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Peril in the Palace and Revenge of the Red Knight: Book Reviews

By | August 15, 2011 | Reviews | 7 Comments
peril-in-the-palace1

I just finished reading books 3 and 4 in the Imagination Station series (Adventures in Odyssey).  Following the pattern of both Voyage with the Vikings (#1) and Attack in the Arena (#2), these two books were well-written, value-driven, and great for preteens.

In Peril in the Palace (book #3), the cousins Patrick and Beth are transported via the Imagination Station to China during Kublai Khan’s reign.  During their time there, they meet some famous travelers and engage in their share of danger, just like in the previous two books.  The authors fill the book with just enough suspense to keep the pages turning without being scary for young readers.  Beth and Patrick both show bravery in doing what’s right and standing up for what they believe in.  I thought it was interesting to introduce Mongol shamans and to expose their magic tricks for what they really were. However, I wonder if the book is making the matter of witchcraft and spells a little too harmless-looking.  In a time where the Wicca religion is rapidly growing, perhaps preteens need a stern warning about steering clear of this evil practice.

The length of the books is perfect for readers in the 6-10 range — providing lots of details and a rapid-pace plot.  I think both guys and girls would enjoy this series.  I was a little disappointed that book #3 ended in a “To Be Continued…” — seemed a little gimmicky to me, especially when book #4 didn’t seem to really live up to the hype Peril in the Palace seemed to promise.

In Revenge of the Red Knight (#4), the cousins find themselves in a cave after jumping in the Imagination Station, hoping to head back to Whit’s End.  Many of the mysteries from the first three books begin to work themselves loose as new details come to light in this book.  New mysteries emerge though with the discovery of a secret room and with the meeting of new characters.  Speaking of new characters, this book seemed to have a few too many characters to keep track of.  Between the knights, knaves, lords, ladies, and squires — it was hard to remember who was on what side (of course, this could be due to the fact that I’ve only been getting three hours of sleep with the additional of our new little one!).

This book was filled with it’s share of danger and suspense as well, though I don’t think it was as well written as the previous three books.  It didn’t seem to be as much as a page-turner as I was used to experiencing with the other books in this series.  Nonetheless, it certainly was worth the read and I would recommend it to any preteen or parent of preteen.  For under $5, it’s certainly worth buying for your kids!  Pick up your copy of Revenge of the Red Knight or Peril in the Palace today!

Want to to experience the books for yourself?  Leave a comment, telling me where you’d like to visit using the imagination station.  Contest will end Saturday, August 27th.  Sorry, we can only ship to USA residents.  Want more chances to win?  Leave a separate comment for each option you choose to do:

  1. Like “Growing Kids Ministry” on facebook
  2. Follow me (#lrwhitney) on twitter
  3. Like Tyndale House Publishers on facebook
  4. Retweet this contest using the button at the top of the post

Disclaimer: Tyndale House Publishers has provided you with a complimentary copy of these books.  The opinions expressed are my own.

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My Awesome God Bible: Review and Giveaway!

By | July 8, 2011 | Bible Study, Elementary Age, Parents, Preschoolers, Resources, Reviews | 16 Comments
bible

I had the privilege of reviewing “My Awesome God Bible Storybook” by DiscipleLand recently, and here’s what I thought:

What’s Good:

  • The illustrations were lively and interesting.  They were very modern and could easily keep a reader engaged.
  • In many instances, these pictures really brought the story to life. For instance, Abraham and Sarah look seriously old (p32) when Isaac was born (which they were!).  It’s nice to have a storybook illustration finally portray this.
  • This Bible included some lesser known, but important stories from the Bible, such as Rahab, Achan, Saul’s wrongful offering to the Lord, and passages from Nehemiah and Ezra. Even the mention of Cain and Abel is missing in many Bible storybooks, but it was included here.
  • I also liked the fact that My Awesome God Bible included some of the Psalms and almost the whole book of Acts. And THANK YOU for including Paul’s letters — it was a perfect approach for a storybook Bible, including the main points of the letters in an actual letter form.  It’s so hard when we turn to one of these passages in a “real Bible” during lesson time and our preschoolers with storybook Bible don’t have anything to turn to because the book isn’t even represented.  I’m really glad to see this isn’t the case in this version.
  • For some of the more common stories, page after page wasn’t devoted to the details.  For example, I’ve never understood why every day in creation and every single plague needed their own page while some very important books of the Bible or stories got completely skipped.  This storybook Bible condenses these typically drawn out stories to only a few pages, without skimping on important facts.
  • Some commonly misrepresented stories were correct in this Bible.  For example, Adam and Eve ate some unidentifiable fruit instead of an apple (finally!) and the wise men gave gifts to a walking toddler, not a baby in the manger.

