All The Things I Say to God by Tanner Olson

All The Things I Say to God
by Tanner Olson

ISBN-13: 9780310165958
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Zonderkidz
Released: April 29, 2025

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from Goodreads:
Abby has been praying with her parents for as long as she can remember. They pray together before meals and before bed, on good days and tough days. Then one day Abby asks a simple “Mom, can I pray to God all by myself?” Follow Abby on her journey of faith as she discovers how to express her gratitude, ask questions, pray for others, and use silence to communicate with God. Led by her own curiosity, she finds out that you can pray for anything and everything—God’s love knows no bounds.


My Review:
All The Things I Say to God is a Christian picture book for children. The narrative follows Abby, who has prayed along with adults but wonders if she can pray to God by herself. Along the way, she asks her mom about the type of things one can pray and then we see her pray about these things. She's shown as praying when in bed, though the text says she prays at other times, too. They covered topics like talking to God about life (and she tells God what happened that day, even small things), asking God questions, thanking God for good things, praying for others, and quietly thinking about God if you have nothing to say.

The illustrations were cartoon-like in style and showed what Abby was doing while asking her mother questions or while praying. It's a good book to start a conversation with kids about prayer, but the mother provided little guidance beyond saying that God loves it when we tell Him about our day, etc. The book didn't cover answers to prayer or God's part in prayer. Abby asked questions of God without seeming to expect answers. It was sort of talking at God. Your child may ask why God never responds to Abby, and you'll have to respond to that yourself. Overall, though, I'd recommend this story about praying to God.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Man of Valor, Man of Grace: The Life of David by Charles R. Swindoll

Man of Valor, Man of Grace:
The Life of David
by Charles R. Swindoll

ISBN-13: 9781400351039
Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Released: April 22, 2025

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, modified from Goodreads:
From his heroic youth onward through his greatly accomplished decades-long kingship, with continual struggles always along the way—from extreme highs to extreme lows—the continual dramatic highlights in David’s life are shown here with keen perception.

David very early experienced spectacular victories and unprecedented popularity, yet he also quickly became a fugitive from authorities for at least a dozen years of his early adult life—then, years later, was forced on the run again by his own son. Tragedy stalked this man in so many ways—but he was teachable and "a man after God's own heart."

Swindoll explores the three great failures in David's adulthood, with their heartbreaking consequences—while also showing David to be the best example in Scripture of someone riding out the storms of life. David was gripped by destructive passion, rocked by family chaos and personal tragedy, and motivated by political expediency. Like all of us, David was far from perfect, but Swindoll teaches us that David had the chance to become great when he placed himself at the Lord's disposal.


My Review:
Man of Valor, Man of Grace is basically a reprint of "Great Lives: David: A Man of Passion and Destiny by Charles R. Swindoll" published in 1997. When skimming the older version, I did notice some updates, like a reference to a storm that they were going through in 1997 was changed to the author having gone through several storms. If you've read the older version, there's no reason to get this book, too.

This is a Bible study on the life of David, with the author telling about a part of David's life (including quotes from the Bible) then commenting on what happened and what we can learn from these events. My problem is that the author (like most people) still tries to put David on a pedestal despite his sins since he's "a man after God's own heart." So in one chapter, we have David described as a negligent father and his children left to raise themselves. In a later chapter, the author stated how Solomon should be grateful to have such a great father. Yet David's refusal to name Solomon his heir from the beginning (and spend some time making sure he knew how to rule instead of criticizing Solomon's inexperience) caused at least the last attempt by one of his sons to take over the throne. In one chapter, we're told how David is a good example of forgiveness of an enemy, yet the author never mentioned how David commanded Solomon to make sure that same man died for what he did.

The general principles that the author draws from the text are good ones. I merely question if David was really such a great example of these things. Overall, I'd recommend this Bible study if all you know about David's life are his battle with Goliath and his sin surrounding Bathsheba as this book does go into greater detail about David's life.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

The Maker of the Mountain by Sandra McCracken

The Maker of the Mountain
by Sandra McCracken;
Tim Nicholson

ISBN-13: 9781430097471
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: B&H Publishing
Released: April 15, 2025

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Little Brown Bear is on an adventure to find the maker of the mountain and discover what he is like. Along the way, the bear meets new friends who share that the maker is like a bridge and a gate, a rock and a boat. And he’s always there to light our way home. This charming story offers imagery from the Bible to help young readers better understand what God is like. Perfect for story time or bedtime, The Maker of the Mountain will leave children feeling loved by their strong, compassionate God and comforted to know Him better.


My Review:
The Maker of the Mountain is a Christian children's book. Little Brown Bear is sent out by his mother to discover what the maker of the mountain is like. As he travels to the mountain, over it, and then back home, he asks various animals if they've seen the maker of the mountain. They say yes and that he's like a bridge, gate, vine, rock, boat, or light. He learns that "God is like a bridge...steady and sure...leading me safely on the right path." "God is like the gate, who keeps me safely in and sends me out at just the right times." "God is like a vine, helping me grow strong." "God is like a rock, high and strong." "No matter how high the flood or how wide the sea, God will carry me safely to the other side." and "God is light...he is always there to light your way."

