Book Review: The Coming of the King

The Coming of the King. Norman Vincent Peale. Illustrated by William Moyers. 1956. Prentice-Hall. 32 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: Joseph was a carpenter. Far across the seas, in a small country at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, there is a little hill town, set among all the little hill towns of Galilee, called Nazareth. There, some two thousand years ago, Joseph had his carpenter shop in a room of his house.

Premise/plot: The Coming of The King is Norman Vincent Peale's retelling of the nativity--the birth of Jesus Christ. The book isn't only an adaptation of the nativity. It includes--in pink boxes--text taken directly from the Scriptures, from the King James Version, I believe.

My thoughts: I liked it. I definitely liked it. The text was nice. I'm glad it offered readers both an adaptation and the beloved Scriptures as well. I liked how these two fit together so well. It felt reverent and respectful. Did I love the illustrations? Not really! I'll be honest. Having black, white, and pink illustrations felt a bit odd to me! There is a LOT of pink in this book. (Starting with the end papers!) But the book has a very vintage feel.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 2 out of 5
Total: 7 out of 10
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible