Review: Deep Blue Kids Bible

Terrific T was so excited when he heard that we were chosen for this review. This is a new children's Bible from Abington Press. The Deep Blue Kids Bible is a study Bible for kids, full of awesome features that will make kids excited to read God's Word.

There are several different covers available. We received the Image Flex cover, which retails for $26.99 (the best price I found was on Amazon for $17.81). It's written in the Common English Version which is easier for kiddos to understand. It's geared toward 8-12 year olds. T is 9 and loves this. P is 7 and has been borrowing it too. I would love to pick up one for her too.

The first thing T noticed were the maps - lol. There are 8 National Geographic Society maps in the back and he loves looking at the places Jesus walked (which we happen to be studying this area in school right now too).  Then he started looking through all the Exploration Tools in the back. I haven't ever seen this many features in a kid's Bible before!

 They include:

•  dictionary, where it defines the things in simple words so the kids can understand
• I wonder what to do when: verse list, where they list verses that relate to different tough topics like disappointment, temptation, or suffering.
• Lighthouse Notes: shows where to find more information about faith topics like heaven, false gods, and obedience
• Sailboat Notes: lists the location of verses that emphasis positive character traits like humility, joy, and forgiveness
• Umbrella Notes: lists the location of verses that address challenging character traits like anger, lying and hopelessness
• Life Preserver Notes: gives verses that respond to tough questions, like "Why were animals sacrificed?" or "What did Jesus mean by 'fishing for people'?"
• God's Thoughts/ My Thoughts: devotions sprinkled all throughout the Word for kids are listed here
• Bet You Can! Reading Challenges: lists the challenges they give the kids to read a certain amount of verses in a certain amount of time, like "Bet you can read Joshua 4:1-9 in less than 5 minutes"

I love these features in this Bible. They have made T even more eager to read the Word. He loves checking off the boxes when he finishes one of the assignments above, and really likes the "Did you know? facts found throughout the pages.

In the front of the Bible, there are also many helps for kids, including lists of recommended verses to memorize, tips on how to read the Bible, and other references that help the Bible make more sense.

The Deep Blue Kids Bible leads kids to approach the Bible as an adventure. There are three cute characters that are along for the journey: Asia, Edgar, and Kat.  They can be found throughout the Bible, showing the kids new and exciting things they have discovered. Each book begins with a full page picture and a page of information about the book. They tell you about people you will meet, places you will go, things you will discover, and words you will remember before every book. Then the sailboats, life preservers, etc. are spread out throughout the books of the Bible for the kids to find.

I normally don't love the new versions of the Bible and stick with more traditional versions. But it appears that there is a time and place for everything ;) This CEB version is perfect to get children reading and learning God's Word, without being frustrated with the "old" language. It is written so they still get the same information, but in a kid friendly way. For us, this has become the go to version for quiet times and studying for T and P.  We have been using this to look up verses during our Bible time in school or other times we want a different translation when we are studying something.

There is a PDF sample on their website. When T first saw this (when we heard we would be reviewing this), he knew then that he would love it. Check it out!

I do love seeing this:

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Disclaimer:  As a member of the TOS Crew, I received this Bible, at no cost to me, in exchange for my honest review.  All opinions are mine.