Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Get to Know Apostle Paul {a BookLook review}

I posted earlier this week about how much I love a good biography.  I really love a good biography that I can use with my younger children.

The Get to Know series appears to be just that.  Fabulous biographies for kids.  I chose to review Get to Know Apostle Paul by Nancy I. Sanders, and I am very impressed.

From the publisher:
Apostle Paul - part of the Get to Know series - is a unique biography about Paul. Focusing on the life and character of this Biblical hero, using color photographs, maps, and other visual resources to tell the whole story, young biography fans will come to learn more about this man of the God, his writings, his impact on the early church, and the role he plays in history. Featuring a bibliography and scriptural references throughout, this is sure to become a favorite for young readers and for first book reports.

What did I think?

My first response was that I was totally impressed.  I mean, I read the above description, but what I wasn't expecting was so much visual detail (maps, photos of places today, drawings, art) and such an appealing format.

The book is split into a dozen chapters, each around eight pages in length.  Perfect length for my 2nd and 4th graders.  There are lots of images, which were clearly thought about, not just inserted willy-nilly.

As you go through the chapter, there are words in a green font, such as persecution, and at the bottom of the page there are boxes to define any green words from that page.  I love that the colors are fairly subtle, if you are reading quickly (like I did when reading for myself), you don't really notice the color difference.  But if you are reading more slowly (my kids) because you are struggling with some of the words, the green is clearly a bit more obvious, and they could go down to the bottom and figure out what the word means.

At bottoms of pages, there are also blue boxes that tell a bit more about various events from that chapter.  You know, those little trivia facts that kids seem to love.  There are orange boxes that give a brief bio of other major characters mentioned (Lydia, Amos, John the Baptist).  And there are red boxes that give "Eyewitness Accounts" pointing out when someone was a witness to the events discussed.

I will be looking for more titles in this series, as this one was so well received by my kids.  There is one on Mary, one on David, and one on Jesus.  Which to choose, which to choose?

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”



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