Fun books for kids age 7+ to read themselves [Review & Giveaway] ✝️

Lily, the Lemur, and the Lamb King with contributors Bob Hartman, Keila Elm

My thoughts:  Young readers have a delightful early chapter book - chapters are just a few pages long and have engaging and fun black and white illustrations that will capture their interest. Parents will love having their child read uplifting stories about a child and an assortment of critters.

These retellings of stories from the Gospel with playful Lily and friends in on the action, teach lessons in a fun method but do not detract from the actual Gospel.  At the back of the book, each chapter has an explanation of the Biblical account's interaction with the story of Lily and friends and can be used for a time best suited to make applications.

A delightful book for young readers or even to be read to those who can't yet read.

About the book: The whimsical and imaginative short stories in this adventurous book will transport children to a different world, giving them a fresh way to engage with truths about Jesus and what it's like to follow him.

They’ll join Lily and her friend the Lemur on a series of adventures in the Lamb King's mysterious and exciting playground. Secret word: happy - They'll explore a me-tree, play Scrabble with a slow loris, and save an entire family of squirrels from the cold!

Along the way, children will find themselves exploring key truths about Jesus' kingdom—such as how to be welcoming, what gives people value, and why a self-sacrificing king is the best king of all.

Perfect as an independent read for children aged 7+ or as a read-aloud for ages 5+.

 Look inside - Click Here 

Abigail Gets Left Out by Bethany McIlrath & illustrated by Katie Saunders

My thoughts: Sometimes children can be mean and cruel to one another and some are very sensitive to the cruelties they hurl at each other. Sensitive children can really have a hard time when this happens. In Abigail Gets Left Out we see this scenario played out and see how Abigail learns how to deal with it personally.  

Abigail's grandmother plays a big part in helping Abigail. A delightful story just full of good stuff and life lessons.

About the book: 

Can’t sing. Can’t dance. Can count on Jesus!

9-year-old Abigail can’t sing, and she can’t dance. So when her friends start rehearsing a musical performance, Abigail feels very much left out and self-conscious. Isn’t she good at anything? Doesn’t anybody want to be her friend?

Jesus does! When Abigail reads Psalm 139, she realizes that Jesus made her wonderfully, just the way she is, so she doesn’t need to worry about not being good at musical things. And when she encounters John 15, Abigail learns that Jesus loves her perfectly and empowers her to be a loving friend, even when others let her down. 

As Abigail sees what a wonderful friend Jesus is, it transforms her other friendships—and it ends up transforming the girls’ musical performance too!

Look inside - Click Here

GIVEAWAY

Begins April 23

Ends May 22 @ 12:00 Midnight EST

Open to USA addresses only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone and are freely given. Winner's prize copy is provided and mailed directly to the winner by publisher. Chat With Vera is not responsible for lost or misdirected prizes.

The Accused (Secrets to Keep #2) by Cara Putman [Review & Giveaway]

"A brilliant novel that fans of the genre won't want to miss!" —Tosca Lee, New York Times best-selling author of The Line Between

"Gripping and brimming with chemistry, this novel will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page." —Lynette Eason, best-selling and award-winning author of the Lake City Heroes series

Kregel Publishing
Paperback $16.99
ISBN: 9780825448058

When a popular college student is murdered, her international roommate, Anneliese, becomes a prime suspect. But law professor Margeaux Robbins doesn't believe that the quiet, lonely German girl in her class is the killer.

Chase Crandall is a burned-out defense attorney ready to extricate himself from the grind of criminal law. Secret word: guilty. After he loses a client to tragedy, he's ready for an in-house corporate position.

When Chase is assigned to Anneliese's case, Margeaux is horrified. She doesn't want him to provide legal counsel—not after what happened to his past client. And not with the evidence incriminating Anneliese.

Despite their mutual misgivings, the lawyer and professor pair up to find the killer and prove Anneliese's innocence. Will they be able to untangle the mystery—and navigate their growing interest in one another—before the wrong person is charged with murder? Secret word - accused

Author: Cara Putman is the award-winning, best-selling author of more than thirty-five novels, including the Cornhusker Dreams series and the Hidden Justice series.

Watch for Chat With Vera's review, soon!

GIVEAWAY

Begins April 21

Ends May  20 @ 12:01 a.m. EDT

Open to USA addresses only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone and are freely given. Winner's prize copy is provided and mailed directly to the winner by Kregel Publishing. Chat With Vera is not responsible for lost or misdirected prizes.

