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You are here: Home / Archives for Reviews

Reviews

The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories: A Review

Alissa Ellett 2 Comments

Bible in 365 Stories

The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories is one of so many children’s Bibles. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the variety and unsure which is best for your bookshelf. So, here at ICM, we’ve compiled our thoughts in this blog series where we’ll be reviewing some of today’s most popular children’s Bibles. Once you find your fave children’s Bible, check out our post on ways of reading scripture with your kids to get the most out of it!

The Children's Bible in 365 Stories 1

Quick Facts about The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories

  • 416 pages
  • Author: Mary Batchelor
  • Illustrator: John Haysom
  • Storybook format (a retelling of some of the Bible)
  • Age Range: 8-12 years old

A Closer Look

To begin, there’s no perfect choice for all children everywhere or even for your own child. Each children’s Bible is a mixture of aspects to love and those that invite palm to forehead moments. So, in this series of reviews, we’ll always include what we think to be the pros and cons of each Bible. And we’ll discuss whether or not we’d recommend it to our friends. So, let’s dive in and take a closer look at The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories.

The Children's Bible in 365 Stories-04

Pros of The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories

Table of Contents Included: It has a very clear table of contents, which makes finding stories easy.

Classic Stories Included: It includes all the classic stories you’d hope for from a children’s Bible.

Biblical Passages Cited: Each story gives the biblical passages from which the author drew. As a result, biblical literacy increases, and reference is easy.

Appropriately Illustrated Characters: Figures are shown with olive skin and dark hair, honoring the Bible’s Middle Eastern context.

Digestible Story Length: One to two chapters of scripture are paraphrased into a handful of paragraphs for each day of the calendar year.  So, it’s easy to hold young readers’ attention.

Appropriate Font Size: The font is large enough for relatively new readers to read easily but small enough for whom the bible is intended.

Clearly Laid Out: The format is easy to follow and simply composed. Titles of stories are obvious, it follows the organization of Hebrew and Greek Testaments, and each day’s scripture is accompanied by a number 1-365.

Lack of Interpretation: At the end of each story there is no prayer or commentary. As a result, parents and ministry leaders create content appropriate to their context.

The Children's Bible in 365 Stories-04

The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories

Exclusively Masculine Language for God: As we’ve written in past reviews, God is neither male nor female but possesses a nature far more complex and integrated. Consequently, if we are to use one gender to metaphorically describe God, we must use all genders. If not, using non-gendered language for God is ideal. This is standard practice in most seminaries; there is no reason it shouldn’t be common practice in the pulpit and faith education of young ones.

Unclear Illustrations: The illustrations are gestural in style. As a result, they are at times a bit hard to decipher. The reader may struggle in these instances to put together what is happening and who is who.

Unfamiliar Story Titles: Some of the story titles are not the most commonly used. Difficulty can arise when children transition to an adult bible when they aren’t familiar with the story titles.

No Name Plate Included: Without a nameplate, gifting this bible to children within a church ministry would be less than ideal.

The Children's Bible in 365 Stories-04

Conclusion

None of us will find THE Bible that nails it all for us, of course. The Children’s Bible in 365 Stories has some good things going for it and some less than ideal aspects, also. The inclusion of a clear table of contents and the classic stories, appropriate illustrations, and font size along with digestible story length, a clear layout, and lack of interpretation are all positive aspects. The challenges lie in the exclusivity of masculine language for the Divine, unclear illustrations, unfamiliar story titles, and the lack of a nameplate. For use at home or one-on-one in Sunday school, this may be a good choice. Conversations about illustrations and language can more easily happen there. On the whole, we would recommend this Bible. If you’re willing to do some added work through intentional conversation, it could be a good fit for you.

We hope this review has been helpful. Share what children’s Bibles you have and love in the comments below!

Children of God Storybook Bible: A Review

Alissa Ellett 1 Comment

Children of God Storybook Bible is one of so many children’s Bibles. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the variety and unsure which is best for your bookshelf. So, here at ICM, we’ve compiled our thoughts in this blog series where we’ll be reviewing some of today’s most popular children’s Bibles. Once you find your fave children’s Bible, check out our post on ways of reading scripture with your kids to get the most out of it!

