REVIEW: Love Letters from God by Glenys Nellist, illustrated by Sophie Allsopp

Ok, so this is a few days late on my goal of one review per week leading up to Christmas, but I think you'll find it was worth the wait.  The next title I had the privilege to review is Love Letters from God, which was written by Glenys Nellist and illustrated by Sophie Allsopp.

This book is phenomenal.  I can't say enough good things about it.  It's definitely not intended for a very young audience.  It says right on the front that it's a "lift-the-flap" book, which my Ellie loves.  But these aren't the kinds of flaps where animals peek out from behind bushes.  This is definitely geared toward an audience of at least age 6 and up.  This book contains 18 Bibles stories (9 old testament and 9 new) told in a brand new way.  The stories are written in a story-book style, reading almost like a fairy tale.  So not terribly different than a story Bible.  And somewhere on each page spread is a little section labelled "God's Wonderful Words to You" that shows the actual scripture that corresponds with the story.  That's nice to help connect the story to the actual Bible for older kids.

But then there are the flaps.  Oh, the flaps.

You open each one and inside is a letter, written from the perspective of God, telling about how He relates this story to YOU.  Never as a child do I remember learning that the Bible was for ME.  It was a book full of stories (and extra boring stuff) that would teach me how to be a good Christian, but never once did I think about putting MYSELF into the story.  These "love letter" flaps do just that.  Each one has a line that can be personalized with the child's name and sheds a whole new perspective on each story.  That's one of the reasons that I put the age so high - because while kids as young as 4 might like this book, I think older kids are the ones who will actually get the most out of it.  I also love the titles of the individual stories - calling the Crucifixion "The Saddest Story" and the Resurrection "The Happy Ending" is just so poetic to me.

*Spoiler Alert* 

The very last page of the book is super special.  There's an invitation - and yes, it's that kind of an invitation.

But it feels so right for it to be there.  It makes so much sense in the context of the letters in the book.  And then there is a space for the child to write their own love letter to God.  It's just such a great way to bring the book to an end.  Because the Resurrection really isn't the ending, although it is quite happy.  There's more to do and really finishes up bringing the child INTO the story and makes it their own.

OH and I almost forgot to mention the amazing illustrations!  They are gorgeous!  Honestly, there are so many layers and textures and tiny interesting details - I could look at them all day.  

Ok, enough gushing.  Final verdict: I LOVE THIS BOOK.  I've been telling people at church that we seriously need to give one to every child that walks in our front doors.  Because it will change the way they think about the Bible.  And it just might do the same for their parents that read it with them.  That's how good it is.  You really can't even appreciate it unless you see it in person.  Seriously - get it for your elementary-aged child or grandchild for Christmas.  You will not regret it.

Disclaimer: Zondervan provided me with a free copy of this book for reviewing purposes, but all opinions are 100% mine.

REVIEW: Pirates on the Farm by Denette Fretz, illustrated by Gene Baretta

I have a PILE of amazing books from Zondervan that I am so excited to review because they're all awesome!  I'm going to try to do one a week in preparation for Christmas!  First up is Pirates on the Farm, by Denette Fretz and illustrated by Gene Baretta.

Let me start off by saying that this book is FANTASTIC.  Before I tell you why, let me make it clear that this book is WAY out of Ellie's age range.  There's a fair amount of text on each paper page.  Hopefully she will soon be able to be trusted with paper page books, but still not quite yet.  And she's still too little to 'get' the moral of the story.  I'd say ages 4 and up will appreciate this story.  I won't put a top age on that because even I liked it and I'm 27 and a half.

Now, what makes it so great?  Oh, just everything.  I love the premise of the book - a group of pirates decides to retire and move to the country, next door to a down-to-earth farm family.  The kids struggle with how to 'love their neighbor' when their neighbors are so odd.  The story is silly, without resorting to childish or inappropriate humor.  The illustrations are vibrant and beautiful, but perfectly reflect the story's silliness without looking like a child or amateur drew them.  And the author does a fantastic job of driving the biblical point home without beating you over the head with scripture.

Check out the illustrations and my two other favorite 'features' of this book...

The bottom left image is found at the beginning of the book.  A cast of characters.  Like the maps at the beginning of Lord of the Rings or Chronicles of Narnia, I love this addition because it really helps you connect with the story a lot faster.  The author doesn't have to take extra time explaining who is who in the pictures when there's a map right in the beginning!  It's also helpful for parents to be able to answer the inevitable toddler questions.

The bottom right image is found at the end of the book.  It's a letter from the author to the parents.  She tells about her inspiration for writing the book AND empathy for the parents on how to teach these tough subjects to your kids.  If nothing else, it just makes you feel good and it was incredibly thoughtful of the author to include.  This book was clearly written with both the children AND the parents in mind and that's part of what makes it so refreshing.  I think the right pastor (*cough*dad*cough*) could preach a sermon using this book and pull it off quite well.  Yes, it's that good.

Ok, final verdict: I love this book.  I can't wait to share it with Ellie when she's old enough to care.  Right now, she likes looking at the pictures, but I don't trust her with the pages, so we put it on the special shelf.  But I can't recommend this book more highly.  It's adorable and silly and teaches such a fantastic message that you cannot overemphasize - love your neighbor!

Disclaimer: Zondervan provided me with a free copy of this book for reviewing purposes.  All opinions are 100% mine.

FYI: BOYS HATE TO SING!

So, in case you didn't know this, in addition to being a mommy-wife-secretary-blogger-taste tester (a what?), I also teach private music lessons (all piano students right now) two nights a week.

 I currently have 10 students and they are some of the best and most hilarious kids you'll ever meet.  And just last week, I FINALLY upgraded to having 2 boys!  One is in second grade and one is in third.  Last night, I had this conversation with one of them....

Me: Ok, so I want you to sing the note names along with me...

Boy: NO!

M: Let me guess, you don't like to sing?

B: NO I HATE SINGING!

M: Yeah, I hear that from a lot of boys and I've never been able to figure out why.  Why do you hate singing so much?

B: I DON'T KNOW I JUST DO!

M: Well that's not a good enough reason, so you're going to have to sing this with me...

B: NO!  I HATE SINGING!  I JUST DON'T WANT TO TELL YOU WHY!

M: Ok... I've always just been really curious why boys don't like to sing, are you sure you won't tell me?

B: NO!  IT'S A SECRET!

M: Ok, then you don't have to tell me.  And you don't have to sing.  Just SAY the note names in the correct rhythm.

B: I'M NOT TELLING YOU!  

M: That's ok, you don't have to.

B: IT'S JUST THAT IT'S A WORD THAT EVERYONE KNOWS EXCEPT FOR MAYBE BABIES.  SO LIKE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T TALK.  BUT EVERYONE ELSE KNOWS IT.

M: Ok, I officially have no idea what you're talking about.

B: I HATE SINGING!  BUT I CAN'T SAY THE WORD WHY!

M: Ok, that's fine, you don't HAVE to sing this, just say the right notes in the right rhythm with me.

B: Oh, ok then.  G-A-B-B-...

To protect his identity (since he was obviously crazy sensitive about this issue), I'm not going to tell you if it was the second or the third grader.  But does anyone have ANY idea what the heck he was talking about?  I told Andy about it and he was just as confused as I was.  But then again he was in special choir as a kid, so maybe he was left out of the secret word that everyone knows but no one can say that makes boys hate singing.

Never a dull moment around here!

Also, you might want to check on how many times you say 'ok' in the same conversation.  Wow.