The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden
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More important than anything I might say: my children asked for more.
I probably would've given a little more weight to the creation mandate, but I do so like DeYoung—and the illustrations were simply fantastic.More important than anything I might say: my children asked for more.
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I was not surprised with the text. DeYoung has been a favorite write of mine for quite some time. I was expecting excellent, deep theology distilled in a manner that would allow me to share the great truths of Scripture with my boys of various ages and various spiritual and intellectual levels. This is what Pastor DeYoung has pr
I love Kevin DeYoung and have been looking forward to this book since I heard about it earlier in the year. It was what I expected. Though in some ways, I was surprised.I was not surprised with the text. DeYoung has been a favorite write of mine for quite some time. I was expecting excellent, deep theology distilled in a manner that would allow me to share the great truths of Scripture with my boys of various ages and various spiritual and intellectual levels. This is what Pastor DeYoung has provided and it is great! I love teaching the big picture of Scripture to my kids. It was such an aha moment for me when I realized that the Bible tells one, unified story. I had to wait until I was in my late twenties and was exposed to the works of Graeme Goldsworthy, via Vaughn Roberts, to see that the Scriptures are a unified whole. I am more than thankful that publishers and writers are making resources available with this truth in mind. I loved James Hamilton's The Bible's Big Story, but DeYoung's work will replace it as my go to on this topic with my kids (in part because this book is really good and in large part because DeYoung's work is aimed at an older reader, of which my kids qualify).
So, I was expecting an excellent overview of the Bible's grand narrative and I received that. What I was not expecting was to be wowed, time and again, by the illustrations. I tire of kids book illustrations often and pay them little attention for the most part. Don Clark's illustrations made me audibly gasp on a couple of occasions. Beyond being beautiful (which should not be minimized), these illustrations complement the text beautifully. They aid in the telling of the story and improve the reading experience exponentially. I am interested to see these in printed form (I am working off of a pdf review copy from the publisher) when this book releases. I can only imagine that I will look even better.
DeYoung and Clark take the reader through The Biggest Story to show us How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden. It is a beautiful book telling the most beautiful story that there is; that what was corrupted will be made right, that what was broken will be fixed, that what was lost will be redeemed by the victorious One who reigns forever.
Go check out some pages here: https://www.crossway.org/books/the-bi...
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2020 update --
I still really like this book. It's super artsy. However, this works better for 7-12 year olds than it does for those younger. This book also assumes you catechize your kids. Take that for what you will.
Also, the audiobook and video are wonderful.
Five stars.
Personally, my favorite kids Bible book. Super artistic. Can't wait for the video series and the audiobook.-----------------
2020 update --
I still really like this book. It's super artsy. However, this works better for 7-12 year olds than it does for those younger. This book also assumes you catechize your kids. Take that for what you will.
Also, the audiobook and video are wonderful.
Five stars.
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Don Clark's illu
Kevin DeYoung presents an excellent summary of redemption history in this book. It's full of deep (yet concise) interpretations of Old Testament narratives and the way they point forward to Christ. Jesus is presented as the new Adam, as well as the ultimate prophet, priest, and king. I only wish that His identity as God Himself would have been made more explicit. This can, of course, be supplied in discussion of the story, but I wish it had been emphasized within the book itself.Don Clark's illustrations are flawless. Even if DeYoung's writing had been awful, the pictures would have been worth the price of the book.
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The text. Eh, it's alright. Obviously the story is good, but it just felt a little awkward and a lot rushed. It's hard to fit this much epic narrative in 125 pages.
Stick with The Jesus Story Book Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones instead for easy reading, gorgeous illustrations, and a powerful message.
The illustrations in The Biggest Story are absolutely stunning.The text. Eh, it's alright. Obviously the story is good, but it just felt a little awkward and a lot rushed. It's hard to fit this much epic narrative in 125 pages.
Stick with The Jesus Story Book Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones instead for easy reading, gorgeous illustrations, and a powerful message.