Children of God Storybook Bible

Quick Facts about Children of God Storybook Bible

  • 128 pages
  • Author: Archbishop Desmond Tutu
  • Illustrators: 20 renowned artists from around the world
  • Storybook format (a retelling of some of the Bible)
  • Age Range: 4-8 years old

A Closer Look

To begin, there’s no perfect choice for all children everywhere or even for your own child. Each children’s Bible is a mixture of aspects to love and those that invite palm to forehead moments. So, in this series of reviews, we’ll always include what we think to be the pros and cons of each Bible. And we’ll discuss whether or not we’d recommend it to our friends. So, let’s dive in and take a closer look at Children of God Storybook Bible.

Children of God Storybook Bible

Pros of Children of God Storybook Bible

Name Plate Included: It contains a nameplate for gifting it to a child. A parent, children’s director, teacher, or family member would appreciate this.

Engaging Illustrations: This children’s Bible includes 20 internationally recognized illustrators’ work that’s beautiful.

Inclusively Illustrated Characters: Desmond Tutu invited illustrators to depict their own heritage in the stories. As a result, biblical characters are not all culturally accurate. However, this is fundamentally different than depicting all characters inaccurately as Caucasian. For, here it is done with the purpose of intentional inclusion rather than unintentional exclusion. Archbishop Desmond Tutu strives in this work to tell all children we each have a place in God’s story. Thus, we’ve included this as a pro.

Table of Contents Included: It has a very clear table of contents, which makes finding stories easy.

Classic Stories Included: It includes all the classic stories you’d hope for from a children’s Bible.

Digestible Story Length: With the exception of a few 4-pagers, all stories are 2 pages. So, it’s easy to hold young readers’ attention and integrate reading into faith education.

Biblical Passages Cited: Each story gives the biblical passages from which the author drew. This raises biblical literacy and makes for easy cross-referencing.

Familiar Titles: The stories have titles that are easily correlated with those in the Bible.

Ending Prayers: Each story ends with a short prayer. They either thank God or ask for God’s help and reinforce a theme from the story.

Audio Versions Available: This children’s Bible is available on CD and Audible, which would be great for use in the car, classroom, or at home.

Children of God Storybook BibleCons of Children of God Storybook Bible

Small, Obscured Page Numbers: First, the book’s page numbers are small, ultra-light, and printed over the illustrations. So, they can be difficult to see.

Gendered Language for God: Children of God Storybook Bible refers to the Divine as “he.” However, God is not male or female. All language for the Divine is metaphorical. Therefore, if we use one gender for God, then it follows that we would use all genders. If not, using non-gendered language for God is ideal. Most seminaries require this. Thus, there is no reason it shouldn’t be common practice in the pulpit and faith education of young ones.

Somewhat Deceptive Marketing: Zondervan placed a sticker on the front cover that says, “Free Audio Downloads at ChildrenofGodBible.com.” However, one is allowed only two free downloads out of the fifty-six stories in Children of God Storybook Bible. Readers may purchase the others.

Children of God Storybook Bible

Conclusion

To conclude, Children of God Storybook Bible has a lot going for it. First, it has a nameplate for easy gifting. Second, it has engaging and inclusive illustrations. Third, it has a table of contents for easy reference. Fourth, it includes all the classic stories, and they’re a digestible length. Fifth, it gives biblical passages for each story and uses familiar titles. Sixth, it offers short prayers with each story. Seventh, it has audio versions available.

Yet, Children of God Storybook Bible also possesses elements that could detract from it. First, its page numbers are hard to read, which makes finding stories challenging at times. Second, it uses only male language for God. Third, it includes a potentially misleading sticker on its front cover for free audio downloads.

Because we find this children’s Bible has far more pros than cons, we would recommend it. We would simply change the male language to be inclusive when reading aloud. And we’d use it as an opportunity to speak with children about it. For example, we’d discuss the power of our language, what it can communicate and why God is so often referred to as male.

We hope this review has been helpful and has given some food for thought. Share what children’s Bibles you have and love in the comments below!

The Jesus Storybook Bible: A Review

Alissa Ellett 5 Comments

The Jesus Storybook Bible is one of so many children’s Bibles. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the variety and unsure which is best for your bookshelf. So, here at ICM, we’ve compiled our thoughts in this blog series where we’ll be reviewing some of today’s most popular children’s Bibles. Once you find your fave children’s Bible, check out our post on ways of reading scripture with your kids to get the most out of it!

