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No child is too young to begin learning about the greatest love story of all-God's love for his people, as portrayed in the Bible. David R. Helm and Gail Schoonmaker collaborate to create a beautifully illustrated book of Bible stories especially for children, written with simplicity. Rather than simply retelling the most familiar short scenes from the Bible, this book presents the "big picture"-the unified story running through the Old and New Testaments. This delightful book will help children learn the Bible's whole story and begin to appreciate the fulfillment of God's promise to his people.
The Big Picture Bible Story Book is perfect for parents to read to their children, and eventually, for children to read on their own. It is an excellent way to introduce them to a book that will guide them through all of life.
Good Pick for the 2-3 Year Old SetReviewed by Jennifer Bogart, 2010-02-25
Our family loves picture Bibles, and in a home filled with children
ranging from one to six years old, it's pretty easy to see why. The
Big Picture Story Bible is both one of the more substantial picture
Bible's we own while also somewhat paradoxically being one of the
shortest in length. With 453 hardcover bound pages and measuring
around 9 x 9 inches, The Big Picture Bible is big.
Not only is this popular children's Bible filled with big pictures,
but it also focuses on the big picture of God's over-arching plan
for redemption through His Son that is present from beginning to
end of the Bible. Focusing on the themes of Jesus' Kingship, God's
holy book, and God's special place, young children are given a
fly-by voyage through the sections of scripture that best
illuminate these themes.
Retold in author David Helm's words in an easy-to-read font and
vocabulary at a grade 2/3 level, this Bible is easy for the
two-and-three-year-old crowd to understand and dig into when read
aloud, as well as being simple for early readers to move through
under their own steam.
One of my favorite aspects about this Bible is that Helm skillfully
depicts the endless disobedience of God's people, his loving
discipline, and the arrival of the Holy Spirit to finally change
the hearts of God's chosen people. Scripture references aren't
provided for the 26 parts of this title, which is likely because of
the huge sweep across time
The Big Picture Story Bible is easy to read through quickly to
provide small children with some `hooks' for future biblical
knowledge. Whenever I came to the end of a section, my little ones
asked for another, and another; each part can be read aloud in
approximately 15-20 minutes. Helm integrates questions into the
text that ask children what they think is going to happen next, and
prompt them to remember events that have already occurred. My
daughter's love contributing their thoughts, so this was one of
their favorite parts of our daily readings.
My oldest daughter is more familiar with the full body of Bible
stories and the details associated with them, so she was
disappointed when her favorite details and stories were skipped
over in this overview. She'd suddenly announce, "Hey, that's not
fair! They just skipped the part about the golden calf!" as we read
about Moses and the Ten Commandments. Helm does write in broad
sweeps and leaves much uncovered - if your children are really into
detail, this likely isn't the best choice for you, but for
preschoolers unfamiliar with the larger plan and scope of
salvation, this is a friendly, engaging option.
Illustrator Gail Shoonmaker's brings the text to life with large,
loose watercolors with clearly delineated pencil borders. They
created a lot of interest for my younger children, who were always
asking what was going on in the pictures. The jewel-toned paintings
feature some great points-of-view, showing worshippers looking up
to heaven as though from God's perspective looking down, of those
surrounding the cross as though from the perspective of Christ, and
so on. The characters are depicted in mainly Caucasian skin tones
(always a annoyance), and the highly stylized hair on some people
was a bit distracting. Those two points aside, we all greatly
enjoyed Shoonmaker's work that so enlivens the simple text.
The Big Picture Story Bible is a great choice for parents of
children with short attention spans who are just cutting their
teeth on picture Bibles. With an average of four sentences on each
page, and lots to look at visually, there's no way little ones will
lose interest as the story proceeds. My children always scamper
over to the couch when I open its pages, and I'm sure yours will
too.
Very PleasedReviewed by seeking His heart, 2010-02-21
The Big Picture Story Bible is a wonderful hardback book with
amazing illustrations. Children of all ages will enjoy this
beautiful book. There is over 400 pages of simplified-yet
accurate-Bible stories.I really appreciate how this story Bible
includes the more sobering events. Many children's Bibles only have
the warm-fuzzy stories, and I believe chlren need to know the whold
picture. The Word of God is just as powerful in the life of a young
child as it is to an adult. My children love the brightly colored
illustrations. I have to admit this is the first Bible sotry book
that leaves me completely satisfied.
This book was provided by Crossway Books for review.
A Great Overview of the Story of Redemption for ChildrenReviewed by Barbara Carpenter, 2009-11-30
I bought this book a few years ago to share with my grandchildren.
I have never seen any other Bible Story book that comes anyways
near it in connecting the message of redemption throughout the
entire Bible from creation to the second coming of Christ. This is
a book that a child can return to again and again as he grows in
his understanding of it's message.
I bought another copy to give to one of my grandchildren for
Christmas so both families of my two children will have access to
it at any time.
Helping children understand the BIG pictureReviewed by Mike Parks, 2009-10-18
This is a great children's Bible specifically designed to display
the metanarrative of Scripture (big picture). Beginning in Genesis,
this Bible shows the fall, pictures the proto-evangel (Christ
crushing the head of the serpent) then the flood. It moves into God
blessing Abraham, working through Israel, Christ lineage through
David and proceeds into the New Testament along with other
stories.
The New Testament contains some of the same pictures as the Old
Testament. This can help your child see that the Bible is 66 books
with one theme. I found the writings and pictures were superb for
showing the culmination of Christ from the Old to the New. This is
definitely Biblical theology for kids. This children's Bible does
not contain every story that a complete Bible would, but that is
certainly not the intent. This Bible is great for helping kids
understand the big picture from the Old to the New and fitting it
together as a whole. The age recommendation is 4 to 8, but I would
recommend 3 to 7.
Best Children's Bible EVER!Reviewed by Jane, 2009-09-14
This Children's Bible was recommended to me by our previous pastor & is far & away the best children's Bible I've ever seen! We bought it for my daughter when she turned 2 & I just bought a second one for my niece & nephew. It is the only Bible that actually explains what the stories mean in the "big picture" of Christ & the church, as opposed to some of the other kid's story Bibles that just break things up into short stories that sometimes don't even seem to have any meaning. If you want a story Bible for your kids that really explains things (but is still simple & VERY much on their level), THIS is the ONE!
