When I was teaching Sunday school to children, one of my top priorities was getting a Bible in their hand. I grew weary of hearing youth group leaders say our "church kids" came to them not knowing Bible basics, such as using the index, whether books were in the Old Testament or the New Testament, the location of Psalms in about the middle. So, every lesson, from kindergarten to fifth grade, we turned in our Bibles to the story for that day. If it took fifteen minutes (and sometimes it did), so be it. I wanted them to know these were real stories found in God's holy word. I repeated several phrases over and over, hoping they'd be instilled in their hearts. Then, we'd read at least a verse or two.

Imagine the frustration, then, of the children who did bring their Bible to church (YES), but it was a preschool version, or storybook Bible. Now, I have nothing against these Bibles. They have their place. The young children could not use these to participate in our exercise, though. It didn't lend itself to learning how to navigate the Bible. That's why I'm excited about Bibles like The New International Readers' Version (based off the NIV), which I'm reviewing in this post. If you're wondering how the NIrV is different, perhaps this from the publisher will help: 

Whenever possible the NIrV uses the text of the NIV but where necessary uses shorter sentences and words easier to understand. Throughout the translation, each verse has been meticulously evaluated in light of the meaning of the original languages in which the Bible was written.

Here are some review highlights:

• The New International Readers' Version (NIrV) is written at a third-grade reading level.
• It includes over 750 illustrations, with consideration of ethnicity.
• Combining the translation and illustrations, this Bible is intended for ages 4-8 years old.
• While no verses are included (that could be cumbersome), chapters are noted, and there are lots of subject headers.
• Each page includes a single column of text, in "Comfort Print" font, with plenty of white space for ease of reading.
• Books of the Bible are color coded at the top, so you could mention a page number and a color when directing children to turn in their Bibles to a passage.
• I'm a Bible map person, and am especially wild about the map included in a back pocket of this Bible.
• The flip side of the poster-sized map is a condensed version of the lineage of Jesus, going back to Adam and Eve. This was another area I'd emphasize again and again. The Bible is God's story, connected from beginning to end.

Here's a short video from the publisher with more information:

This Bible would be an excellent choice for one that's made available in a classroom. The hardcover is thick, and seems durable. The illustrations will help teachers or other adults keep students engaged in the story. I'd highly recommend this as a "take-your-Bible-to-church" Bible as well. There might be some confusion if you're looking for a particular verse (verse numbers have been found to be distracting), but glancing at chapters, starting at the beginning, can be done with ease.

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I received a copy of The Illustrated Holy Bible For Kids from Zondervan for the purpose of generating a review.