Friday, January 30, 2015

Book Reviews :: Tiny Bear's Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones, illustrated by Igor Oleynikov and Little Chick's Bible by P. J. Lyons, illustrated by Melanie Mitchell

Tiny Bear's Bible is a Bible story boardbook wrapped up in a fuzzy cover. The material for the bear is a light brown, fuzzy fabric and the ears are flaps that can be lifted and played with. The material covering the background is a medium brown, fuzzy fabric. (The colors of the two brown, fuzzy fabrics are more varied than the cover image to the left shows.) The title ("Tiny Bear's Bible") appears to be iron-on lettering on an oval of blue felt. The blue straps on the bear are also made of blue felt. Everything appears to be securely stitched in place. Although the fuzzy fabrics on the cover of Tiny Bear's Bible don't seem to come apart when I pull at them, they don't appear to be the most sturdy fuzzy fabrics I have come across. I am not sure what they would do if a baby put them in their mouth...and I am not going to put this in my mouth for the sake of a review. ;o)

(Note: I have seen an alternative cover for Tiny Bear's Bible that appears to have a dark fuzzy brown bear on a cream colored fleece background, shown below. I did not receive a book with that cover.)
The text is written by Sally Lloyd-Jones. There are 11 Bible stories retold (in rhyme) in Tiny Bear's Bible
They are:
  • God Makes the Whole Wide World, Genesis 1-2 (Creation)
  • God Promises to Rescue Noah, Genesis 6-9 (Noah's Ark)
  • God Keeps Moses Safe, Exodus 1-2 (Baby Moses)
  • David Fights a Horrible Giant, 1 Samuel 17 (David & Goliath)
  • God Protects Daniel in the Lions' Den, Daniel 6 (Daniel in the Den of the Lions)
  • Jesus is Born, Luke 2 (Birth of Jesus)
  • Jesus Stops a Scary Storm, Mark 4 (Jesus Calms the Storm)
  • The Lord's Prayer, paraphrase of Matthew 6 (The Lord's Prayer)
  • The Friend of Sinners, Luke 19 (Zacchaeus)
  • God Makes Jesus Alive Again!, Matthew 27-28 (Death and Resurrection of Jesus)
  • "I am with you always", Matthew 28 (Reminder that God is always with us)
In each each story is a reference to Tiny Bear and something that ties in to how the story relates to us (God keeps his promises, God takes care of us, God helps us, etc.). I appreciated these additions to the story-telling to remind us that these are more than just stories.

The illustrations in Tiny Bear's Bible are done by Igor Oleynikov. Each 2-page spread is fully illustrated. On the left page of each opening (along with the title and Scripture reference), there is an illustration that corresponds to the Bible story being retold. On the right page of each opening (along with the story text), there is an illustration that shows Tiny Bear in a scene that corresponds with the Bible story. The illustrations are beautifully done in a colorful, but slightly muted color palette. The illustrations are not quite as cartoonish as you might expect in a children's book, but I appreciated that.



Little Chick's Bible is a Bible story boardbook wrapped up in a fuzzy cover. The material for the chick is very soft, fuzzy fabric and the wings and beak are flaps that can be lifted and played with. The material covering the background is a soft light yellow fleece. The title ("Little Chick's Bible") appears to be iron-on lettering on an oval of orange felt. Everything appears to be securely stitched in place. The fuzzy fabrics don't seem to come apart when I pull at them, and seem quite sturdy. Even with that said, I am not sure what they would do if a baby put them in their mouth...and I am not going to put this in my mouth for the sake of a review. ;o)

The text is written by P. J. Lyons. There are 8 Bible stories retold (in rhyme) in Little Chick's Bible
They are:
  • God's Wonderful Work, Genesis 1-2 (Creation)
  • God's Friend Noah, Genesis 6-8 (Noah's Ark)
  • Baby Moses in a Boat, Exodus 1-2 (Baby Moses)
  • David Fights a Giant, 1 Samuel 17 (David & Goliath)
  • God's Greatest Gift, Matthew 1:18-24, Luke 2:1-7 (Birth of Jesus)
  • The Real Neighbor, Luke 10:25-37 (The Good Samaritan)
  • It's a Miracle, John 6:1-13 (Feeding of the Many with Loaves and Fishes)
  • Jesus Opens Heaven's Doors, Luke 23:44-24:8 (Death and Resurrection of Jesus)
The illustrations in Little Chick's Bible are done by Melanie Mitchell. Each 2-page spread is illustrated (although they are not edge-to-edge illustrations). The left page of each opening has a white background and includes the title, Scripture reference, story text, and a small illustration of Little Chick in a circular frame. The right page of each opening is a full-coverage illustration that corresponds to the Bible story being retold. The illustrations are cute and colorful, as you would expect from a children's book.


Since I received both Tiny Bear's Bible (by Sally Lloyd-Jones, illustrated by Igor Oleynikov) and Little Chick's Bible (by P. J. Lyons, illustrated by Melanie Mitchell) to review, I cannot help but compare the two. I absolutely love the cover on Little Chick's Bible (it is SO soft!), but prefer the text and illustrations from Tiny Bear's Bible. However, if it comes down to it, I think either (or both!) would be great to share with little ones.
FTC Declaration: The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book or advanced reading copy through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. This does not change the fact that I will give my honest opinion in my reviews.

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