I scarce can take it in

 

CSB® Illustrator's Notetaking Bible, Large Print Edition from Holman Bibles [Giveaway]

CSB Illustrator's Notetaking Bible, Large Print Edition, from Holman Bibles

ISBN: 9798384518266
Holman Bibles
$64.99 USA

About CSB Illustrated Notetaking Bible: Enhance your personal Bible study with the CSB Illustrator's Notetaking Bible. This uniquely crafted Bible features large, easy-to-read 9.5-point type in a single-column setting with wide journaling margins and line-art illustrations on every page spread. Including filigree designs, Scripture quotes, and other unique Scripture art alongside plenty of space for personal creativity and journaling, this Bible will inspire you to engage God’s Word in a fresh and exciting way. This beautiful Bible provides the perfect place for meaningful creativity and personalization, over time creating an incredible keepsake for your journey.

My thoughts: Not being a Biblical scholar, I will simply address the physical attributes of this beautifully presented copy of the Word of God. The binding is sturdy with flexibility that affords ease of use by nicely laying flat on desk or tabletop. Paper is adequate to prevent much visual bleed through of text from reverse side. Type font is easy-to-read for most readers. Visually impaired who need really large print will still struggle to read it, though. As a senior-adult, I find it quite adequate. 

The single column style seems to accommodate the marginal illustrator and notetaker space. Some publications overly long column lines can prove difficult to follow, but this CSB Illustrator's Notetaker Bible hits a good median between two-column width and an overly-wide single column.

The concordance in the back is adequate and easy to use. Providing a simple reference and research tool for Bible study. I always love looking at maps in the Bible to find where the events actually took place. Perhaps this goes back to my childhood days and love of geography class. The one-year-reading plan affords guidance for those who like to stick with directed reading.

The look and feel of this Bible is top grade and would be a treasure to gift someone or to obtain for your own personal use. It is perfect for those who want to put a few of their own notes alongside the text so they can treasure moments of personal revelation they experience in their reading of God's Word.

The CSB is a widely used and respected version of the Bible. My preferred version is the old King James Version, but I am always happy to encourage the reading of God's Word in versions that present Him in Truth.  

FEATURES:

• Over 600 line-art illustrations, including filigree, text, and other Scripture art
• Wide, two-inch lined margins for journaling and notetaking
• Durable Smyth-sewn, lay-flat binding
• Single-column text format
• Topical subject headings
• Large, easy-to-read 9.5-point type size
• Black-letter text
• Two ribbon markers for easy referencing between pages
• Concordance
• One-year Bible reading plan
• Presentation page for gift-giving
• Full-color maps
• 7.25” x 9.375” page size

The CSB Illustrator's Notetaking Bible features the highly readable, highly reliable text of the Christian Standard Bible® (CSB). The CSB captures the Bible’s original meaning without sacrificing clarity, making it easier to engage with Scripture’s life-transforming message and to share it with others.

Learn more about this beautiful Bible - click here

Purchase a Copy - Click Here

Explore the Holman Spring Gift Guide - click here

GIVEAWAY

1 CSB Illustrator's Notetaker Bible

Begins April 10

Ends April 21 @ Midnight

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 If this item is won on another blog or giveaway in this promotion, the publisher/publicist determines eligibility. Only one prize per name/address.

⛪

DISCLOSURE: Secret word - Christian. Many thanks to Lifeway Christian Resources for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own. Winner's prize copy is provided and mailed to the winner by publicist or publisher. Prize will be sent to the winner's name and address as provided in entry form. Chat With Vera is not responsible lost or misdirected prizes.

National Poetry Month celebrating poetry and children

April is National Poetry Month and the perfect time to encourage children to express themselves poetically and provide opportunities to share their poetic ideas

I·am·bic pen·tam·e·ter - noun - a line of verse with five metrical feet, each consisting of one short (or unstressed) syllable followed by one long (or stressed) syllable.

Ruthie Rose's Big Idea: A Poetry Story by John Schu & illustrated by Holly Hatam

 

My thoughts:  Bright, colorful, happy illustrations immediately capture the interest encouraging reading. It's as though an artist has just opened his brand new box of a multitude of crayons and has creativity exploding from his fingers and mind.

And then we see the delightful Ruthie Rose and her spontaneity captures our attention. Her precocious ideas bring us delight. It is evident from the shadowy words of amazing, famous poetry billowing across the pages that Ruthie Rose has been exposed to classic, beautifully written poetry..... Robert Louis Stevenson, etc. And she has an idea to develop a spot in the library to share poetry.

Every once in awhile - every generation or so - a genius of poetry graces the scene. Exposing young children to really good rhymes and then to really good poetry often enables the blossoming of a new and wonderful poet.

Ruthie Rose's idea is good, the book is cheerful and fun, the book does not help or enable to writing or understanding of poetry.

