Saturday, July 5, 2008

Joseph Forgives His Brothers


Joseph Forgives His Brothers is written by Robert Baden and illustrated by Chris Sharp. This is a rhythmic (somewhat mangled) story of a young boy named Joseph. He was one of the twelve sons of Jacob. Jacob loved Joseph so much, his brothers became jealous of him and sold him as a slave. His father believed Joseph had died and his brothers never told their father differently.
"Poor Jacob thought his son was dead;
His brothers soon forgot him.
But God kept Joseph safely with
Potiphar, the man who bought him."

Potiphar liked Joseph more than any of his other slaves, until he thought Joseph had committed a sin and had him thrown into jail. But even in jail, God was with him.

"In prison, Joseph helped explain
The dreams of men around him.
And when Pharoah had a dream,
He searched him out and found him."

What I Like: Nothing. Well, I do like how the author tells that God is with Joseph in each situation.
What I Dislike: Normally, rhyming text appeals to me. Not this time. The author says that a man named Potiphar bought Joseph, but does not tell who Potiphar is. A sin was committed, but we are not even delicately told what it was. Then a man named Pharaoh pops into the picture, in search of Joseph, with no explanation of who this man is. The illustrations are overly exaggerated; even a camel scowls. There is a dog and little blue bird that appear on most of the pages with different bug-eyed expressions.
Overall Rating: Poor.
Age Appeal: 4 - 8.
Publishing Info: Concordia Publishing House; Paperback, 2003; ISBN: 0758604564
Buy the English version now from Amazon.com for $4.48
Or, get the Spanish version at Chrstianbook.com for $2.49


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