All is Bright by Nancy Gunthrie
Due to a mix up with shipping, I didn’t receive this in time to use for Advent last year, so I’m saving it back to use this year. This devotional coloring book includes a family devotion and coloring page for every day of December, as well as additional activities and talking points in the back. The devotions are written by Nancy Gunthrie to provide the spiritual journey through the advent season and set the stage for each illustration.
The illustrations are detailed and thoughtful, ranging from abstract lines and swirls to hand lettered messages to pictures depicting the nativity. The pages are a nice quality great for coloring with pencils and markers. The size is big enough that several people could gather around the book to color together while still being small enough to be portable.
I can’t wait to go through this book in December, and I would recommend it to any family looking for a fun but meaningful coloring activity.
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Carol Wallace
As an English major in college, I loved grabbing a thick classic and sitting for hours reading. Now as a busy mom of two, it’s hard to find time to read big books like I used to. That’s why I was excited to receive a copy of this adapted version of the classic Ben-Hur story to read. I haven’t ever read the original or seen any film adaptation, so this was my first introduction to the story.
I was confused by the subtitle “A Tale of the Christ” since the story itself centers around a young Jewish man named Judah Ben-Hur. The text follows him through his journey of betrayal by his close friend Messala, exile and revenge, and eventually an encounter with Jesus that leaves him seeking a path of forgiveness instead. Although he does interact with Jesus, I didn’t feel like this was the main focus of the story, at least in this version.
The writing itself felt accessible to a wide range of modern audiences while still keeping some of what I assume to be the original language. While reading it, I definitely wanted to go back and read the original version to see what Lew Wallace actually wrote and if the more antiquated language would add to the richness of the plot. At times the story felt a bit flat, which is a downside of reading a condensed version of the original story.
All in all I found this to be an enjoyable read, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a more modern introduction to the story.
Please note that all pictures and opinions contained in this review are my own. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale publishers through the book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Since I started Bible journaling at the beginning of this year, I’m always looking for different translations to add to my library and study from. I was excited when I got the opportunity to receive a copy of the 
I have been excited to read from this translation, so this was a great opportunity to start. Here is a description from the publisher about the translation itself: “HCSB employs a translation philosophy known as Optimal Equivalence, which seeks to achieve an optimal balance of linguistic precision with contemporary clarity. In the many places throughout Scripture where a word-for-word rendering is clearly understandable, a literal translation is used. In places where a word-for-word rendering might obscure the meaning for a modern audience, a more dynamic translation is favored. This process assures that both the words and thoughts contained in the original are conveyed as accurately as possible.“
These Bibles are beautiful and well made. Each margin is lightly lined to help guide notetaking, and even some of the blank pages are fully lined to offer more space for writing. The Bibles include the HCSB notes in the back, a concordance, and full-color maps. Each Bible lays flat when open to make it easier to study and write on a flat surface.
I especially like that these Bibles are single column, which makes it easier to take notes right next to the verse you are studying. As far as size comparison, this Bible is bigger than my ESV double column, but smaller and lighter than my Inspire Bible. As with all journaling Bible, the pages are fairly thin and would require pens and highlighters that won’t bleed through. My favorite pens to use are Micron pens and gel highlighters, which neither of these will bleed through the page.
Overall, I highly recommend these Bibles to anyone looking for an HCSB journaling Bible for notes or creative journaling.
It’s been a long time since I have had time to actually sit and read, so I was excited to get the opportunity to read Priscilla Shirer’s new young adult book The Prince Warriors. I was pleasantly surprised by the size of this book and the texture of the hardcover; it’s very appealing to hold this book in my hands, and I immediately wanted to begin reading. This is the first book in a new trilogy of young adult fantasy Christain fiction, and here’s the description from the publishers: 
As I started reading, this book immediately grabbed my attention and made me want to keep reading. It didn’t take me very long to get through as an adult, and I would think that an interested young reader would be able to read through it pretty quickly too. The writing is very descriptive and uses a wide variety of vocabulary. Some of the harder names and words are given definitions and phonetic pronunciations within the text to help readers with unfamiliar terms. This so helpful for the fantasy names, as well as more difficult words for the younger readers. Although the publisher recommends for ages 8 and up, I think for 9 and up is more accurate, especially since one of the main characters, Evan is 9 while the rest of the characters are around 11-12 years old.
