Book Review: The Bible In Pictures for Little Eyes

The Bible In Pictures for Little Eyes. Kenneth N. Taylor. 1956/1984. Moody Press. 190 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence (from the introduction): Even little children can understand great truths when told to them in simple words. And when pictures are added, doubly indelible impressions are made that can last forever.

First sentence:

When it is nighttime and the lights are out you know how dark everything gets. You can't see anything. That is how all the world once was. There were no pretty flowers; there were no trees or grass or birds. There were no children either. There was only darkness. God did not want everything to be all dark. He decided to make some people. People could not live in the darkness so God made a beautiful world full of light.
Questions: 1. Can you see anything at night when you go to bed and the lights are out?
2. Did God want everything to be all dark? 

This is a Bible story book intended for "little eyes." I'm supposing the intended use is for parents to share ONE picture and story per day during their family devotions. The stories are short--very, very short. These stories are shorter than almost any other that I've seen in bible story books through the years I've been reading. But is that a good thing?

The stories are from the Old Testament and the New Testament. Plenty of stories get skimmed over or skipped altogether.

Here's one of his stories about Jeremiah:

This man is Jeremiah. Can you say "Jeremiah"? He is one of God's friends. God has sent him to tell the people to be good. The people do not like Jeremiah to tell them this. They want to be bad so they have tied Jeremiah's hands together. They will put him in a room and lock the door so Jeremiah cannot get away. He must sit there all day. People go by laughing at him and making fun of him. Poor Jeremiah! But God is with him and God will punish the people who do this to His friend.
Questions:
1. What has happened to Jeremiah's hands?
2. Is Jeremiah God's friend?
3. Will God help Jeremiah?

I am curious about the pictures, the illustrations. No credit is given for the artwork. Did Kenneth Taylor use artwork that had already been made for his book? Did he start with finding pictures and then write stories to go with these pictures? OR did the stories come first? Why is there so much emphasis on the details of the pictures perhaps focusing on details that are from artists' imaginations rather than the Bible itself?



© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible