The NIV kids' visual Study Bible

        "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." ~ 3 John 1:4

This, this verse above says it all. As a Christian parent, my highest desire is that my daughters would cultivate a growing, fervent love for the Lord.

I am so far from perfect, and I fail more than I would like, but I do try to use those times to point out my (and every person's) desperate need for Jesus. It is a humbling thing to know that your kids are watching you, modeling your behavior, good and bad. There are many ways that a parent, guardian, teacher, etc., may encourage a child in his or her walk with Christ. One of those ways relates to their devotional, or quiet time, reading the Bible. It should go without saying, that studying, and meditating on the Word of God, is vital to our spiritual health.
For this reason, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to review the NIV kids' visual Study Bible. (I received a free copy of this Book in exchange for an honest opinion.)

For about a week or so prior to hearing about this review, my 11 year old had been talking about her need for a new Bible, having outgrown her current one that is written for younger ages.

Needless to say, she was over the moon with happiness to help in the evaluation process.

So, let's talk about this Bible!

First, a general overview. The NIV kid's visual study Bible is designed for kids aged 8-12 years old. This is a lovely, colorful version with over 700 photographs. Each book features a quick introduction with key facts, and photos. Every page has a yellow sidebar, with illustrations, and study notes about various Scriptures. There is also a handy ribbon attached, to easily bookmark a place. You'll also find an index to maps.

While the target demographic for this Bible is the pre-teen/tween set, it is the same NIV translation made for adults. Nothing watered down. 

How about a few photos?

I like this Bible! I love study notes, colorful pages, and miscellaneous information that takes me deeper into the Word. Those aspects are effective in drawing in the reader, and making Scripture come alive.

My daughter spent plenty of time using this Bible, and she was happy to offer her list of pros and cons.

The positives:

She found the extra features informative, and interesting. She liked the photos and illustrations, as well as the sidebar study notes. The sidebar also provides room to take notes during personal reading, and while listening to sermons at church.

The not so positives:

The list for the cons is small. In fact there are only two. The first, relates to font size. It's pretty small, and can feel like it's necessary to strain to read at times.

The other concerns the sidebars. They appear on every page, although not every sidebar has any text at all. While that does leave extra room for taking notes, my daughter felt that it created wasted space, and that perhaps if they were not there, the text could have been printed in a larger font.

Her final rating? 4.5 out of 5 stars. I agree completely. Great Bible, great version. Two thumbs up, check it out!

NIV kids' visual study Bible

Published by Zondervan

Find it on Amazon right now for $21.26

Find it at Barnes and Noble for $21.99