Monday, September 28, 2020

8. NIV Young Discoverer's Bible


NIV Young Discoverer's Bible. 1985. Zondervan. 1979 pages. [Source: Childhood copy]

First sentence: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 

I love, love, love, love, love this Bible. This started out as my school Bible--in 1985. (My school having recently switched from the King James Version to the New International Version. I was in second grade.) I don't have any memories of actually reading the King James Version as a child--though surely the memorization verses of kindergarten and first grade were all in KJV. 

But this Bible, this Bible I remember well and fondly. It isn't my only, only Bible from childhood--I received a Living Bible in December of 1986--but it's probably one that I read the most often. Actually both the Living Bible and the NIV 84 are incredibly special to me. Happy, happy memories all around.

So there's the memories of reading it throughout most of my childhood--it wouldn't be replaced as my school Bible until my junior year? my senior year? But what else do I love about this one? 

I love, love, love the size of the font! If only EVERY SINGLE BIBLE could have print this big. It's proof that big print doesn't have to mean crazy heavy. This Bible isn't heavy at all. It's actually very comfortable to hold. 

I love, love, love the fact that it's black letter. 

I love the fact that it's well-worn and well-loved yet not falling apart. 

I love the fact that as an older Bible published during a time when quality mattered for everyone--that the pages aren't super-super-thin and see-through. I love that it doesn't have a lot of bleed-through or ghosting of the text. I want those days back. Decent pages shouldn't be a luxury for those that can afford to pay several hundred dollars for a Bible. 

It does have pictures--illustrations--but that is neither here nor there. That's not a reason I love it in particular. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

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