The Fight for Kidsboro (Adventures in Odyssey)

If your family loves Adventures in Odyssey's radio dramas, your kids are sure to find The Fight for Kidsboro exciting. Because if there's anything better than an Adventures in Odyssey show, it's an Adventures in Odyssey book!

Based on the radio drama of the same name, Kidsboro is written by Marshal Younger and follows the original script closely, though it's not exactly the same: In the woods behind Whit's End, there's a whole little town where no one over 14 years old is allowed. But this means the kids have a lot of struggles to experience: Who's in charge? What to do about the lawsuit against them? And what about the alternate town some other kids created? There's a huge learning curve for the kids - and a way to make Kidsboro a ghost town - or a united kids' town.

What I Like: My children love the audio drama version of Kidsboro and were thrilled when they learned there was a book version they could read. I love the story - because I think it has so much to teach about real life situations, especially conflict and relying upon God. It's also got plenty of action to satisfy young readers.

What I Dislike: Nothing.

Overall Rating: Excellent.

Age Appeal: The publisher says 8 - 12, but I think kids as young as 6 will enjoy this book as a read aloud.

Publishing Info: Focus on the Family, 2012; ISBN 978-1-58997-675-7 paperback, 321 pgs., $14.99

Buy at Amazon for $13.43; or buy the Kindle version for $10.49.

Or buy it from ChristianBook.com for  $11.99

The Lion Classic Wisdom Stories

The Lion Classic Wisdom Stories (Lion Classic Series) by Mary Joslin is a collection of beautiful, short stories from around the world, each with a grain of wisdom meant to leave a lasting impression.

Although this book does not fall under the category of "Christian Children's Book", it is still a great book. The stories are pulled from many of our world's cultures which, for me, is always fascinating.

I personally preferred to read this book aloud with my children. Because the stories in it are not inherently "Christian" stories, I wanted to be there to explain, discuss, give a biblical basis for the morals taught, and answer questions about the stories.

What I Like: I really like that Mary Joslin has found 28 intriguing and fascinating stories with great moral lessons and made them easy for children to appreciate. Many of the stories were new to me. The stories are told in such a way that a child's interest is kept and captivated throughout the reading. I also love the illustrations. They really lend to the cultural setting of the book.

What I Dislike: I liked this book very much.

Overall Rating: Very good (only because this book is not a specifically Christian book, just a great  moral book.)

Age Appeal: 5-12 years old

Publisher Info: Lion Hudson, 2013; ISBN: 978-0745963693; hardcover, 128 pgs., $19.99

Buy it from Amazon for $16.08

Let's Learn About The Lord's Prayer

In this first book of the HeartSmart series, author Catherine DeVries invites preschoolers on a playdate with Emmca. Together they learn the Lord’s Prayer and practice “teaching” it to Emma’s favorite teddy bear.

Introducing HeartSmart, a Scripture memory series designed to create opportunities for children to fill their heart with God’s Word. HeartSmart combines key Scriptures with songs, giving parents a spiritual formation path for building a strong foundation of faith.

The entire Lord’s Prayer is included, along with a custom song (free download with access code).

What I Like: Teaching a child scripture is always something that I like to see in a book, and when the scripture is explained in a way that a child can understand, I like it even more.  Author Catherine DeVries did a really good job teaching The Lord's Prayer and explaining which each line means in a way a child can understand.

What I Dislike: The book was reminiscent of cartoons for pre-schoolers in which a question is asked and then the child is supposed to respond, but the book didn't immediately relay whether the answer was correct or not before moving onto the next part of the book. For example, the character Emma takes the reader to her bedroom and introduces her stuffed bear and then we are shown a cross hanging on her wall and she asks the reader to guess who else is her best friend, other than the stuffed bear. The next page (where I am expecting her to introduce Jesus) we see her mom calling her downstairs for lunch. She doesn't confirm that Jesus is her other best friend until the end of the book after so many other things have happened. A two year would have forgotten that she asked that question twenty pages back.

Overall Rating: Good

Age Appeal: 2-4 but I believe pre-school aged kids would be better suited for this book.

Publisher Info: David C Cook, 2015; ISBN: 978-0781412698; Hardcover, 26 pgs., $10.99

Buy it Now at Christianbook.com for $7.99

OR Buy it at Amazon.com for $8.40