Classic Bible Storybook by Kenneth N. Taylor

Classic Bible Storybook by Kenneth N. Taylor

Illustrations: Richard and Frances Hook

Geared Towards: Ages 4+

Published By: Tyndale Kids

Publication Date: March 2009

ISBN: 978-1-4143-0769-5

It's while our kids are in preschool and early elementary, all very impressionable ages, that we as parents, grandparents, and teachers want to work to instill our core values and beliefs in them. That's why it's important for every Christian family to have a great kid friendly Bible that the family can enjoy together. Older kids can obviously manage just fine with a regular children's Bible, but those at a younger age level are more likely to enjoy something with a little more interest appeal than a book with all words and no pictures on the pages. There are lots of different options out there to choose from depending on what style exactly one is looking for. I think, however, that parents like myself are going to discover the Classic Bible Storybook by Kenneth N. Taylor and find that it blows most of the others out of the water.

The Classic Bible Storybook actually reminds me a lot of a hardback storybook style Bible my family had when I was growing up. Even something about the roughly drawn, realistic illustrations takes my memories back to the Bible from my childhood. In all likelihood they're probably nothing alike, but just the feel one gets from looking at them seems to make you take a stepback and really enjoy them. (Which is what I did with the ones when I was a kid.) One key difference that I can recall though is the size. The one from when I was a little girl was massive. There was no way a young child could have held it to read on his/her own without much difficulty. Taylor's 2009 release is also a beautiful hardback, but it's compact and really pretty manageable - even for my 3-year old. And this is all just the book's appearance...

The actual meat and potatos of the book are obviously, the stories and the way they are written. With 121 in all you can read a new story each day if you wanted, and in the course of a year you'd cycle through the complete book three times. Talk about a great way to reinforce the stories and lessons! I loved how easy to read and comprehendable the stories are. Written in a way that is easy for young children to understand and enjoy, all of these timelessly great Bible stories are perfect for reading aloud or even quietly on one's own. Parents will appreciate that the author references each story's original book, chapter, and verses so there is no doubt where the stories come from. Older children and parents may enjoy going back to the regular Bible to look up and read the stories directly from there as well. Plus at the end of each story the author has included a small handful of comprehension questions to help draw the child out to discuss what he/she learned from the story.

The Classic Bible Storybook is the perfect package inside and out. Truly deserving of the name Classic, I see this book being cherished and passed down from generation to generation. I certainly hope for that to be the case in my family.

OUR RATING: 5 hearts