The story itself is very creative and a great allegory for the armor of God and the spiritual battle without beating you over the end with “Christian metaphors.” The action flows naturally and is enjoyable to read. Most of the characters are well-rounded, especially the boys, which I think makes it even that much more relatable for boy readers. The only character that seemed a bit on the flat side was the main female girl, Brianna. She’s a little wimpy and a little too over the top “girly,” and it would have been nice to see her as a stronger female representation as compared to the male characters. However, I’m interested to see how all of the characters will develop over the course of the trilogy. 
Life Verse Creative Journals by Jana Magruder and Morgan Grace Magruder is a set of two journals that helps you to creatively explore different passages of scripture through writing and drawing prompts. The first journal has pre-drawn illustrations and prompts to guide you through scripture and prayer to help discover meaningful verses to you. The second journal is filled with blank unlined pages to help you continue your writing and illustrating journey through prayer and scripture.
I was eager to receive this set and pleasantly surprised at the compact size of the journals. This set would be great for carrying along with your Bible as a tool to help you creatively explore God’s word. The illustrations inside the first journal are beautiful and great for coloring. They could even be used to trace into a journaling Bible. My favorite illustration was a stack of tea cups, but all of the drawings are inspiring; as soon as I opened this, I wanted to sit down to write and color and paint.
There is a good mix of drawings, hand-lettered verses, prompts, and blank space for writing. Each page is unique and different. One page even encouraged you to add in your own doodles amongst the ones already there on the page. Even the covers on both of these encourage coloring and more artwork. This set is definitely more than just a coloring book, though; it is an intentional creative exploration through several different beloved verses. The journaling prompts are not super in-depth, but they offer a great variety and the blank journal makes a good complement to do more in-depth study if you desire.
Here’s the description from the publisher: “This adorable edition of God’s Word for girls features the easy-to-understand New Living Translation text with a soft-fur, bright-neon LOVE design and silver glittery lining. The BOLD FAITH design on the back cover encourages girls to live out their faith in ways that bring God glory. This hardcover deluxe edition also features purple page edges, neon orange ribbon marker, special presentation page, 8 pages of full-color maps, and a 53-page dictionary/concordance to help locate passages on various topics. The New Living Translation text is excellent for young readers because it is so clear and they can understand what they are reading! When they can read and understand God’s Word, God can work in their hearts!”
Not only do the outer and inner covers of this Bible feature fun colors and textures, but it also encourages young girls to Be Bold in their faith. And you have to be bold to carry around a teal and pink fuzzy Bible!
The size is prefect for carrying around to church or slipping into a backpack or purse. It is not heavy at all, and the text is still very readable despite being on the smaller side. The extra material in the back includes Concordance/Dictionary, One Year Reading Plan, Great Chapters to Read and Verses to Memorize, and maps.
I really like the suggested chapters to read and verses to memorize, because it’s a great way for teens to navigate the Bible on their own. This section gives the reader the ability to look up helpful verses by topic to help see what God’s word says about what she is currently struggling with.
Another great feature of this Bible is that it lays flat. That way you can lay it on a desk or table to read without having to worry about losing your spot if you walk away. This also makes it easier to read with this Bible on your lap in church and take notes.
I’m really impressed with the Girls Slimline NLT Bible, and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun and functional Bible for a teen girl (or for yourself, let’s be honest). I’ll be posting later this week about how I have been personally using this Bible in my daily devotions. This Bible also comes in multiple cover options, if pink fuzzy neon covers aren’t quite you’re style.
I Can Learn To Pray by Holly Hawkins Shivers (illustrated by Becka Moor). This book from Thomas Nelson Publishers is a 52 week devotional centered around teaching your children how to develop a closer relationship with God through prayer. There are 7 topical sections that break prayer down week by week, starting with learning what prayer is and how to pray, and then covering topics such as “thank you prayers” (prayers of thanksgiving), “help prayers” (praying for others), and “Jesus prayers” (prayers from Scripture).
From the back cover it says that author Holly Hawkins Shivers, “a mother gifted at connecting with kids, makes every discussion engaging and relatable, and helps young believers grow leaps and bounds in their faith.”
This book is as cute as it is practical. Fun illustrations are scattered throughout to highlight important concepts from the text.
