Tuesday, November 23, 2010

God Made You Beautiful!

God Made You Beautiful! was written by Stephanie Farley from the perspective of a young girl. This girl likes to play dress-up for tea parties or to pretend to be a princess, but her mommy reminds her that she is beautiful just the way she is. The book goes on to say that we don't need fancy clothes to be beautiful; that we're all different and that we're all beautiful in God's eyes. He made us just the way He wants us to be, right down to the placement of each freckle.

Several of the pages include Scripture quotations to support the book's message. Bible references are provided with each.

Lisa Powell Braun's illustrations are delightful, filled with fresh colors that appeal to young girls.. The characters have really sweet faces, too.

What I Like: This book offers a great message for girls! I appreciate the positive, uplifting tone of the book. I really like the illustrations.

What I Dislike: While I appreciate the inclusion of Scripture quotations, many of these passages are taken completely out of context. Three of them are from 1 Corinthians 12, which is a passage about the church, not physical bodies as the author implies. Another is from Song of Solomon which is a book about marital love, not an encouragement to young girls' self-esteem.

Also, the price is way too high. I realize competitive pricing is an inherent problem with self-publishing, and I wish it weren't so. Regardless, I can't justify paying $13 for just 12 pages of text.

Overall Rating:
Good.

Age Appeal:
4-8

Publisher Info:
Xulon Press, 2010; ISBN: 1609578260; Paperback; 12 pages, $12.99

Buy it Now at
Amazon.com for $11.04!



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2 comments:

Stephanie Farley said...

Thank you for Christian Children's Book Review for reviewing my book! I want to update your readers that the price is now only $10 due to the success of the book, we are able to now buy in bulk and get better discounts from the printer. That's an amazing price for a Christian children's book that is signed and personalized to the child by the author. Also, I appreciate your feedback on the inclusion of the Bible verses. I agree the Song of Solomon is about marital love and that is not the topic of the book; however, the verse is certainly appropriate "Oh how beautiful you are my darling! Oh how beautiful!" Also, the 1 Corinthians 12 verses are not intended to refer to the physical bodies, but to the diversity of the body of Christ. I am using them to show we are all different on purpose as part of God's plan for us in His body of believers. We all have different styles, gifts, personalities and appearances on purpose. Diversity is to be valued, not just tolerated. Just wanted to clarify that. Thanks again! Hope your readers enjoy the book at its new low price :) God bless!! Stephanie Farley

Tanya said...

Thanks, Stephanie, for keeping us updated! :)