The Greatest Book Ever (B&H Kids, 2023)

Note: Periodically I’ll post book reviews to serve as a resource for readers looking for recommendations. I plan to include books for adults as well as kids’ books. Very few of these reviews will be on new releases. If you’re like me and are about two to three years behind on your reading, then this section is for you! You can find other book reviews here.

The Greatest Book Ever
Teresa Joyelle Krager
B&H Kids, 2023

Summary
The Greatest Book Ever is a book about the actual greatest book ever, the Bible! Krager's book outlines stories of heroes (or anti-heroes) and their adventures, kings and queens, important battles, floods, miracles, and of course, good news for the whole world—all of which are contained in God's word. The Greatest Book Ever refers to forty Bible stories through catchy rhymes, all the while pointing kids to the greatest story ever: the gospel of Jesus Christ. Krager encourages kids ages four to eight to read God's word for themselves to find out more about the stories listed in her book.

Review
In The Greatest Book Ever, Teresa Joyelle Krager somehow manages to illustrate how Bible stories both stand alone as testaments to God's character and sustaining grace throughout redemptive history, while still illustrating that Scripture is a grand narrative that ultimately points to Christ. The book is chock-full of references to Bible stories in the Old Testament and then turns its focus to Jesus for the remainder of the book. Though the book lacks references to New Testament stories past Jesus (for valid reasons), it is ultimately a celebration of Scripture with vibrant illustrations and easy-to-read rhymes that make it an enjoyable read aloud for parents and kids alike.

Pros:

• I love that this book points out stories and Bible characters that are not included in some of the other books we've read to our kids about the Bible. Krager mentions Deborah, Elisha, Esther, Gideon, and others. I'm sure there are other kids' books that mention these characters, but these are stories that are not included in the storybook Bible we read with our kids. So, I appreciated the introduction to what are lesser known characters to my kids.


• The rhymes are catchy and the illustrations are amazing. This makes it a fun book to read out loud. It shows kids how exciting the Bible is and can draw them towards reading more about these stories for themselves.


• The last pages include a list of all the Scripture references to the stories listed in the book and a parent connection to help facilitate discussion about the book with your child. The list of Scripture references is the highlight of the book. It makes it so easy for parents to find each story in the Bible and read it to their kids. I also like that the parent connection is included in the book so I don't have to take the extra step of looking for it online (lazy, I know).

• Overall, I enjoy reading rhyming books to my kids. But I thought this one, like most other rhyming books, sometimes just missed the mark, either by forcing rhymes or getting off-rhythm. I often wonder if I'm just not reading the rhythm correctly, but this is always a challenge with rhyming books.


• I realize space constraints and the ultimate purpose of the book lend toward ending it with Jesus. This is how it should have ended! I do wonder if the parent connection or Scripture listing page could have been tailored to encourage further reading in the New Testament.