BOOK REVIEW: THE BEGINNER’S GOSPEL STORY BIBLE Author: Jared Kennedy

THE BEGINNER’S GOSPEL STORY BIBLE BY JARED KENNEDY

Author: Jared Kennedy

How can you explain clearly to your children the good news of God’s love for them in ways that will speak to their young hearts? Jared Kennedy’s The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible is a must-add to your kids’ bookshelves. Trace God’s perfect promises through fifty-two Old and New Testament stories, retold in simple and compelling ways with toddlers and preschoolers in mind. Each gospel-centered story highlights God’s tale of redemption through Jesus and the unexpected and surprising ways that God’s grace and mercy are revealed throughout the Bible. Every story also ends with a question that parents and caregivers can use to further reinforce the message.

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{MORE ABOUT THE BEGINNER’S GOSPEL STORY BIBLE}

The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible (New Growth Press, November 2017)

How do you explain the gospel to toddlers and preschoolers?

Often adults are stumped, but Jared Kennedy’s focus on the promises of God makes the gospel come alive to the littlest hearts. Through fifty-two Old and New Testament stories, The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible highlights God’s perfect promises. Every page pops with bright colors, playful illustrations, fun learning opportunities, and, best of all each story points children to Jesus.

Kids know the value of a promise. Through the gospel, our good and all-powerful God keeps his word and fulfills his promises to us better than we could have ever thought or imagined!

In The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible, author Jared Kennedy traces God’s perfect promises through fifty-two Old and New Testament stories, retold in simple and compelling ways with toddlers and preschoolers in mind. Each gospel-centered story highlights God’s tale of redemption through Jesus and the unexpected and surprising ways that God’s grace and mercy are revealed throughout the Bible. Children will hear the good news of God’s love for them clearly expressed in ways that will speak to their young hearts. Brightly colored illustrations highlight the stories and add fun teaching elements of counting, opposites, patterns, and object recognition to keep even the youngest child’s attention. Every story also ends with a question that parents and caregivers can use to further reinforce the message.

Through reading this book one chapter at a time to your children—or letting them read it to you!—even the youngest kids will come to know that God’s promises are especially for them, and that God always keeps his promises.

Learn more, read a sample, and purchase a copy.

{MORE ABOUT JARED KENNEDY}

Jared Kennedy, MDiv, ThM, is the husband to Megan and the father of three girls—Rachael, Lucy, and Elisabeth. He serves as Pastor of Families at Sojourn Community Church—Midtown in Louisville, KY and as children’s ministry strategist for Sojourn Network. He blogs regularly at gospelcenteredfamily.com and is also the coauthor of “Leadership Mosaic” and two VBS programs, “Proof Pirates” and “Clap Your Hands,” “Stomp Your Feet.”

Find out more about Jared at http://www.gospelcenteredfamily.com.

MY THOUGHTS: 

This is a great, beautifully illustrated book that was perfect for my 6 and 4 year old. It held their attention, gave great bible lessons and opened up conversations between us. They were excited and intrigued as the stories came to life. This is a great gift for kids, grand kids, nephews, neices, etc. My boys loved this and look forward to reading it. It has been a great edition to our daily bible time. 

I received a copy of this book through Litfuse Blogging Program. All opinions are my own. 

Kids Book Review! The Stable Cat's Christmas Hardcover by Christina S. Vrba

Kids Book Review! The Stable Cat's Christmas Hardcover  by Christina S. Vrba




About the Book

One night in Bethlehem, a small, dust-colored cat returns to her stable to find that a Baby has been born in the night. As all the animals tell the cat about the gifts they gave the Christ Child, the cat sadly concludes that she is too little and powerless to give a gift to the King. But when the Baby shivers and the cat leaps into the manger to comfort him, she discovers that she can give the best gift of all—herself. This timeless Christmas book celebrates the fact that everyone has a gift they can give the King, no matter their size or stature. Enchanting illustrations and a heartfelt message make this book a Christmas keepsake that can be enjoyed year after year.




My Thoughts. 
This was a super cute kids story. My children (ages 6 and 4) really enjoyed reading it. I loved the cat and the powerful story that sometimes our smallest gift can be the greatest! It was a great conversation starter that God just desires us to give all of our selves - and to have a relationship with him. My boys were huge fans of the animals in the story. Beautifully illustrated. 