Jesus Storybook BibleQuick Facts about The Jesus Storybook Bible

  • 352 Pages
  • Author: Sally Lloyd-Jones, Illustrator: Jago
  • Storybook format (a retelling of some of the Bible)
  • Age Range: 4-8 years old
  • Bestseller on Amazon
  • The Moonbeam Award Gold Medal Winner

A Closer Look

There’s no perfect choice for all children everywhere or even for your own child. Each children’s Bible is a mix of aspects to love as well as those that invite palm to forehead moments. In this series of reviews, we’ll always include what we think to be the pros and cons of each Bible and whether or not we’d recommend it to our friends. So, let’s dive in and take a closer look at The Jesus Storybook Bible.

Jesus Storybook Bible

Pros of The Jesus Storybook Bible

Engaging Illustrations: Award-winning illustrator Jago produces dynamic, vibrant illustrations. They’re beautifully expressive, engaging, and simple in presentation.

Digestible Story Length: The stories, which are retold compilations of several chapters, are short. This aspect makes it easy to hold the attention of young readers.

Table of Contents Included: Having a table of contents makes for easy reading, especially if a child has favorites they like to return to repeatedly.

Classic Stories Included: All the classic stories you’d hope for from a children’s Bible are included here.

Name Plate Included: The first page contains a nameplate for gifting it to a child. A parent, children’s director, teacher, or family member would appreciate this.

Compact Size: This children’s Bible is medium-sized (6.6 x 1 x 7.9 inches). It is small enough to stow in a child’s backpack for church or travel.

Appropriately Illustrated Characters: Figures are shown with olive skin and dark hair, honoring the Bible’s Middle Eastern context.

Biblical Passages Cited: Each retelling of a biblical story gives the biblical passages from which the author drew. This increases biblical literacy and makes for easy cross-referencing.

Jesus Storybook Bible

Cons of The Jesus Storybook Bible

Unfamiliar Story Titles: While the story titles are creative and fun, they aren’t the names we normally associate with biblical stories. This can make it difficult to find a particular story. Additionally, a child may struggle to make the connection between stories as they age and begin reading out of a complete Bible.

Imposed Narrative: In The Jesus Storybook Bible, the thread that holds all the stories together is Jesus. This for some is the biggest selling point. However, this was not the intention of the biblical authors. Furthermore, imposing the narrative of Jesus’ life and mission onto the Hebrew scriptures can present problems. To mention just one, such theology can easily lead to anti-Semitic thinking. That is, one can argue that Jews don’t know how to interpret their own holy texts and are “missing the point.”

Exclusively Masculine Language for God: God is neither male nor female but possesses a nature far more complex and integrated. If we are to use one gender to metaphorically describe God then we must use all genders. If not, using non-gendered language for God is ideal. This is standard practice in most seminaries; there is no reason it shouldn’t be common practice in the pulpit and faith education of young ones.

Inaccurate Biblical Account: Lloyd-Jones takes much creative license in her retelling. Consequently, there are inaccuracies in the biblical stories. For example, the story of Adam and Eve names the serpent Satan, a fallen angel. Satan asks Eve, “Does God really love you?” To begin, the biblical text doesn’t name the serpent Satan. Furthermore, the serpent doesn’t ask that question of Eve. Moreover, it’s debatable, non-biblical mythology that assumes the character of Satan is a fallen angel. Throughout The Jesus Storybook Bible, several of these unsound portrayals exist.

Jesus Storybook Bible

Conclusion

Children’s Bibles are all different, each with good qualities. And The Jesus Storybook Bible has some things going for it. The illustrations are beautiful and portray the characters appropriately. Its stories are short, and it includes all the classics. It contains a table of contents, scripture references, and a nameplate. And it’s an easy size to take along places.

However, there are several key things that take away from it. First, the story titles are unfamiliar. This can slow learning and make it difficult to find the desired story. Second, Lloyd-Jones weaves the life of Jesus into every story of the Hebrew scriptures. Third, Lloyd-Jones uses gendered language for God that is exclusively male. Fourth and finally, there are several inaccuracies in the stories. When teaching children, we hope to give them an understanding of their faith that invites little undoing and relearning. Enough of life’s events invite that through theological reflection without wild misunderstanding of scripture. In conclusion, in spite of it being a best seller on Amazon and a gold medalist in The Moonbeam Awards, we wouldn’t recommend The Jesus Storybook Bible.

We hope this review has been helpful and has given some food for thought. Share what children’s Bibles you have and love in the comments below!

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