One of the books that Zonderkidz sent me to review is My Bedtime Story Bible, written by Jean E. Syswerda and illustrated by Daniel Howarth.
It's a collection of Bible stories adapted for bedtime reading and each one is followed by a prayer starter. The stories are a little long for Ellie's attention span, but the pictures are vibrant and beautiful and she loves looking at each one. The pages are heavier than a standard book and have a lovely, glossy finish. But I don't always finish reading the text before she's ready to turn the page and I don't trust the pages to stand up to a one-year-old's roughness, so I'd say this book is best suited for 2-4 year olds.
My first impression of this book is that it's adorable. There are 28 different Bible stories told and each one has a beautiful, full-page illustration, followed by a full two-page illustration!
The stories are adapted for bedtime - meaning that, while the general gist of the story is there, some creative license is taken to talk about what it might have been like for these Bible characters to get tucked into bed. I have mixed feelings about this. For now, it's totally cute and not a problem at all. When Ellie starts getting a little older, I don't know how easy it will be to explain that the Bible doesn't actually talk about how Abraham and Sarah put baby Isaac to bed, but they were real people and they did have a real baby, so it could have been like this. I don't know, maybe I'm over thinking it, but I'm just picturing her taking it too seriously and going to church and telling her Sunday School teacher all about how Daniel cuddled with the lions when they went to sleep like little kittens. None of it is out of the realm of possibility and nothing goes against what scripture says. It's just important to note that these are adaptations of Bible stories, not word-for-word Biblical account.
Overall, I really do like this book. I always love thinking about the people in the Bible as real people who did things and said things and felt things that weren't documented in the Bible itself. The illustrations are gorgeous and the prayer starters are helpful. I didn't grow up saying prayers before bedtime, but it's a routine that we're already trying to start with Ellie. Having a starter right there in the story book is not only a great reminder, but a great transition between story and sleep. We will definitely be keeping this one around for later this year, as it becomes more age appropriate for Ellie, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone with a little one.
Disclaimer: Zondervan provided me with a free copy of this book for reviewing purposes.
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