Bible Review: The Big Picture Interactive Bible

Big Picture Interactive Bible: Connecting Christ through God’s Story (HCSB)*. Broadman &Holman Kids, 2014, 1350 pages.

Reading Level: Middle grades, ages 8-10Bible-big.picture

Recommended for: ages 6-10

Bottom Line: The “Big Picture” in this HCSB Bible relates to Jesus as the central figure of both Old and New Testaments.

Like the NIV Jesus Bible, the purpose of Big Picture is to trace the coming of Christ throughout the Old Testament and his meaning in the New. Two features I especially like: the Table of Contents, which usually just lists the books and page numbers, is expanded to represent an outline of the whole Bible, so readers can get a good sense of the sweep of the story just by looking at the Contents. Also, instead of a Bible dictionary in the appendix, the “Big Words” feature explains words, concepts, people groups, and nations as the reader encounters them. So as we read through Exodus, for example, we learn the meaning of Passover, Sabbath, Egypt, Ephod, etc. As one who’s always been disinclined stop reading in order to look up unfamiliar words in a dictionary, I really like this.

Other features include “Christ Connections” (Jesus in Old and New Testaments), “Seeing the Big Picture” (basic commentary), “Big Questions” (both observation and discussion), and 100 memory verses. The text also includes 146 full-page, full color illustrations with “Augmented Reality.” I’m still not exactly sure what this means, but you can download a free app on your phone that will enable you to see enhanced, interactive versions of the pictures as the stories are narrated. “Reality” doesn’t seem like the best word, because the pictures are too cartoony for my taste. I’m going to guess that the augmented reality doesn’t add much, but the other features make up for it. The font is larger than many children’s Bibles, making for a lot of pages and a hefty chunk to carry around. But hey, they’re young and strong. For more about the Holman Christian Standard Bible translation, go here.

Overall Rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

Categories: Middle Grades, Christian, Bibles and Bible Storybooks, Gift Books

*The Big Picture Interactive Bible is now available in CSB and NKJV Translations

Stay Up to Date!

Get the information you need to make wise choices about books for your children and teens.

Our weekly newsletter includes our latest reviews, related links from around the web, a featured book list, book trivia, and more. We never sell your information. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Something went wrong. Please check your entries and try again.

Support our writers and help keep Redeemed Reader ad-free by joining the Redeemed Reader Fellowship.

Stay Up to Date!

Get the information you need to make wise choices about books for your children and teens.

Our weekly newsletter includes our latest reviews, related links from around the web, a featured book list, book trivia, and more. We never sell your information. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Something went wrong. Please check your entries and try again.

FREE Bible Guide!

Get a guide to the Best Bibles for Children and Teens. Perfect for an Easter gift.

Janie Cheaney

Janie is the VERY senior staff writer for Redeemed Reader, as well as a long-time contributor to WORLD Magazine and an author of nine books for children. The rest of the time she's long-distance smooching on her four grandchildren (not an easy task). She lives with her equally senior husband of almost-fifty years in the Ozarks of Missouri.

We'd love to hear from you!

Our comments are now limited to our members (both Silver and Golden Key). Members, you just need to log in with your normal log-in credentials!

Not a member yet? You can join the Silver Key ($2.99/month) for a free 2-week trial. Cancel at any time. Find out more about membership here.

Leave a Comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.