Book Review: "Our Presidents Rock" By Juliette Turner

"Our Presidents Rock" by Juliette Turner is an awesome book!   It is a treasure trove of information about our nation's presidents. 

For each president, it gives:

• Which number president he was
• Nickname
• Term in office

It also gives his 'fast stats"

• When he was born
• His parents
• When he died
• Age when he became president
• Religious affiliation
• Political party
• Height
• Vice President

The sections that it covers for the president are

• The Bottom Line
• What Was He Thinking
• Why Should I Care?
• Breakin' it Down:
  Early Life
  First Couple
  Previous Political Career
• Presidency
• Congressional Corner
• Election Results
• What has he done for me lately

There is also a time line of when he was president that shows other things that were going on at the same time, trivial information that is interesting about him, and a page made to look like a newspaper called "Presidential Times" that gives some of the headlines of the day.

One feature I thought was interesting was the "State of the Union" that shows the population at the time of his presidency, what $1 then would be worth now, and what the US debt was at the time.

I found the Election Results maps to be a little confusing as they used purple for the winner of the race with blue as runner up (with other colors as needed for more candidates).   I found this hard to follow since from one election to the next, the color representing that person changes if he lost the 2nd time.  It may also come from our familiarity with the traditional red and blue colors used now to identify the parties.

"Our Presidents Rock" also includes a section at the beginning of how to read this book explaining what each section covers.  The back of the book shows what the make up of President Washington's cabinet looked like compared to what President Obama's cabinet looks like today.  I liked seeing the presidents represented on the height chart together so you could see how they compared to each other.

• Age Range: 8 and up 
• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Zonderkidz (September 30, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310730953
• ISBN-13: 978-0310730958
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 0.8 x 10 inches

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: "The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith" by Mike Berenstain

I was provided a free paperback copy of "Keep the Faith" from Zondervan for me to review through the Z Blog Squad.

"The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith" is part of the "Living Lights" collection published by Zondervan and "Help kids learn how God wants them to live every day".

Brother and Sister Bear are playing with their friend Ferdy Factual when the subject of God comes up.  Brother and Sister are puzzled when Ferdy says he doesn't believe in God.  This leads to a discussion with their parents about why they believe in God.  They go to see Preacher Brown to find out what faith is.

My children enjoyed "The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith".  It is written by the son of the original Berenstain Bears authors, but before I saw that, I didn't even realize it was as it looks just like any of the other originals.  I liked how this book discussed Biblical subjects in a way that kids could understand them.

This book is geared for children ages 4-8 and I would recommend it for that group.

"The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith" is available in paperback.

Book Review: "Pirates on the Farm" by Denette Fretz

I was given a free hardcover copy of "Pirates on the Farm" from Zondervans to review through their ZblogSquad program.

In "Pirates on the Farm", five pirates sell their boat to buy a farm.  They don't know what they are doing and make many blunders, causing the townsfold to want to run them out of town.  Will the pirates find someone to help them and teach them what they need to know?

I thought that "Pirates on the Farm" was a cute and fun story.  It is a modern day parable to help kids learn about loving their neighbor.  The illustrations are colorful and engaging for children.  There is a list of "Seadog Definitions" in the back of the book as well as a "Parent's Letter"  that gives ideas for discussion with your child about the book.

The book is geared toward children ages 4-8 and I would recommend it for that group. 

"Pirates on the Farm" is available in Kindle version, 

• File Size: 13944 KB
• Print Length: 40 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Up to 5 simultaneous devices, per publisher limits
• Publisher: Zonderkidz (September 25, 2013)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Publishing
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00BW3K0S6

Paperback, 

• Publisher: Scholastic (2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0545651409
• ISBN-13: 978-0545651400

or Hardcover

• Age Range: 4 - 7 years
• Series: The Next Door Series
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Zonderkidz (August 24, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310723485
• ISBN-13: 978-0310723486
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 9.3 x 0.3 inches

Book Review: 'The Super Heroes Bible in 3D"

I was given a free copy of "The Super Heroes Bible in 3D" from Zondervan through the Z Blog Squad in exchange for my honest review.

"The Super Heroes Bible in 3D" is in the New International Reader's Version, which apparently is an easier to read/understand version of the regular NIV.  

"The Super Heroes Bible in 3D" intrigued my children.  It has silver on the edges of the pages with holographic circles.  The kids really liked this feature but it was hard on my eyes  (I get migraines and shifting lights are a trigger).  It is really cool, I just couldn't look at it long.

The 40 color 3D pictures are the kind that need glasses with a red and blue lens to look right, but there is a pair of 3D glasses included with the Bible and it has a little velum pocket on the inside of the front cover to hold it.  The glasses are a heavy duty cardstock, but will wear after time and depending on  the amount of care they are given.

The back cover gives a "Super Hero Decoder" that the reader can use to "decode" the traits of the heroes of the Bible.  Each book of the Bible has an introduction that tells about the  theme of the book and which super heroes are in that book.  There are character sketches throughout the Bible that tell more about that person, what super hero traits they exhibited, and how the reader can be like the person.  There are also write ups about people who fail and they list a (not!) behind their name so the reader knows they aren't someone to live like.  

I liked the "Power Surge" notes that highlight key verses and what character traits are shown in it (complete with secret codes from the decoder)   We found the blue ink harder to read and focus on.  We would have preferred black.