What’s Not So Good:

  • Sometimes inferences are made that are not directly from Scripture, such as a person’s thoughts, motives, or feelings. For example, how do the authors know that Mary, mother of Jesus, was a very good housekeeper (p217).
  • Transitions in this book were very shaky.  It was often difficult to tell where one story ended and other began.  The reader has to do a double take to realize they’ve moved onto another story or another time-frame. Many people in the Bible were mentioned without any introduction or background information.  For a kid reading, this could be confusing.   (This happens quite a few times in this book).
  • Almost everyone in this book was super attractive, well-built, muscular, and well-groomed.  Even Job didn’t look so bad in the midst of his struggles.  Neither did the the lame man who apparently was able to work out quite a bit in his condition.  Not only is this unrealistic, but don’t our kids get enough of the “perfect body” imagery from the media already?

Um… I’m not Sure About…

  • A few of the illustrations were clearly not biblical, like the umbrella on Noah’s ship,the man using a kiln in the middle of the desert (p67), or the king’s men eating pizza and hot dogs at a banquet (p187). Also, there were weird little animals like lizards, turtles and mice everywhere. These quirky additions were probably meant to bring some modern relevance to the story or a smile to the reading adult, but I’m just not so sure about it.  I know we have to be really careful about what  we present to children.  Often, they have difficultly discerning the difference between real and imaginary, and I would hate for their first exposure to God’s Word to be full of false pictures.

Final Take

Great, great, great additional to any Children’s Ministry leader’s library.  Also, great thing for parents to pick up for their kids.  All in all, it’s pretty accurate and gives a great overview of the Bible.  I’ve been a big fan of the Read and Share Bible for some time, but I have found myself switching back and forth frequently between that and My Awesome God Bible during “The Big Story” story time program we’ve been running on Wednesday nights.  If you haven’t picked up a storybook Bible for your preschooler yet, this would be  a great book to invest in.

Time to Win!

Thanks to DiscipleLand.com, I’ve got three copies to give away to readers!  Here’s how to enter (you get one entry for each comment):

  1. Leave a comment, telling me what your favorite Bible story is.
  2. Follow me (@lrwhitney) on twitter and then leave a comment letting me know you did so.
  3. Like Growing Kids Ministry on Facebook and then leave a comment letting me know.
  4. Like DiscipleLand on Facebook and then leave a comment letting me know.
  5. Send me a Starbucks card (this will count as 10 entries) .  :)
  6. Contest ends July 20th.

Interested in buying one for yourself or ministry?  Head on over to DiscipleLand and pick one up for $19.95.

WINNERS: Michelle, Rachel and Pam!  I’ll be contacting you soon!

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What Your Daughter Isn’t Telling You: Book Review

By | July 1, 2011 | Parents, Resources, Reviews | Comments Off
Daughter

I found the book “What Your Son Isn’t Telling You” very insightful, so I decided to pick up the same type of book for the opposite gender.  A little while back I was running a pre-teen girl mentoring program and wanted a closer look at some of the typical issues girls this age were facing.  The book, “What Your Daughter Isn’t Telling You” by Susie Shellenberger and Kathy Gowler did a great job addressing this very thing.

Unlike the guy version of this book, “What Your Daughter…” didn’t focus mainly on sex and pornography.  Instead, it covered a wide range of topics and issues. A few examples include:

  • “Why Won’t She Talk To Me?”
  • Sex and Dating
  • Family Issues
  • “About Dad…”
  • Cutting and Eating Disorders
  • Drinking
  • Blending Families Situations

What’s Good About this Book:

  • Each chapter contains emails/letters from girls giving the reader a glimpse at a real-life situation
  • The authors suggest both proactive ways to prevent problems and ways to work on problems if they arise
  • Checklists and quizzes to help moms assess their relationship with their daughter
  • Simple activities a mom could do today to boost communication or bonding
  • Examples of tricky situations that could serve as great discussion starters between moms and daughters

What’s Not So Great:

  • This isn’t a super in-depth book.  Each topic is given a brief summary along with some suggestions to address the issues.  (Of course, this book doesn’t claim to be an in-depth analysis of teen problems either).

