cover image Riley Unlikely: With Simple Child-Like Faith, Amazing Things Can Happen

Riley Unlikely: With Simple Child-Like Faith, Amazing Things Can Happen

Riley Banks-Snyder, with Lisa Velthouse. Zondervan, $19.99 (192p) ISBN 978-0-310-34787-3

Banks-Snyder, founder and executive director of the nonprofit Generation Next, tells her story about tenaciously transforming passion into performance. At the age of 12, Banks longed to go to Africa to make a difference. While most teenagers simple muse about their ambitions, Banks put her plans into action. By 14, she had started Generation Next, which helped to fund the construction of a school in Kibwezi, Kenya. Alongside her nonprofit, Banks also runs a thrift shop and food pantry in Branson, Mo., to fund her missions’ projects. With the assistance and support of her parents, Banks fulfilled her goal to travel to Africa and, once in Kenya, a wealth of new ministry ideas was born. In an unexpected turn, Banks later found out that she was unable to have any children of her own due to a rare physical condition. The discovery was a severe blow to Banks, but she kept moving forward and focused on improving the lives of Kenyan children. This is a heartwarming tale of empathy, selflessness, and perseverance. (Sept.)