to
write and bless so many people with your great writing ability. Thank you again
for using your gift to honor the Lord and bless so many people like myself.

I will treasure your letter and place it with the copies of my childhood
books. This coming week I plan to order your VQ books, and I know I will enjoy
reading them.

God bless you!

Love in Christ, Rebekah

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Speaking from the long view — Review from a long-time reader:

The Freedom Seekers books were some of my favorites when I was growing
up. I remember staying up late to read “just one more chapter,” staying
inside even on sunny days to read, anxiously awaiting the release of each
new book. My friends dreamed of being a famous singer or actor someday
— I dreamed of being a conductor in the Underground Railroad.

I’m in my mid-twenties now, and I long ago donated my copies of the
original edition of this series to a local school library, but when I saw
that a new edition was being released, I had to pre-order and reread them
— and again find myself staying up later than I should to find out
what happens next and anxiously awaiting the release of each new book in the
series.

Even today, I remain grateful for the influence these books had on me. I
truly feel that my dreams of becoming a part of something important —
something freedom-giving and life-saving like the Underground Railroad in
the 1800s — have come true.

Lois’ stories — so full of adventure and characters I loved
— inspired in me a love for history. And I am so grateful. In
difficult choices, or when doing the right thing becomes dangerous or
costly, I am still reminded of the characters in Lois’ books and the real
heroes throughout history, who often paid a heavy price to do the right
thing when faced with the difficult choices of their time — and who
continually did the right thing until a better world was theirs.

Through the lens of history, I believe, we are enabled to see our own
time more clearly. And by looking back at history, we can know that we are
not alone in doing what is right — we are in great company with
Underground Railroad conductors, WWII resistance fighters, William
Wilberforce, ordinary people just like us who also believed in the justice
and freedom we believe in.

The characters Lois creates are always so easy to relate to, and their
adventures so exciting and enviable, that you find yourself immediately
pulled into the story — feeling angered by what angers them, learning
how to overcome fear with conviction and courage, hoping, grieving, and
praying right alongside them. The characters are never goody-goody, but very
real and interesting with the very same struggles and frustrations we all
face. By the end of the first book, I felt as if Caleb and Libby were my
best friends — who I so badly wished would somehow leap off the page
and join me in my own real life adventures.

If you’re a kid or teen, you’ll love these books — seriously, I
still do! If you’re the parent of a kid or teen, I highly recommend you
purchase these books for your kids. You may just help inspire a future
generation of Freedom Seekers.

I.E. Kingsley, author,

To Venture All