Overall, this is a great book for moms to pick up to become aware of some of the challenges teen (and preteen) girls face each day.  It strikes an excellent balance of being concerned and aware without becoming overprotective and suspicious of your teen.   I would definitely recommend it to moms of preteen girls or anyone who works with this age group.  Pick up your copy on Amazon or at Bethany House Publishers.

 

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The Almighty Bible: Genesis

By | May 27, 2011 | Bible Study, Reviews, Spiritual Milestones | 1 Comment
genesis

Bibles in comic book form seem to be pretty popular right now.  Previously I reviewed the Action Bible and now have the privilege at taking a look at two books in a new series from Apple of the Eye Publishing called The Almighty Bible.  I’ll be reviewing Genesis and Exodus on this blog. Eventually, every book of the Bible will be converted to this comic book form, so keep your eyes open for new releases!

On their website, the makers of the Almighty Bible stress that this version is biblically accurate and engaging for young people.  When I took a look at Genesis, here’s what I thought:

What’s Good:

  • I like the realistic nature of many of the stories.  For example, Noah’s ark is portrayed as the true human massacre that it was — not some cute nursery decoration.  Emotions are clearly exhibited in a way that makes the stories touch the heart of the reader.
  • The genealogy is included in this book, and portrayed in an interested manner.  Too often, things like this get skipped over when making picture Bibles.
  • Finally, some manly looking angels!
  • Love the fact that straight Scripture is used as the caption at the bottom of every page.  The passage reference is even included.  It like this much better than little speech bubbles in every frame.
  • The highly emotional faces of the Bible characters really helped the story come to life.  The illustrations (which were very well done) cause the reader to pause and reflect on the full story.  The picture of tears streaming down little Isaac’s face after the angel stopped Abraham from killing him has stuck with me for weeks.  It’s helped me to more fully understand what faith and obedience Abraham had to exhibit in that moment.
  • The illustrations were stunning.  I was a bit puzzled though why so many characters had funny colored hair.  A number of hand-maidens had blue hair, and I think I spotted a few green heads of hair as well.
  • The book was really complete.  Only a few verses were skipped between each page, allowing the reader to experience even the most obscure stories in the book of Genesis.  Too many picture Bibles skip around to the most popular or “big stories”.  This book has them all.

What’s Not So Good:

  • Though I like most of the realism, some of the intense details are a bit much for me — such as the bloody animal sacrifices  and bedroom scenes.  It seems a bit PG-13 to me at times.  I understand that the Bible itself is not G-rated, but when you put the stories in pictures, it takes it to a whole new level.
  • Some of the emotions portrayed in the storyline seem a bit subjective to me.  At times characters seem angry out of context (p63) or haughty when the Scripture doesn’t explicitly say that’s the case.  However, I do believe the authors tried their best to consider human nature and portray the most likely emotion for the storyline.
  • The name Yahweh is used throughout the book, but as far as I could see, there was no explanation about the significance of this name.  New readers to the Bible might not realize this was the Hebrew word for God.

A Few Other Things:

  • Kids can go to the website to play games, plant a prayer garden, and interact with the Bible in more ways.
  • You can also get these books for the Ipad or Iphone!
  • Again, the age these are geared at are a bit obscure.  I thought they were designed for teens, but it seems like teens should be beyond the “picture Bible” phase.  These would be good for preteens, but may be a bit graphic for especially sheltered kids.  For younger kids, it might be too much.  Few details are spared when it comes to battles, blood, death, or romance.  To a mature kid though, the illustrations would probably be fine.  Of course, it’s always a good idea for parents to browse through it first.

Conclusion

The first book in this series, Genesis, was certainly a page-turner.  Midway through the book, I really got into it and finished it in a single sitting.  I think the authors have done a wonderful job capturing Scripture in a way that is accurate, meaningful, and interesting.  Can’t wait to get started on Exodus!

Get Yours

You can pick up your own copy of Genesis on Amazon ($12) or on the Almighty Bible website ($18).  Great summer reading!