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The illustrations deserve all the stars!
Unfortunately, I didn't like this book. Yes, the art is still stunning, but the language used to tell the story just doesn't go with it -- it isn't nearly as elegant or poetic. What's more offensive to me is how the story is told.
If you're going to condense God
I really wanted to like this book. Really. The artwork is gorgeous and the idea of telling the Story of God from the perspective of how Jesus gets us back to the garden is really intriguing -- especially since it's geared toward children.Unfortunately, I didn't like this book. Yes, the art is still stunning, but the language used to tell the story just doesn't go with it -- it isn't nearly as elegant or poetic. What's more offensive to me is how the story is told.
If you're going to condense God's story, you've got to choose your details well. As an example, the author chose to include that different people's names were changed (Abram to Abraham, etc). The offense is stating that they didn't know why their names were changed. Yes, you know why. Mentioning it and then glossing over it isn't helpful. If you aren't going to explain the significance of the name change, why bring it up at all? I just think it sets kids up for failure in terms of biblical understanding of God's story to say we don't know the why of something when we do.
I also don't think someone who isn't familiar with the Bible could follow this story. There are large chunks of narrative missing (understandable given it is just a summary) but larger theological ideas are brought up with no explanation, and again, if you didn't already know the story, you would be totally confused.
The author's note at the back said this was originally a sermon near advent and it probably should have stayed that way instead of trying to become a children's book. I don't recommend it except for the art. Again, totally beautiful but it belongs with something more thoughtfully told.
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The note to parents at the end is excellent.
Here's the DVD.
Comments at WORLD : "As author Kevin DeYoung explains, The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden (Crossway, 2015) began as a Christmas sermon meant to showcase the Nativity in light of "the biggest story" of the Bible as a whole. Too long for a picture book, too condensed for a Bible storybook, it
Very good, although we're not headed back to a/the garden; we're headed toward a garden-city, the New Jerusalem.The note to parents at the end is excellent.
Here's the DVD.
Comments at WORLD : "As author Kevin DeYoung explains, The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden (Crossway, 2015) began as a Christmas sermon meant to showcase the Nativity in light of "the biggest story" of the Bible as a whole. Too long for a picture book, too condensed for a Bible storybook, it carves out a niche of its own. The narrative touches on all the great biblical themes while sketching a classic plot: setting, conflict, development of the conflict, solution presented, climax, and denouement. The stylized full-color illustrations complement this approach beautifully. DeYoung likes to present contrasts (such as, 'We run from God, so he comes to us'), and illustrator Don Clark pictures many side-by-side contrasts and symbolic images. The presentation is best for children who are capable of slightly abstract thinking. Some parents may find the style too informal in places (e.g., 'bad guys,' 'a whole bunch'), and basic concepts like sin could be more fully developed; but The Biggest Story makes a worthwhile addition to the family bookshelf."
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I know we'll return to this for years to come. Chapters are not too long, but not too short. Makes a great resource for family devotions (you'd complete it in 2-3 weeks easily if you're regu
Good book and a great summation of the Bible's narrative. DeYoung does a great job telling this grand story in understandable language (though, at points, there are words and concepts that will be difficult for younger children, but I think this gives a good opportunity for teaching/explanation as you read).I know we'll return to this for years to come. Chapters are not too long, but not too short. Makes a great resource for family devotions (you'd complete it in 2-3 weeks easily if you're regular with this).
Our daughter isn't old enough to understand what we're reading to her yet, but one thing is for sure: those illustrations capture her attention even at three-months-old. Those were great!
