Customer Reviews

Manga Bible, Vol. 1: Names, Games, and the Long Road Trip (Genesis, Exodus)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First I should say that it would be worthwhile for parents to review the page inserts on the publisher's home site as some may find the style & humor used in this graphic novel irreverent since this is a retelling of the bible as a comic with the author's own style / humor in it.

For instance for the fall of man, Adam sees Eve happily eating the fruit and has a shocked look on his face. Eve says, "Adam, this fruit is tasty. Why don't you try one?" "Eve, God told us not to eat from this tree...!" says Adam. "C'mon it's good." says Eve. "We'll get in trouble with God..." says Adam. Eve's eyes tear up, "Oh Adam... you've changed...I'm telling you it's good, but all you can think about is getting in trouble with God..." Adam says, "Changed? What are you saying? If you say its good I'll eat whatever you say." Then Eve winks with a grin at the reader and as Adam takes a bite she says, "Girls can make guys do anything..."

That was borderline for me.

The book steps kids through the books so they know the people and events in a section of the bible that normally kids this age would normally skip with a few exceptions. We've read through children's bibles to cover these with our kids, but my six year picks this one up on his own. However, it is not a substitute for the real bible when they become old enough since knowing people & places does not constitute faith.

In summary, I find it to be a fun complement to any child's religious experience with the old testament, but certainly not a teaching of the underlying principles and applications to their lives. That is left to parents (as it should be).

The art is great.

Our 8-year-old son loves Manga Bible - all volumes. He reads them over and over again. He gets so into it that he will read a whole book in a day or two. Understand that this is not a "real" Bible and you won't find chapter and verse references. There is a lot of artistic license here just as there is a lot of license taken with Veggie Tales (although this is certainly for an older crowd). These books give a general overview of the Bible and make them hungry for the real thing. After reading a story in Manga Bible, take your kid to the real Bible and get the whole picture and the complete lesson. Kids are more willing to listen (and to read) the Bible without pictures once they have a general understanding of the passage. Highly recommended!

When I first saw one of these books in the bookstore, I shook my head in disbelief. Yet another attempt to make the bible hip for young people. My curiosity got the better of me and now I am hooked! Warning: if you don't have a sense of humor, put the book down now. If you are looking for a literal representation of events of the bible you will be tremendously disappointed. That is not the purpose of these books. Instead, if you are looking for something to give to the most cynical of your friends or to the smart kid with no attention span, here is what you give him/her. What I like about this version (as opposed to the other Manga Bible) is that this is a truly original adaptation of scripture meant to introduce someone to the bible, not to replace the reading of the bible. I look forward to collecting them all!

Obviously, this book is not a translation in the usual sense of the word. It is a translation, however, into a different visual realm. Manga is a Japanese art style used in comic books (the animated equivalent being "anime").
For those who want to introduce the Bible to kids 5-13, this would be a good way of doing it. The art is quality. I recommend it!

Names, Games, and the Long Road Trip, is based on Genesis and Exodus and is done in the manga style which leads to the black and white illustrations and speech bubbles telling the story. No character is left out. Read about Adam, Eve, Noah and more.

About the author- Young Shin Lee founded the Korean Cultural Research Center, serves at the Korean Defense Graduate School Church and has a master degree. He has written The Manhwa Bible in Korean.

About the illustrator- Jung Sun Hwang has drawn for The Manhwa Bible and other books in Korea. He also has a degree in Architectural Engineering.

My thoughts-
I have always avoided reading the ever popular graphic novels, but when I learned that there were Christian graphic novels, I decided I would give them a try. I really liked what I read and saw in this book.

The graphic novels are in the "manga" style, which is Japanese term for "comic." These books are unlike the comics I grew up with as they are published in black and white with strong artwork and emotions in a book format.

I would agree that there is strong artwork and emotions shown in this book using the "manga" style. I really enjoyed this book, because I could see what the manga style was showing. I could easily tell who the characters were and how it related to Genesis and Exodus.

I would recommend Names, Games, and the Long Road Trip, because graphic novels are becoming more popular. As graphic novels become more popular it will be more important than ever to have Christian graphic novels for people to read.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Zondervan. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

First, lets clarify that this is not manga. At best, its manhwa, but really, I think calling that is an insult to manhwa. The "art" in this volume is absolutely, completely horrible. A 10 year old could do better than this. Although this is marketed for kids, I suspect most of them would also throw the book down in disgust. Kids aren't stupid and they recognize bad art work. The text itself is okay, though there is some inappropriate humor that conflicts with this being a presentation of the bible, but as a whole Tyndale's Manga Bible is a far better choice.