Disclaimer: I was provided with a free copy of this book in exchange for a review on this blog.  The opinions expressed are my own.

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Kids Devotional Bible

By | May 19, 2011 | Bible Study, Elementary Age, Resources, Reviews, Spiritual Milestones | Comments Off
devotional bible

There’s been a big push in our kids programs lately to get kids to bring and use their Bible at church (we’ve even started a Got Bible competition!).  However, we don’t want to stop there.  We want kids to begin to form a habit of daily Bible reading at home as well.  In order to do that, they need a Bible they can connect with and easily understand.  As a result, we’re constantly on a search for age-appropriate Bibles to recommend for parents.

In the process, we’ve come across some great Bibles and some great Bible tools.  One Bible I’m especially impressed with is the The Kids’ Devotional Bible by ZonderKidz.  Here’s some of the things I love about it:

  • Introductions to books are short and easy.  They usually tell the author of the book and some of the major stories.  Just enough to give kids a bit of background without bogging them down.
  • Daily Devotionals: Obviously, this was one of the big features in this Bible.  I like that each day has its own devotional, and kids have a place to check off when they have read/completed that day’s reading and thinking.   Usually there’s some kind of personal reflection included in the devotional and sometimes a follow-up action.
  • The Pictures: The graphics in this Bible are appealing to elementary kids and maybe even a bit older.  They are somewhat realistic and somewhat cartoony – a perfect mix for kids.  Most of the graphics are pictures of other kids (a pretty diverse bunch at that).  It would have been nice to see a few illustrations of the Bible stories along the way as well.   The length of the devotionals is just about perfect, especially when you consider the time it will take the kids to read the Scripture passage as well.
  • The Translation: I didn’t have any real experience with  NIrV  (New International Reader’s Version), but it seems to be pretty close to the NIV (accurate translation) and easy to understand for kids.
  • Got It! Section: At the end of some of the books is a Got It! Section that highlights an important theme in the book such as staying away from the occult, trusting in God when life doesn’t make sense, and repentance.  It’s a good way to cement in some crucial theology in a quick, concise way.
  • Real Life Stuff:  Some of the devotionals deal with some hard-hitting stuff such as abuse in the family, evil in the world, evangelism and persecution.  It’s presented in an age-appropriate way and seems like and effective way for kids to start thinking seriously about the role of God in their lives.  It also gives comfort and advice in hard to manage situations.
  • Cool Bible Tools: Of course, after our latest unit, I’m a pretty big sucker for Cool Bible Tools and this Bible has plenty of them!  They include: the Dictionary, Subject Guide (with page references to corresponding devotionals), and a place to take notes at the end.  Kids seem to love those Bible maps, so it would have been nice to see a few of those thrown in, but its certainly not worth complaining about.

All in all, a great buy and a two-thumbs up recommendation for the elementary age!

 

Other Posts You Might Like:

Helping Your Child Get Into the Bible

Read and Share Bible

Help Your Kid Love the Bible

What Bible is Best for My Child?

Bible.com – what’s this all about? (It’s actually a Bible, not a website!)

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What Bible is Best for my Child?

By | May 18, 2011 | Bible Study, Parents, Resources, Reviews, Spiritual Milestones | 1 Comment
Flickr by airgap

Parents often want to know which Bible is the best to get for their children.  The short answer is, whatever one they will read!   Feel free to try out a few.  It’s worth the investment.  Here are some of my personal favorites:

I recommend an easy to read translation Bible for your kids.  That’s top priority.  If it has some cool Bible tools in it such as devotionals, index, maps, etc – that’s a bonus.  Some easy to read translations include: NIV (New International Version), CEV (Contempary English Version), and TNIV (Today’s New International Version).    I would steer clear of “paraphrase” Bibles as your main Bible since it’s not a direct translation.  Paraphrase translations include NLT (New Living Translation) and the Message.

Cool Bible Tools: What’s that all about?

We’ve been learning about a lot of cool Bible tools in Kids for Christ.  The main ones are:

  • Atlases
  • Bible Translations
  • Concordances
  • Dictionaries

There are lots of cool Bible tools out there, many of which are now being made just for kids! Here are some of my favorites:

Most of these can be found on Amazon.  Be sure to leave a comment if you’ve found a great Bible or Bible tool!

 

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