ANIMALS OF THE BIBLE

Hoffman and Morris (Miracles: Wonders Jesus Worked, not reviewed, etc.) team up for their third collaboration on a Biblical theme. Their focus this time is on animals mentioned in the Bible, including the serpent from the Garden of Eden, the dove and the paired animals from Noah’s ark, Daniel’s lions, and Jonah’s whale, as well as some lesser-known stories such as Elijah’s ravens, and the frogs and “creepy-crawlies” from the plagues of Egypt. Hoffman retells the seven stories in a conversational, humorous tone in one or two pages of text that would be just the right length to read aloud for a children’s sermon or Sunday school lesson. She interprets each story in her own way, creating dialogue in modern speech for God and the Biblical characters, but in so doing, making her versions more interesting and lively for young readers or listeners. Morris uses a muted palette of earthy, natural tones for her striking paintings, which are enhanced by the volume’s oversized format in landscape orientation. The humans in her illustrations clearly look like residents of the Middle East, and the costumes, backgrounds, and details of the animals themselves are well-researched. Noah and his dove star on the cover, with the dove taking just flight from Noah’s outstretched hands. (author’s note, source notes) (Nonfiction. 4-9)