The World of the Old Testament: A Curious Kid’s Guide to the Bible’s Most Ancient Stories

Reviewed by:

Lindsey Metzger, a professional writing major at Taylor University

REVIEW INTRODUCTION

Title:

The World of the Old Testament: A Curious Kid’s Guide to the Bible’s Most Ancient Stories

Author:

Marc Olson

Publisher:

Beaming Books Minneapolis

https://www.beamingbooks.com

Date:

2019

Format:

Print Book

Length:

61 pages

OVERVIEW

The book is a guide to the world during the times of the Old Testament designed to be for older kids as part of the publisher’s Curious Kid’s Guide series. The short book explains different aspects of life during the ancient times of the Bible, including nomads and their way of life, the sacrificial system, and the importance of the city of Jerusalem. It also addresses the differences between myth and history before moving onto the rest of the information presented.

It has a lot of information, and the illustrations are engaging, but overall the content is boring. Kids, even older kids, pick up picture books because of the pictures, not for lengthy information on the pages. I was surprised when I flipped through the pages and realized it was an encyclopedia instead of a book with different Bible stories in it. Turned into kind of a letdown overall.

ASSESSMENT

Rating (1 to 5):

2 stars

Suggested Audience:

Older Kids (8-12 year-olds)

Christian Impact:

There’s an intention of having a Christian impact, but there isn’t one. It’s an encyclopedia of different things that were happening during Bible times. And yes, there were some facts that related to certain stories, but that’s really the extent.

Other Notes:

I was expecting this book to have classic Bible stories, and while some of the facts were interesting, it wasn’t overly engaging. I thought it had real potential, but when I realized it was just facts about the world during the time the Old Testament took place, I lost interest.