I received a copy of this book through Worthy Publishing, all opinions are my own. 

Book Specs

Publication Date: October 3, 2017

Author/Illustrator: Christina S. Vrba/Gail Yerrill

Price: $16.99

Format: Jacketed hardcover

Page Count: 32

Ages: 4–7

Author Biography

Christina S. Vrba lives and works in northwestern Connecticut. When not spinning tales, Christina loves poking about in comic book shops and the children’s sections of bookstores, spending time with her husband and son, and caring for her personal menagerie of creatures, including dogs, cats, gerbils, and two much-loved goldfish.

Illustrator Biography

Gail Yerrill lives in a village in Bedfordshire, England with her husband, two children, and two very naughty-but-cute cats. After earning her degree in 1998, she became a freelance illustrator and designer of greeting cards and gift wrap for Marks & Spencers, and has also illustrated items for Harrods and the BBC among others. She has illustrated many books for well-known publishers, several of which are translated into many languages. Gail is known for her soft, whimsical style which is loved by children and adults alike.

Worthy Publishing Group is a privately held, independent voice in inspirational publishing, based in Nashville, TN. Worthy includes five distinct imprints: Worthy Books publishes inspirational works addressing spiritual growth, biblical study, faith and culture, biography, fiction, and specialty Bibles; Museum of the Bible Books is a partnership between Worthy and the Museum, publishing books that reveal the history, narrative, and impact of the Bible; Ellie Claire produces beautifully crafted journals, gifts, and paper expressions; Worthy Inspired publishes felt-need, spiritual growth, inspirational, and devotional books; and WorthyKids/Ideals creates colorful, interactive children’s books, including VeggieTales and Berenstain Bears, for ages 2 to 8.

WorthyKids/Ideals (an imprint of Worthy Publishing)

Website: www.IdealsBooks.com

Facebook: @WorthyKidsIdeals

Instagram: @WorthyPub

Book Review: Hunting Hour: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery by Margaret Mizushima on tour with Great Escapes

Hunting Hour: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery
by Margaret Mizushima

Hunting Hour: A Timber Creek K-9 Mystery
Mystery/Police Procedurals/Woman Sleuths
3rd in Series
Crooked Lane Books (August 8, 2017)
Hardcover: 320 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1683312772
E-Book ASIN: B06XWFGDY5

Deputy Mattie Cobb is in a dark place and has withdrawn from Cole Walker and his family to work on issues from her past. When she and her K-9 partner Robo get called to track a missing junior high student, they find the girl dead on Smoker’s Hill behind the high school, and Mattie must head to the Walker home to break the bad news. But that’s only the start of trouble in Timber Creek, because soon another girl goes missing—and this time it’s one of Cole’s daughters.

Knowing that each hour a child remains missing lessens the probability of finding her alive, Mattie and Robo lead the hunt while Cole and community volunteers join in to search everywhere. To no avail. It seems that someone has snatched all trace of the Walker girl from their midst, including her scent. Grasping at straws, Mattie and Robo follow a phoned-in tip into the dense forest, where they hope to find a trace of the girl’s scent and to rescue her alive. But when Robo does catch her scent, it leads them to information that challenges everything they thought they knew about the case.

Mattie and Robo must rush to hunt down the kidnapper before they’re too late in Hunting Hour, the third installment in critically acclaimed author Margaret Mizushima’s exhilarating mystery series.

About the Author

Margaret Mizushima is the author of the Timber Creek K-9 mysteries, which includes Killing Trail (Crooked Lane Books, 2015) nominated for an RT Reviewer’s Choice award for best first mystery, Stalking Ground (Crooked Lane Books, 2016) a finalist in the Colorado Book Awards mystery category, and Hunting Hour (Crooked Lane Books, 2017). She has a background in speech pathology and practiced in an acute care hospital before establishing her own rehabilitation agency. Currently, she balances writing with assisting her husband with their veterinary clinic and Angus cattle herd. She enjoys reading and hiking, and she lives on a small ranch in Colorado where she and her husband raised two daughters and a multitude of animals.