The back of the Bible has a Super Hero Bible quiz to see if the reader can figure out who the clues are talking about,  an index to the pictures, the Traits of a Super Hero (the same as the decoder on the back cover except it also lists the pages these traits are found), and a dictionary.

I think the "Super Heroes Bible in 3D" would be great for elementary children, epecially boys.

The 'Super Heroes Bible in 3D" has a list price on $32.99 and can be purchased online here.

Book Review: "Young Women of Faith Bible" in NIV

Through the Z Blog Squad, I was given a Hardcover copy of "Young Women of Faith Bible: NIV" from ZonderKidz in order for me to write a review.

I liked the look of the cover.  It was bright and cheerful with it's orange and pink and yellow.  There are several features in the Young Women of Faith Bible that make it helpful to girls.  There are Book Introductions before each of the books of the Bible telling who wrote them and why.  The Side Notes help clarify passages of the Bible or explain life in Bible times. Weekly Bible Studies help the girls apply truths from the Bible to their own lives. The Weekly Bible Studies and some of the Side Notes are linked to the "NIV Women of Faith Study Bible" so mothers and daughters can study together!  Throughout the Bible are "I Believe" sections that are statements of faith and belief.  Journal entries are written from a girl's perspective so the reader feels like they aren't the only one that may struggle with something. There are also Memory Verses that are written out in a bright colorful font making it easy for the girls to find and memorize them.  This Bible also has footnotes, a Concordance, and maps. There is also a chart that shows the equivalent American and metric measurements for Biblical weights and measures. 

The Young Women of Faith Bible: NIV is listed as being for ages 8 years and up and I agree with that assessment. 

You can purchase a hardcover "Young Women of Faith Bible:  NIV" for $21.59 on Amazon.com.

• Age Range: 8 and up 
• Hardcover: 1696 pages
• Publisher: Zonderkidz (March 11, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310730864
• ISBN-13: 978-0310730866
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.7 x 1.8 inches

Book Review: "Whatever You Grow Up to Be" by Karen Kingsbury

I received a free copy of "Whatever You Grow Up to Be" by Karen Kingsbury from Zondervan in order for me to do a review as part of the Z Blog Squad.

"Whatever You Grow Up to Be" follows a boy from birth through having a child of his own and how no matter what he may choose to do, his mother will love him and support him.  

The illustrations fill the pages and are bright and cheerful cartoon type characters.  They coordinate really well with the wording of the story.  I really liked how each "stage" in the book is accompanied by a Bible verse.  

This book is written to show the bond between a mother and her son (there is a similar book for girls and their dads), but I read it to all 4 of my kids (equally boys and girls) and they all enjoyed it.  They could extrapolate the love for a mother to her daughters as well.  I actually got choked up a couple times while reading the book thinking of the stages my kids hadn't reached yet!  

I think "Whatever You Grow Up to Be" is a beautiful book worth being on bookshelves wherever there are small children!

"Whatever You Grow Up to Be" is available from Amazon for $11.51 in hardcover form.

• Age Range: 4 - 8 years
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Zonderkidz; New edition edition (February 25, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310716462
• ISBN-13: 978-0310716464
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.7 x 0.4 inches

Book Review: "101 Bible Stories from Creation to Revelation"

I received a free copy of "101 Bible Stories from Creation to Revelation" illustrated by Dan Andreasen from Zondervan in order for me to review it as part of the  ZonderKidz Z Blog Squad. 

The book has a nice sturdy cover with glossy pages.  It takes stories from the Bible and tells them in a child friendly and easy to understand way.  Each is no longer than a page in length and each is accompanied by an illustration.  Dan Andreasen's pictures look like watercolor paintings and enhance the stories.

This book would be wonderful to read to younger kids or for elementary students to read for themselves.  There is a presentation page for it to be used as a gift and I think that would be a wonderful thing to give to a child.

As soon as the book came in the mail, my 8 year old daughter grabbed it and read it straight through!  She wanted to write her own review, which is as follows:

I  read  101  bible  stories  from  creation  to  revelation.  Here  are  some  stories  from  the  book.  I  will  tell my  favorite  story  first.  My  favorite  stories  are  Daniel  and  the  lions, Queen  Esther, Mary  visits  Elizabeth, An  angel's  visits, Joseph's  dream, Wise  men  from  the  east, Jesus  visits  his  father's  house, Tempted  in  the  wilderness, Come  follow  me, The  story  of  seeds, A  frightening  storm, He  walks  on  water, The  good  Samaritan, Mary   and  Martha, A  lost  lamb, A  widow's  gift, The  good  shepherd, Mary's  gift, The  Lord's  supper, Pilate  and  Herod, A  big  catch  of  fish, Paul's  shipwreck  Adventure,  The  Holy  City, Jesus  is  coming  back! (You  should  really  read  it  sometime,  it's  a  really,  great  book!) The  very  first  book  is  called, Let  there  be  light!  The  last  is  called, Jesus  is  coming  back! The  first  in  the  new  testament  is, An  angel's  visit! The  last  in  the  old  testament  is, Jonah  and  the  big  fish. Mary  visits  Elizabeth  is  in  the  middle  book.

"101 Bible Stories from Creation to Revelation" is available on Amazon for $9.35

UPC	025986740641
ISBN-10	0310740649
ISBN-13	9780310740643
Publish Date	Feb 4, 2014
Weight	1.3350
Physical Length	8.25
Physical Width	6.25
Length	224.00
LengthUnit	Pages
Publisher	Zonderkidz
Price	$12.99
Format	Hardcover
Language	English