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The Biggest Story is the story of God creating, promising and rescuing. One of my favorite sections reads:
"God had sent prophets, priests, and kings. He started out with Adam and started over with Noah. He chose Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He gave Moses the Law. He sent Israel judges. He raised up deliverers. He conquered enemies. He provided sacrifices. He l
I've been wanting to read this for years. I love Kevin DeYoung and figured he would probably slam dunk a children's book about the gospel.The Biggest Story is the story of God creating, promising and rescuing. One of my favorite sections reads:
"God had sent prophets, priests, and kings. He started out with Adam and started over with Noah. He chose Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He gave Moses the Law. He sent Israel judges. He raised up deliverers. He conquered enemies. He provided sacrifices. He lived among his people in a tent and in a temple.
God gave them every opportunity and ten thousand chances, but still sin and the Serpent seemed to be winning.
Until...all of a sudden, they lost."
I kind of think children's books about the gospel or about the Bible are sometimes harder to write than full texts because you have to be so particular with your words. You only have so many and each one carries a lot of weight. There were a couple of times where I thought I would maybe say it differently, but then there were plenty of times where I thought, "Wow, I never would have thought to say it that way." The language and themes that are emphasized are really helpful and vivid.
The book magnifies God and his many actions with the people he's created. The people screw up over and over, but God keeps his promises (God goes even beyond what we expect from his promises).
And, man. The illustrations. They are stunning. They're bolder and boxier than I typically go for, but they are so beautiful and so incredibly detailed and expressive. They are such a perfect compliment to the writing. I absolutely love them.
My only criticism is that there doesn't seem to be a clear call to believe or a distinction between those who believe and those who don't. You definitely get the picture that humanity needs God's help, but the story is written with the inclusive "we" and "us" throughout and there isn't a clear picture of the fact that we have accept the gift of salvation and that "us" doesn't apply to everyone. There's one part toward the end that says, "So keep waiting for him. Keeping believing in him. Keep trusting that the story isn't over yet. God's promises never fail and the Promised One never disappoints." This seems to allude to saving faith, but I think that it would need to be followed up with something more explicit to prevent a false sense of salvation, especially since its target audience is children and it's often hard to know what children's understanding of salvation really is.
This is definitely a book I want to own (and it would make a great gift). I would say it takes about 30 minutes to read aloud, probably longer if you really want to do the pictures justice. It's divided into 10 chapters, though, so with little ones it would be easy to break it up as needed.
There's a short message to parents in the back to help draw out some of the themes.
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The illustrations are awesome. Vibrant and colorful enough to even hold the attention of a two-month old. I look forward to reading this many more tim
This book targets kids around the age of 3-12 but I think it is great for all ages. DeYoung summarizes the Bible's storyline and pulls out major themes of Gods redemptive plan in 10 short chapters. The book is even a sort of simple intro to/example of biblical theology; showing how the whole Bible points to, revolves around, and climaxes in Jesus.The illustrations are awesome. Vibrant and colorful enough to even hold the attention of a two-month old. I look forward to reading this many more times over the years. It's sweet to see the some of the over-arching themes of the Bible communicated in such a Christ-exalting, clear, and concise way. As DeYoung says at the end: "We need redemption. We need forgiveness. We need the Promised One to lead us to our promised home."
I read this with my 8 week old daughter. She didn't say much but I think she liked it.
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Even better: it's all done in the most strikingly beautiful children's book ever. Seriously, I could stare at these illustrations all day. There is so much detail in each simple illustration. That sounds like a mistype, but it's not. Each page has only 1-3 illustrations, but each one is intricately thought out. Even just the orientation of the image speaks volumes in some cases. The glossy pages make the bright jewel tones really pop out. I got my copy from the library, but am petitioning the hubby to buy a copy for the fam. ;)
One last thing: there's a couple tiny pockets of dry humor in the book. I LOVE DRY HUMOR. It's done in a subtle way, and very very very lightly, keeping the tone of this religious book serious enough.
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Excellent stuff.
Really clear explanation of the metanarrative of the Bible, from Creation, Fall, Redemption and through to Consummation.
Great accompanying visuals, enticing from 3 months old to 30 years old and beyond!
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The Biggest Story: How the Snake Crusher Brings Us Back to the Garden
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