Bible History of the Old and New Testaments

by Fr. Ignatius Schuster

TAN Books and Publishers, Inc.

This 388-page book is a combination of mostly Biblical text with some summarized sections and minimal commentary, all presented in Biblical order. It introduces children to the primary themes and stories of the Bible more efficiently than reading through the entire Bible. It covers Genesis through the Acts of the Apostles. Detailed black-and-white illustrations enhance the book.

Written for Catholics, its commentary occasionally references doctrines most familiar to them. For example, after the Annunciation story, it says, "Elizabeth praises the Blessed Virgin for her faith, because what was lost to us by the unbelief of Eve, the same was gained back for us by the faith of Mary" (p. 218). It also includes sections and summaries from some of the original books of the Bible such as Tobit and Maccabees that are not in Protestant Bibles.

Every page or two there are a series of comprehension questions. Challenging vocabulary words are defined in footnotes at the bottom of pages. Although the publisher recommends this book for children in grades 6-8, it should work very well for read-aloud with children in the elementary grades. The language is close to King James in style and print is rather small, so it will be difficult for young children to read on their own. I highly recommend this book to Catholic families to familiarize children with the Bible as a comprehensive story as well as a true history.