About the book: From the New York Times bestselling John Schu comes a celebration of poetry and possibilities that follows a child who sparks to life a special space in her school for exploring ideas of all kinds.

Ruthie Rose wakes up with an idea.

A big, bright, beautiful idea.

An idea so great! An idea so grand! Ruthie Rose can’t wait to share it with her idea-loving librarian, her art teacher, and her best friend. As the idea gets shared, it sparkles through her classmates, shouts down the hallway, and echoes over the playground. It invites everyone in the school, including YOU. John Schu’s effervescent prose is complemented by Holly Hatam’s vibrant artwork in clear, vivid colors, depicting a cast of adorable characters. Collaged throughout the artwork are intriguing snippets of language and lines from classic poems, sure to inspire young poetry lovers to discover more.

In the Desert by David Elliott & illustrated by Gordy Wright

 

My thoughts:  The illustrations evoke the heat and dry land that is the desert. Browns, oranges, sand, yellows bespeak dry heat and being virtually devoid of green life. Life as it exists in the desert is portrayed in beautiful bold, stark reality.

This a essentially a "non-fiction" book as it describes life in the desert. So a nice education book with poetic phraseology. 

The text is a form of poetry but not one that I particularly enjoy. It seems more prose in narrow columns than traditional or classic rhythm and rhyme. No iambic pentameter is seen. Very nice ideas are put forth in the author's own style of poetry. 

About the book: With wonder and wit, David Elliott’s poems look beyond the Sahara’s blinding surface to the rich flora and fauna of the world’s largest hot desert, depicted in Gordy Wright’s vibrant illustrations.

The Sahara, covering more than three million square miles, is a harsh and uninviting landscape, inhospitable to most forms of life. But under every rock, in every crevice, and hidden in the growth of the landscape, life persists. From the dangerous deathstalker scorpion and the Nile crocodile to the familiar Saharan cheetah and Nubian vulture, the animals of the Sahara not only survive but thrive. In his iconic and admiring poetry, David Elliott reveals the secrets of barren desert landscapes, featuring animals both familiar and elusive. With comprehensive back matter offering notes on the poems and Gordy Wright’s striking, saturated paintings, In the Desert seeks out the hardy animals who have made the desolate deserts their home.

DISCLOSURE: I received complimentary copies to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone and are freely given. Candlewick Press 

Mostly What God Does Is Love You by Savannah Guthrie & ilustrated by Morgan Huff (ZonderKidz Publishing)

Share God's love at Easter time (Resurrection Sunday)

Mostly What God Does is Love You

ZonderKidz Publishing
Hardcover $19.99
Purchase Here

My thoughts:  As I look at these beautiful illustrations and read these gentle words, it leaves me, personally, as an adult in awe that God's love is in everything. And then to know that this book will teach a child how much God loves him, how infinite His love is, and how much above all else He is loving them in everything He does.

A beautifully illustrated and sweet look at the vastness of God and what He does. And yet, in all His greatness He focuses primarily on His love for you. On each of us.

In Mostly What God Does Is Love You an inkling of the significance of the individual, you, in the mind and heart of Almighty God is presented in the contemplative thought that He loves you. While doing all the huge, magnificent, and wondrous things He does in the World and Universe, He focuses His love on each of us.

About the book: What if we shared this simple, beautiful, Biblical truth with our children from the youngest of ages—how different would we be? How wonderfully could this shape our perspectives from childhood on, knowing that the God who made all the wonders in creation—who hung the stars in the sky, who tells the wind where to blow—knows your name and loves you oh so very much?

From #1 New York Times bestselling author and TODAY show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, this beautifully illustrated picture book showcases the wonders of nature, the beauty of God’s creation, and most importantly, how very loved you are by God. Mostly What God Does is Love You reminds children (and adults) of God’s great love for them, how very cherished they are by the creator of the universe, and how in turn, they can share that same love by being kind and compassionate to others.

With its awe-inspiring and charming illustrations and a poetic, relatable and age-appropriate message, Mostly What God Does is Love You is the perfect way for adults reading Savannah’s bestselling book Mostly What God Does to share this all-important reminder with the children they love—that the vastness of God’s love is all for them and how they can share it with others as freely as God shares his love.

Mostly What God Does Is Love You:

• Reminds children that God is always with them, loving them unconditionally.
• Is perfect for family reading, bedtime story, school or daycare story time.
• Makes the perfect gift for birthdays, Easter, graduation, and other celebrations and gift-giving occasions
• This sweet, uplifting book is sure to leave a lasting impression on children and adults alike, reminding them of the most important thing in the world—God’s enormous love for us—and how we, too can spread love and kindness, just like God does.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone. 

