The Compassion Storybook Bible is a new release storybook Bible for young children and I was drawn to review it for a couple of reasons. Firstly, one of the authors is Crystal Bowman and, as some of you already know, I love her children's books. Secondly, it was a children’s Bible that claimed to focus on compassion as it’s driving theme. This immediately drew my interest as I wondered how the authors would approach the Biblical text through this lens and what it would offer children and their families. Before I begin my review though, I have to admit that I do get a bit picky when it comes to children’s Bibles. I hate seeing watered down, wishy washy Bible stories. Because of that, I was relieved and even excited to read how Crystal Bowman and Sue Schlesman approached the telling of these stories. From Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, through to John’s revelations, this story Bible took a gentle, compassion-filled approach to telling the story of God - and I use those words deliberately. For this isn’t a story Bible full of heroic tales, it’s one where God’s love and provision for his people become the overarching theme. I loved how familiar stories were approached from a slightly different angle, or how stories typically depicted in kids’ Bibles were left out in favour for a lesser known but just as important story. Two stories that really stood out to me were those of Hagar and Esther, both told with a gentleness that acknowledged both the reality of their situations and the enormity of God’s compassion. This storybook Bible also encourages children and their parents/carers to engage with the Biblical narrative in real and relevant ways. Each story includes a highlighted truth, a Bible verse (most often from the passage where the story is found), three questions for discussion (ranging from basic comprehension to real-life, age appropriate application) and a prayer. One little quibble I had with this book was not so much to do with content, but with the illustrations. They were very cute and typical of the style used for this age-group, however I noticed that they were not always consistent in style. When I checked the imprint page for who did the illustrations, I learned it was a conglomeration of images from a variety of sources rather than the tailored work of one illustrator as they engaged with the content. This might not be an issue for many readers, but as someone who loves seeing the depth and meaning a human illustrator can bring to projects like this, this did leave me a little disappointed. However, despite this, I still really like The Compassion Storybook Bible and would recommend it to families seeking a devotional style resource to assist young children engage with the love of God and his story, the Bible. (For Aussie readers, this one might be a bit tricky to get access to as the publisher is a smaller US press, but it’s worth getting so maybe chat with your local Christian bookstore to see if they can help you source a copy.) I reached out to Crystal (on the right in the picture above) and Sue (on the left) recently to ask them a little more about writing this project and loved hearing their heart:
Penny: I'd love to hear about how you decided to collaborate with each other when working on this story Bible. Is this your first project together? What are some of the highlights of working together on this book? Crystal: Sue and I met virtually many years ago when she contacted me about reviewing a children’s book she was working on. Sue is passionate about social justice and caring for those who are in need, so I saw her heart. We worked on and off for several years and tried out a few ideas, but nothing resulted in a publishing contract. When End Game Press launched their publishing company a few years ago, Sue suggested we propose a children’s Bible story book with the theme of compassion. End Game Press loved the idea, and it was the fastest contract I’ve received in my thirty years of publishing. Working on a book together is great because we make each other better. Sue is an English teacher, so she’s a pro at grammar, punctuation, and literary usage. I have decades of experience writing for children, so I make sure the language and vocabulary are kid friendly. Penny: Having a theme to build a story Bible around is such a good idea. Can you tell us how you decided on 'compassion' as the theme? Sue: First of all, the love and compassion of God is primal to the gospel and the whole narrative of Scripture. Children's Bibles often center around telling nice stories of Bible heroes who do great things, thus elevating the character and simplifying the Christian experience to make them more kid friendly. It’s important that we don’t mislead children with the message that they can be anything and do anything if God is on their side. Bible stories should focus on what God has done for us because of His goodness and mercy, NOT what kind of life we can expect if we believe in God or Jesus. Secondly, acts of compassion and kindness are valued in our present culture, among Christians and non-Christians, so presenting the Bible in a pro-compassion way is inviting to Christian and non-Cristian parents. This approach provides a huge opportunity to explain that God's commands for obedience and holiness come from a heart of compassion. He longs to be in relationship with us. Our post-Christian culture does not know this about God. A compassionate God changes every aspect of theology. Penny: If you met someone who hadn't read the Bible before, how would you explain why it's a book for all ages and how did you approach writing this story Bible to honour that? Sue: The stories are written intentionally without use of Christian jargon or presuppositions about biblical knowledge. Anyone can read it and understand and not feel ashamed for not knowing what the Bible teaches. We feel that it takes the approach with unbelievers (which most young children are) like Jesus did. Although the stories are aimed at young children, our hope is that parents and older siblings will read these stories to younger children and be overcome by God's love and compassion for them, too. Some of the stories bring me to tears when I read them. That's because the theme and purpose of the story comes through the language. The Bible is for the purpose of revealing God's love for us, not for our entertainment or accumulation of knowledge. Because of this, we've tried to tell the stories in an engaging way because our hope is to draw children to read and give them a hunger for God and his Word. Penny: We all have dreams for where our books will end up and who will read them. What are some of your hopes for this particular book and who its audience might be? Crystal: Whenever I have a new book published, I hope and pray that it will reach thousands of families, not because of who I am but because of who God is. My goal is always to teach children (and the adults who read to them) how much God loves and cares for them. Some of my books have been translated into more than a dozen languages, so they have global distribution. I have no idea where all these books end up, and that’s the most exciting part for me—because it's all in God’s hands. I do what I can to promote and market my books, but ultimately, God is the one who is in control. I hope this book has wide distribution and ends up in many homes because every story points to the love and compassion of God and Jesus our Savior. When we become more compassionate, we become more like Jesus—and that’s the takeaway message we want readers to grasp. All the details you need: Title: Compassion Storybook Bible Written by: Crystal Bowman and Sue Schlesman Publisher: End Game Press Available from Amazon
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