Growing up Southern and Baptist in Eastern Kentucky, Elizabeth Hancock's world revolved around Sunday School, foreign missions projects, revival meetings and of course, the Kentucky Wildcats, who “glorified God through their goal-shattering, soul-shattering play.” Hancock chronicles her childhood misadventures with sardonic wit, detailing her and her sister Meg's mischievous — if harmless — abuses of power (stealing Guess jeans from the Africa donation box, or hawking backyard swimming pool baptisms during her neighborhood's annual yard sale) and lovingly recalling the wisdom imparted by her long-suffering parents as they ministered to their unruly flock. Trespassers Will Be Baptized marks the arrival of a talented new voice in a coming of age story that is by turns comical and affecting.