Facebook: @authormargaretmizushima

Twitter: @margmizu

Website: www.margaretmizushima.com

Purchase Links:

Amazon: Barnes and Noble: Booksamillion:  Indiebound:

MY THOUGHTS

This is the first book that I have read by this author, and the first book in the series. I had no problem following along. I really like the relationship between Mattie and her K-9 Robo. I loved this book. I loved the twists and turns this book took you on. The characters are well developed and the story is well written. I will be going back and reading the other books in the series. 

I received a copy of this book through the Great Escapes blogging program, all opinions are my own.

Tour Participants

November 24 – Books,Dreams,Life – SPOTLIGHT

November 24 – Because I said so – Adventures in Parenting – REVIEW

November 25 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – REVIEW

November 26 – The Power of Words – REVIEW

November 27 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST

November 28 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST

November 29 – The Book’s the Thing – REVIEW, GUEST POST

November 30 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

December 1 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT

December 2 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – INTERVIEW

December 3 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST

December 4 – FUONLYKNEW – REVIEW

December 5 – Cozy Up With Kathy – CHARACTER GUEST POST

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Book Review: Cowboy Christmas Guardian by: Dana Mentink

About the Book:

Name of book: Cowboy Christmas Guardian

Author: Dana Mentink

Genre: Isnpy Romance Suspense

Someone is dead set on stopping Shelby Arroyo from doing her job: assessing mineral rights in a mine in gold country. But after rancher Barrett Thorn rescues her from an attack, the handsome widowed cowboy seems to feel responsible for her. That is, until he discovers she’s from the family that he’ll never forgive for his wife’s death. As the threats against Shelby escalate, cowboy honor and an unexpected attraction keep Barrett by her side, even at his own risk. And since Shelby won’t back down, Barrett must protect the brave, loyal woman he has no business falling for…a woman someone wants to kill by Christmas.

Click here to purchase your copy.

About the Author:



Dana Mentink is a two time American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award winner, a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award and a Holt Medallion winner. She is a national bestselling author of over thirty-five titles in the suspense and lighthearted romance genres. She is pleased to write for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin Heartwarming and Harvest House. Besides writing, she busies herself teaching third grade. Mostly, she loves to be home with Papa Bear, Yogi, Boo Boo, a nutty terrier, a chubby box turtle and a feisty parakeet.

Guest Post from Dana Mentink

Howdy, readers! I am thrilled to be bringing you this four book Gold Country Cowboys series that takes place in an area near and dear to my heart! My family and I have enjoyed many adventures in this amazing area, from exploring gold mines, to climbing through caverns, and soaking in the incredible history. As a matter of fact, we recently enjoyed a train trip on the historic V and T Railroad which took us past abandoned mines and even some active ones where people are engaged in modern day treasure hunting. California’s Gold Country is a fascinating place filled with secret treasures. I hope you will enjoy some wild adventures with four cowboy brothers who have some secrets of their own. God bless you all!





MY THOUGHTS:

I am a huge fan of Ms. Mentink. She has such a way of pulling you into the story that you do not want to stop reading. The settings in her stories are well researched. I learn so much! This is the beginning for a new series and it was so full of action! The action, the romance, the mystery --- AHHHH so much going on. I am looking forward to next in the series. 

You will adore the characters in the book. They are well written and seem so real. Take a trip to Gold Country - you will NOT be dissapointed. 

I received a copy of this book through the Celebrate Lit Blogging Program, all opinions are my own. 

Blog Stops

Cordially Barbara, November 16

Genesis 5020, November 16

Have A Wonderful Day, November 17

A Greater Yes, November 17

To Everything A Season, November 17

ASC Book Reviews, November 18

Splashes of Joy, November 18

History, Mystery & Faith, November 19

Red Headed Book Lady, November 19

Remembrancy, November 19

Chas Ray’s Book Nerd Corner, November 20

Autism mom, November 20

Singing Librarian Books, November 21

Janices book reviews, November 21

Moments Dipped in Ink, November 22

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, November 22

New Horizon Reviews, November 23

Christian Author, J.E. Grace, November 23

Pause for Tales, November 24

Ashley’s Bookshelf, November 24

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 25

Cafinated Reads, November 25

Blogging With Carol, November 26

Daysong Reflections, November 26

Carpe Diem, November 27

Karen Sue Hadley, November 27

Babs Book Bistro, November 28

Bibliophile Reviews, November 28

Raining Butterfly Kisses, November 29

The Power of Words, November 29

Giveaway









In honor of her tour, Dana is giving away a copy of Cowboy Christmas Guardian in print or ebook, a horse scarf and a $25 Amazon gift card! Click the link below to enter! https://promosimple.com/ps/c0d3

Book Review: Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation by: Champ Thornton

ABOUT THE BOOK

Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation (New Growth Press, October 2017)

Let Scripture reform the next generation.