#MWGD #Easter @savannahguthrie @zonderkidz 

Young children's Christian books: "The Jesus Storybook Bible" & "My Little Library of God’s Great Love: Loved, Found, Near, Known (4 books)"

Perfect for Easter gifting & remembering this Sacred Season

The Jesus Storybook Bible

Purchase Here

My thoughts:  Sally Lloyd Jones does such a good job presenting to children the stories from throughout the Bible. In The Jesus Storybook Bible she retells the well known stories from the Bible and how Jesus is in - even though in shadow - each of them. Sized for young hands, this thick book has pictures to interest and understandable text that can be read to the young child. As the child grows and learns to read, he or she will begin to read these simply retold stories for themselves.

Originally published in 2007, it's many editions attest to the dependability and trustworthiness of the storybook. This is a storybook and not intended to replace a Bible. There is no chapter/verse text. This is a retelling of the stories that are in the Biblical text.

Perfect as a gift for any occasion and truly memorable for the Easter season.

The women went to the tomb..... it was empty!

About the book: For over a decade, The Jesus Storybook Bible has been introducing children to God’s wonderful story, and the Savior at the center of that story. Trusted and treasured for over a decade, with over 3 million copies sold, The Jesus Storybook Bible is the quintessential book for parents, grandparents, pastors, and anyone else who wants to share God’s Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love with children.

What makes The Jesus Storybook Bible different from every other kids’ Bible?

While other kids’ Bibles contain stories from the Old and New Testaments, The Jesus Storybook Bible tells the Story beneath all the stories in the Bible, pointing to Jesus as our Savior. From the Old Testament through the New Testament, as the Story unfolds, children will clearly see that Jesus is at the center of God's great story of salvation—and at the center of their story too.

The Jesus Storybook Bible:

• Is beautifully written by New York Times bestselling author Sally Lloyd-Jones and illustrated by award-winning artist Jago
• Contains 21 stories from the Old Testament and 23 stories from the New Testament
• Visually brings Scripture to life for children, sharing how Jesus is at the center of our story
• Presents the best-loved stories of the Bible in an easy-to-understand format
• Is the perfect kids’ Bible for any age up to 6th grade, as well as church ministry
• Makes an ideal gift for Christmas, Easter, and other gift-giving occasions

On this literary pilgrimage, let’s unwrap the layers of meaning, explore the hidden gems, and celebrate the One whose name echoes through eternity. Together, we’ll ignite curiosity, kindle faith, and breathe life into the ancient stories.

My Little Library of God’s Great Love: Loved, Found, Near, Known

Purchase Here

My thoughts: Loved: The Lord’s Prayer, Found: Psalm 23, Near: Psalm 139, and Known: Psalm 139 - Each of these sweet little board books teaches the very young child the truth of God's love and care for them. In this collection, the four books are beautifully packaged in a book-sleeve and makes a perfect gift. This storage sleeve will help the young child begin to learn the care of treasured books as they place them gently in their storage sleeve.

Perfectly sized for their little hands and illustrated with simple illustrations, the limited text can be read to the child. They will begin to see how God, as their Heavenly Father, loves them unconditionally and with an everlasting love.

As usual, Sally Lloyd Jones brings God's Great Love to the child. 

About the book: These simply written board books remind little ones of God’s enduring love, his nearness, and his protection. From the author of the bestselling The Jesus Storybook Bible, Sally Lloyd-Jones, and award-winning illustrator Jago, bring you this 4-book boxed set of board books, which encourages young and old alike to remember that we are all loved in very special ways by God.

The Sally Lloyd-Jones Board Book Boxed Set is perfect for babies and infants ages 0-4 and features:

• 
  
  Lyrical text inspired by the loving Word of God and written by beloved author Sally Lloyd-Jones.
• Inspiring messages that remind kids of God’s ever-present love and blessings.
• A perfect size, exactly right for little hands.
• Beautiful illustrations that are a great gift for a new baby, Baptism, First Communion, birthday, or a read-aloud.

Books included in this collection are:

• Loved: The Lord’s Prayer
• Found: Psalm 23
• Near: Psalm 139
• Known: Psalm 139

DISCLOSURE: I received complimentary copies to facilitate a review of these books and also a small renumeration. Opinions are mine, alone and are original and unbiased. Giveaway is hosted by publicist, FrontGate Christian Media in conjunction with publisher and/or author. Chat With Vera is not responsible for prize selection, lost or misdirected prizes, or prize. #jesusstorybookbible #kidseastergift @jesus_storybook_bible  @sallylloydjones  @zonderkidz  #boardbooks #childrensbooks #christianbooks #kidseastergift