Although my daughter is a little young for this book, I can’t wait for when she’s old enough to understand and we can go through this book together as a family. Each devotion has a description and a practical application that guides young children, with the help of their parents, through the act of prayer. The writing is age appropriate for kids 4-8 years old, but I think even older kids and parents would find just as much enjoyment from this book as younger kids. I would highly recommend this book for parents looking for a fun and practical devotion to guide their children through prayer.
Read With Me Bible for Little Ones by Doris Wynbeek Rikkers (illustrated by Dennis G. Jones). This books from Zonderkids (Zondervan) is a padded cover board book full of colorful and bold cartoonish illustrations that highlight 8 stories from the Bible.
From the back cover “The Read With Me Bible for Little Ones is the perfect way to introduce the Bible to young children. Featuring simple language and vibrant, full-color illustrations by Dennis Jones, this action-packed padded cover board book is a great way to jump-start literacy and a love of the Bible.”
As soon as I opened this book, I knew my daughter would love it. The illustrations are bold and unlike what you would find in most board books. “Action-packed” is a great way to describe the drawings that almost resemble a comic strip style. I could definitely see this book being very appealing to young boys, as well as girls.
And I love any book that introduces the Bible in an easy to understand format to young children! This will be another great book to add to our bedtime reading rotation.
I highly recommend this book, and I can’t wait to give this to my daughter for her birthday. She will love flipping through the colorful pages just as much as listening to the important truths found in this book.
Today’s Tuesday Review features the 
It includes a small dictionary in the back for kids to look up some Biblical terms. Based on the design and included material, I would say this would be a good Bible for young readers, ages 6-10. I like that the 
Today begins a new feature on this blog: book reviews! I am now a book reviewer for several Christian book publishers, and I am excited to share with others my reviews of some new books in the coming weeks! I will be doing this on Tuesdays at least once a month, so make sure to follow my blog to receive emails when a new post goes up!
This book is the same size and texture as some of my daughter’s other favorite bedtime board books, and I can’t wait to give this to her for Easter! Because this is a board book, she will be able to turn the pages on her own without damaging them. The stories are short enough that it will keep my 19 month olds’ attention as we read one a night together at bedtime, and I know she will enjoy looking at the bright pictures. I love books like this that can introduce Bible stories to my child at a young age in an easy-to-understand format.
Because there are only eight different mini-stories in this book, however, I can predict from the parent’s perspective getting bored after awhile cycling back through the stories quickly, but such is the nature of children’s books. Luckily we have more than one bedtime book, so this will make a great addition to our rotation. As she gets older, she will be able to participate more with the “Tuck In” activity, so I like that we will be able to use this book for a few years.
Yesterday I received my free advance copy of the new 
The hardcover has the butterfly pattern on the endpapers, which initially drew me to this Bible when I first saw it a couple of weeks ago, since butterflies are one of my favorites. There is an imitation leather version with a fully-illustrated cover and simpler design on the endpapers as another option.
The actual pages of the Bible are still thin compared to normal coloring books, but slightly thicker than my ESV double column journaling Bible. You can see some shadowing of the pre-printed illustrations, but I didn’t find this too bothersome. On the blank pages, the margins are lined, and on pages with illustration, the margins are unlined. The Inspire Bible is also about an inch taller, since it is single column and the font size is larger at 8.65 point font. Since this is my first single column journaling Bible, I don’t know how it would compare to other single column versions.
Another thing that I was happily surprised about was the Index of illustrations in the back. This is very useful for finding each page with an illustration in both the Old and New Testaments.
The New Testament had more full page illustrations in it than the Old Testament, including the only two-page one-illustration spread (there are other places in which illustrations are on a two-page spread, but they are two separate illustrations).
Another thing I liked about the illustrations themselves is that they vary in style throughout the Bible. Florals, birds, lettering, scrolls, hand-drawn scenes, mini castles, crowns, sheep, and even a deer are just some of the things to be found. But there is also plenty of space to add my own illustrations, lettering, embellishments, and journaling. There are over 400 illustrations according to the publisher, which is only about one-third of this Bible. For the most part there was a good balance between blank and illustrated pages, but some parts in the Old Testament I noticed were a bit sparse on the illustrations, while the New Testament is on the heavier side for the illustrations to blank pages ratio.
Overall, I highly recommend the Inspire Bible, and had I not received it for free by winning their contest, I would have eventually purchased it myself. To order your own Inspire Bible from Amazon, click 
Kountingsheep 