Book Review: Read and Share Toddler Bible

I recently received to read and review The Read and Share Toddler Bible with bible stories retold by Gwen Ellis and illustrated by Steve Smallman. I was very impressed with this children's book. First, I must say it is a great idea. Children love hearing about bible stories but hearing them read aloud from an actual bible can be hard to understand and follow along. This stories are shortened and summarized using child friendly vocabulary and concepts. I loved the story about Adam and Eve and the Sneaky Snake. In this story, God tells them that eating fruit off a certain tree is a "no-no". I loved the use of the phrase "no-no", because so many of us parents use it on a daily, sometimes hourly basis. I think children can relate to this vocabulary better than telling them it is a forbidden tree.

I read this book in segments to my 11 month old daughter. She really just wanted to play with the pages but overall enjoyed our time reading it together. I think this book will be a great opportunity for us to read and bond together as she grows up. I prefer to read her books that are educational or have moral values. I love concept of taking bible stories and making them into short children's stories. This is exactly the type of reading material I enjoy sharing with her. I wish the book could have had pages made of cardboard so my daughter could read it alone, otherwise she will tear out the pages. I realize this is unreasonable for such a long children's book, but I have to criticize something about it.

I really enjoyed the illustrations by Steve Smallman. They are beautifully colorful and detailed. My daughter kept touching the pictures on each page as we were reading it. The people in the pictures have a cartoon like quality about them that make them more fun and appealing to children while they still look like real people with historical significance.

I definitely recommend this book for children.