There are many different kinds of legacies we can leave, but sharing yourself and your faith with the next generation will always stand the test of time. Through showing himself and his wisdom in the book of Proverbs, God has also left his legacy with us and relies on us to share it with our children and grandchildren. But before we can share that wisdom, first we must grow in our own understanding and knowledge and record, reflect, and consider what we have learned.

Pass it On provides readers with an opportunity to create a legacy of wisdom and faith and to share it with their children and grandchildren. As readers are guided through the book of Proverbs, they are asked to create their own personalized, wisdom journal with the aim of giving it to someone they love. Through careful study, answering questions, writing out prayers, and sharing personal stories, readers can create a lasting keepsake for themselves and for their families and frThe fresh and careful translation provided comes from Dr. Bruce Waltke, who, now in his eighties, has devoted his life to a humble and Christ-focused study of God s Word, and especially the book of Proverbs. His two-volume work on Proverbs is considered by many as the premier commentary in the English language. As you study the translation of individual chapters, add your own comments in the margins. And feel free to circle, underline, and connect key words or phrases as you see them in the chapter for the day.

Learn more and purchase a copy

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Champ Thornton, MDiv, is associate pastor at Ogletown Baptist Church in Delaware. He has pastored in South Carolina and served as director of SOMA, a ministry training school in Columbus, OH. He is also the author of "The Radical Book for Kids: Exploring the Roots and Shoots of Faith," "God’s Love: A Bible Storybook," and Bible curriculum for early and upper elementary-aged children. Champ and his wife, Robben, have been married since 1996 and have three children.

MY THOUGHTS: 

I have never read through the entire book of Proverbs. I have read a select few that have popped up in bible studies or sermons - but I have never read through the entire book. This book helped me to gain a greater understanding of how God speaks to us through Proverbs. 

I loved the way this broke it down to unpack each chapter. I loved writing out the answers through out the book. It truly was a pleasure to read. 

I received a copy of this book through the LitFuse Blogging program, all opinions are my own. 

Children's Book Review God’s Great Love for You By: Rick Warren

About the Book:

About God’s Great Love for You:

God’s Great Love for You, written by #1 New York Times bestselling author and respected pastor Rick Warren, takes children on a whimsical and heartfelt journey that lets them know God’s love is with them wherever they go. With breathtaking illustrations by Chris Saunders, the simple yet poignant text comes alive as a child journeys to places far and near and discovers God’s great love is perfect, and everywhere, and will never end.

About the Author:

Dr. Rick Warren is pastor, author, global strategist, theologian, and philanthropist. His book The Purpose Driven Life has been called the bestselling non-fiction hardback in publishing history by Publishers Weekly, having sold more than 32 million copies. Warren founded Saddleback Church in 1980 with his wife, Kay. In addition to a 120-acre campus in Lake Forest, CA, the church has fourteen satellite campuses in Southern California and three international campuses. Rick Warren is often called "America's most influential spiritual leader." He and his wife, Kay, founded Saddleback Church in Orange County, California, which is now one of the largest and best-known churches in the world. He also wrote the #1 all-time bestselling hardcover book, The Purpose Driven Life.

Visit Rick Warren’s website at pastorrick.com

My Thoughts
I am a huge Rick Warren fan. He is one of the first Christian Authors I discovered when I became a Christian. I was super excited to see this book come up for review. This book is geared toward kids ages 4-8. This book has beautiful illustrations.

It is written so well and shows how amazing God's love for us is. My 6 year old wanted to read this over and over again. It was easy enough for him to read with out any difficulties.

He also wanted to read it to his 16 year old sister. It is such a great reminder of how far and long God's love goes for us.

I received a copy of this book through FlyBy Promotions. All opinions are my own.


More Information: HERE

PURCHASE Book:

AMAZON
Christian Book