I am always on the lookout for books to snag for my nieces and nephews—and not just your run of the mill ones. I’m always looking for beautifully illustrated books which also are a delight to read. If they have a biblical message, that’s even better! Needless to say, I was very curious to read and review God is Better than Trucks from Christian Focus to see if it is worth adding to our collection. Today I’d like to share my review with you!About the Book
God is Better than Trucks is written by Sarah Reju and illustrated by Roger De Klerk. It is an A-Z Alphabetical book which teachers about Ambulances, Bulldozers, Car Carriers to the Zamboni and shares about how God is better than all of them. The theme of the book centers around how all of these vehicles are super cool and can do amazing things, but how our God is even better than the most awesome vehicle.Sarah Reju has also written a companion book God is Better than Princesses which follows the same line as the God is Better Than Trucks book--with a princess theme for the alphabet.
Both books are hardbound and full color. They are geared as a "read-to-me" book for ages 0-5, with a transition to reading alone for ages 4-6. Both books are available for purchase through Christian Focus.
Our Thoughts on the Book
“Do you love Trucks? Trucks are powerful, big, and fun, but God is better than TRUCKS!”
So begins this super cute book themed around different vehicles. It’s an alphabet book, which means that every page or so has a new vehicle to match the appropriate letter. Most of the vehicles are what you would expect—Ambulance, Bulldozer, Dump Trucks…but some of the letters are more creative with their matching vehicle—Experimental Cars, Kayak, Off-Road Jeep, and my favorite…the Zamboni!
Each new vehicle has a little description about it and what it is used for, then the book moves into expounding on how God is even better.
“The Police Car rushes to help people in trouble, but God is always with you. God is better than police cars.”
Along with the explanation of how God is better than the vehicle, there is a scripture for every page—sometimes more than one! And every scripture coordinates with the way that God is better. When the book discusses Underwater Submarines and how God is better because He made the whole ocean, it quotes Psalm 95:5 “The sea is His, for He made it…”
I think my favorite is the one for Off-Road Cars which is matched with the fact that nothing can stop God and refers to Matthew 19:26 “With God all things are possible.”
My youngest has already read this book five times. My youngest even grabbed it to read it one time. He thinks some of the vehicle choices for the alphabet were a bit silly, but he likes the idea of the book very much. He also recognized several of his memory verses in the book.
One thing I appreciate about the book is that it doesn’t have anything on it to specify that it’s only for boys. I know that little girls enjoy vehicles just as much as boys do, and will enjoy having a vehicle book on their bookshelf. The illustrations are eye-catching and the book is very high quality with a thick glossy cover.
My youngest says his favorite pages are the ones of the heavy machinery—tractor, excavator, dump truck, and wrecker. He was also glad to see some of this year’s memory verses were in the book too.
These books are definitely great for reading aloud, although I don’t know that I would say they are good for self-reading for ages 6-8. I think they are more for 7-9 as they would match more of the books marked 2nd-grade level at the library. My 8 year old did have an easy time reading it, but he’s also an advanced reader.
The only thing I would bring out about the books is that they are written promoting heaven as is expected from any protestant author. If your family believes in the resurrection and the Kingdom of God (not the traditional heaven and hell doctrine), then you will need to make some minor tweaks-- nothing major and only on a couple lines. We easily rephrased it to fit our beliefs.
I still happily recommend this book even with the minor tweaks I needed to make!
These books are definitely great for reading aloud, although I don’t know that I would say they are good for self-reading for ages 6-8. I think they are more for 7-9 as they would match more of the books marked 2nd-grade level at the library. My 8 year old did have an easy time reading it, but he’s also an advanced reader.
The only thing I would bring out about the books is that they are written promoting heaven as is expected from any protestant author. If your family believes in the resurrection and the Kingdom of God (not the traditional heaven and hell doctrine), then you will need to make some minor tweaks-- nothing major and only on a couple lines. We easily rephrased it to fit our beliefs.
I still happily recommend this book even with the minor tweaks I needed to make!
Want to Know More?
We reviewed God is Better than Trucks by Sarah Reju and enjoyed it. Christian Focus provided our team with a total of four books to review--so I encourage you to read other crew reviews so you can learn more about God is Better than Princesses, Big Bible Science, and Elizabeth Prentiss!
No comments:
Post a Comment