Customer Reviews

Joseph

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

Award-winning children's book illustrator, Brian Wildsmith, lends his pen and water colors to the well-known and beloved story of Joseph from the Book of Genesis. As would be expected from Wildsmith, these illustrations of Egyptian palaces, hieroglyphics and royalty in full regalia are a feast to behold. By comparison, Joseph's nomadic sheepherding father, Jacob, and Joseph's treacherous brothers live rather humble lives in the desert.

Unfortunately, the text of this version of the emotionally compelling biblical account is rather dry and matter-of-fact. It would be easy to call this the condensed version. So, enjoy this visually appealing book with your children, but let it be an introduction the richer version found in the Book of Genesis. Be sure to check out Wildsmith's companion volume, "Exodus."

The illustrations of this over-sized children's picture book are almost overwhelming due to the detail of the fine point ink drawings. The tiny strokes that make up the Egyptian hieroglyphics, the plant leaves, and the wall decorations are unbelievable. Great care and thought was given to both the drawings and the painting. The painting of the background of the pages and of the skies contain beautiful combinations of color.

Unfortunately I don't think the writing matches the quality of the illustrations. The story itself could have been made more exciting or more lyrically descriptive.

My five year old really enjoyed this story and he asks me to read it over and over.

This version of the Biblical story of Joseph was more detailed than other children's storybooks I've found. The illustrations are beautiful and go into great detail as well. I definately recommend this one as an intro to the actual Bible version.

One caution: Wildsmith does not gloss over what happened with Potiphar's wife. For anyone who may be offended by this, you may want to read it yourself before reading it to your child. It is handled delicately, though so it's really a personal decision.

Overall, it's a very well-done book!

I really enjoy this book. While I am not big on purchasing stories about bible stories (because it seems like kind of a waste), this one is worth it. It's slightly more expensive but it's a beautiful hardback with wonderful illustrations.

My kids love this book and the attention to detail in the scenes of Egypt... the huge scale and designs make Egypt come to life. They get a sense of the vastness of the environment. They also love the shiny gold frames around the pictures, the depiction of Joseph in the pit, etc.

I think the interpretation of the story is good. They handle the part about Potiphar's wife pretty appropriately (i.e. "Potiphar's wife fell in love with him and one day she caught Joseph by his cloak and begged him to return her love. But Joseph refused.") There are no editorials, which is great, although Wildsmith's description of Joseph hiding the money back in his brother's sacks sounds like he was being devious, and the author doesn't really explain why that frightened his brothers so much. He also omits the substory of Joseph getting married and having Ephraim and Manasseh.

But overall, the story is very faithful to the text and adds a couple helpful explanations for young audiences.

The illustrations in this book are what really set it apart. The story line is good, but the pictures are gorgeous. While studying both Old Testament and Ancient Egypt, this book is a valuable resource. It's always so great to find a book that the kids enjoy because it doesn't feel like school work while teaching at the same time. This book is valuable for art discussions as well. Definitely a good investment. We own Exodus as well and I recommend both books highly.

This is one of the most beautifully illustrated books I've seen. It really is something to see, cover to cover.