I liked the illustrations, which were watercolor style and showed the bear's journey and what the animals were talking about. There's a map at the beginning and end showing the bear's journey and giving Scripture references for that description of God. Frankly, I found the comment that the vine "tends and tames the branches" a little confusing as a plant doesn't "tend" to itself, but the rest of the examples should be understandable to children. I liked the firefly/light section the most of the 6 sections. Overall, I'd recommend this children's book.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

God with Us by Matt Mikalatos

God with Us
Bible Stories on the Road to Emmaus
by Matt Mikalatos

ISBN-13: 9780593578100
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: WaterBrook & Multnomah
Released: April 1, 2025

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
The long walk home after celebrating Passover in Jerusalem should be a joyful journey, but this year the travelers are sad and afraid. Then a mysterious stranger shows up and starts telling stories—from many years ago all the way up to the recent death of Yeshua (Jesus) on the cross—and the friends can’t wait to hear more. This journey explores Scripture from Creation to the Resurrection through the eyes of curious children (and grown-ups!) walking with Yeshua on the Road to Emmaus.


My Review:
God with Us is a Christian graphic novel for those already familiar with the Bible stories. A lot is left out of each story. For Creation, we get the words, "Let there be..." but there's no text for what God commanded into being, only a picture of it. You need to be familiar with the Bible text so you can follow what's going on, otherwise it'll be confusing. Also, the point they made about Creation was that the WORDS God speak become reality, so it's strange not to include the actual words.

Also, this is framed as Jesus/Yeshua on the Road to Emmaus. However, instead of "beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself," Jesus told only a small portion of the stories. And some of them were parables or didn't point to Him as the Messiah. His fellow travelers often told the stories, usually about something they saw or heard that Jesus did. For Noah's Flood, a foreigner first gave a pagan flood legend, then a boy told an inaccurate version, and finally Jesus told the Bible version. No reason was given for providing 3 different versions nor explanation given for why the pagan version was similar to the biblical account.

I didn't agree with some of this novel's theology. After the Flood, God/Jesus puts his rainbow-colored war bow in the sky. "This is my war bow. I'm setting it aside forever. I'm placing it in the sky where you can see it. No more will there be war between God and humanity." This isn't what the Bible actually says, and it's portrayed as God forgiving humanity, which basically means there's no need for Jesus. Then after the story of Jesus getting baptized, someone says, "Humanity was saved by Noah's trip through the water, and Yeshua did the same thing" like it's baptism that washes away sins and saves us. The author did make a point that God provides the sacrifice, and "if we look to Yeshua, we can live," but there isn't really a gospel message about accepting what Jesus did on our behalf (or exactly what that was).

The novel did use language a child can understand. The illustrations did have a brown-skinned Jesus, but they didn't always stay true to the Bible. For example, for Jesus' tomb and Lazarus's tomb, people mentioned rolling away the stone, but the stone was shown as a rectangle plug inside the doorway. When Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden, the angel was portrayed as a gigantic, red eye with four blue wings instead of the biblical "cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth..." The angel that came to Mary was initially about the size of a child, with blue wings and a yellow tunic with wings on the front, and blue pants. He had to get Mary's attention because he's so unimpressive. Not quite how angels are described in the Bible. And though some animals were shown loading onto Noah's ark, the interior was shown as practically bare, with the people sitting on the floor and a few animals roaming freely about.

This novel did try to link the Old Testament to the New in the sense that we're told of prophets raising people from the dead and then of Jesus raising the dead. Or how Elisha caused there to be more oil in the jar as the widow poured it into empty jars, and Jesus fed a crowd with only a few loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus seemed like just another prophet at times. The novel wasn't really about Jesus fulfilling the prophecies about the Messiah.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.

Princess Paris Finds Her Purpose by Demi-Leigh Tebow

Princess Paris Finds Her Purpose
by Demi-Leigh Tebow

ISBN-13: 9781400249503
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Tommy Nelson
Released: April 1, 2025

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description from Goodreads:
When her crown is stolen, Princess Paris fears she’ll never get it back. How can she represent her king without her crown? She doesn’t feel much like a princess and worries all the animals on the Royal Savanna won’t take her seriously without it. But as each animal Paris meets faces a unique problem, she discovers that being a princess requires more than wearing a shiny crown. This adventurous story is paw-fect for ages 4 to 8 and focuses on finding your purpose and being kind.


My Review:
Princess Paris Finds Her Purpose is a Christian, children's picture book. Princess Paris wants to represent her King well as she visits the animals on the Savanna, but then a monkey steals her crown. She's worried she can't represent the King without her crown, but she still meets several of the animals and helps each. She goes to meet the King afterward, and he tells her: "Being a princess isn't about wearing a crown; it's about knowing your purpose to help those in need. That's your true royal purpose--using kindness to represent me!"

The illustrations look fairly realistic (not cartoony) and show the background for what's going on in the text. The text isn't hard to understand, and my 8-year-old niece can read all of the English words. A few foreign words (with pronunciation and meaning) are used by the Savanna animals. Overall, I'd recommend this fun story.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.