Andrew McDonoughReseñas

While I enjoyed [b:Jesus and the Children|7327761|Jesus and the Children|Andrew McDonough|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513BnrrlvIL._SL75_.jpg|8950475], this one is absolutely delightful. In a beautiful manner, one of my favorite sections of scripture is explained to children. A parable in images and short phrases is a perfect educational tool for showing just how much the Creator loves his creations, and what he has ultimately done for us in joining us with Jesus. This is a book recommended for ages 4-7 and for early readers and comprehension I think that is a great age range, yet even at 10 months old my daughter enjoyed sitting in my lap and listening to me read the story and point out the pictures. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more from the Cecil and Friends series.

*Thanks to Zondervan for providing a copy for review through FIRST Wild Card Tours.*

Cecil and Friends from author [a:Andrew McDonough|515830|Andrew McDonough|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg] looks like it will be a great series full of adventure and valuable scripture lessons. I think the colors and images are vibrant and there is just enough of a story to start a great Bible lesson with your child. This is recommended for ages 4-7 and for comprehension I think those ages are appropriate, yet even at 10 months my daughter enjoyed sitting in my lap reading the book and pointing at all the images and characters. I enjoyed this one[b:Jesus & the Children|4867307|Jesus & the Children|Andrew McDonough|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg|4932651], and loved [b:The Gardener and the Vine|7327762|The Gardener and the Vine|Andrew McDonough|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51JhkwQbfvL._SL75_.jpg|8950476] and really look forward to seeing more of these books in the future. Highly recommended! Oh and these are the best size kids books, same size as the square Barenstein Bears Books.

*Thanks to Zondervan for providing a copy for review through FIRST Wild Card Tours.*

After reading [b:Jesus and the Children|7327761|Jesus and the Children|Andrew McDonough|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513BnrrlvIL._SL75_.jpg|8950475] and loving [b:The Gardener and the Vine|7327762|The Gardener and the Vine|Andrew McDonough|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51JhkwQbfvL._SL75_.jpg|8950476] when I found out there was a free download of [b:Cecil the Lost Sheep|6853108|Cecil the Lost Sheep (Cecil and Friends)|Andrew McDonough|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266918300s/6853108.jpg|7066385] I was very excited to read it as well. I read the book using a flash player as a flip book. This one was different as there were no words, just images but the story was there. I am thinking that this is how the "show and tell" kits are. The actual book does have words. It was a beautiful and comical imagery of the lost sheep (and I could also see a bit of the prodigal in there as well with the sheep's thoughts). Another beautiful Biblical lesson to share with your children. I highly recommend the Cecil & Friends Series.

*This was a free download in pdf and flash flip book from http://cecilandfriends.com *

TV放送決定に後押しされて超長編 The Pillars of the Earth に挑む！その前に無料絵本Jed & Roy McCoy, A Christmas Story で英語脳ストレッチ・・・のはずが、慣れない言い回しに脳がちぢんだ　

The Gardener and the Vine is another in Andrew McDonough’s boldly illustrated Cecil & Friends series of Jesus’ parables and life as interpreted through a modern lens for children. Andrew McDonough’s vibrant, cartoon-like art keeps children engaged in the simply told story that is likewise with vivid word-imagery.

Presented as the simple adventure as a branch who was taken from his unfruitful life and grafted onto the Vine by the Gardener, this story is packed jam full of rich spiritual meaning for both children and the parents who read this story to them.

A two-page spread for parents helps give some background information and introductory lead-ins to help enjoy and teach your children from this story, making it not only a story, but a little devotional lesson complete with some simple questions and discussion points along with the Bible verses that the story is inspired by (John 15: 1,5).

Honestly, I think that I may have received more spiritual benefit from this story than my small children have. There is a lot of theological ground covered in this one simple story: being removed from our old life, being adopted into Christ, the painful sacrifice that made such an adoption possible, the only way of having true life and fruitfulness being through Him – it’s really amazing how much rich depth has been built into this children’s story. I’m not sure my little ones are old enough to catch it all at this point, but I trust that they are each taking as much as they can from the story at their levels of development.

The Gardener and the Vine is a powerfully transformative story presented in a simple package. I highly recommend it.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this title to review. All opinions are honest and my own.

Reviewed at quiverfullfamily.com

Andrew McDonough’s Cecil and Friends series of children’s books are different than those I’m naturally drawn towards. The colors are bright, bold, and the art is uncompromisingly two-dimensional, computer-colored, cartoons with bold, black outlines. Normally I’m not too into that, but Andrew McDonough’s offerings are just so unashamed, so quintessential to that style of art that I actually think they are pretty cute.

Not only is the art wild and brash, but in McDonough’s Jesus and the Children also puts Jesus (complete with Old Testament clothing) into a contemporary setting. His disciples are an edgy, rough crowd (one even has a sailor-type tattoo, maybe he’s one of the fishermen disciples?), and the mother and children who come to visit Jesus (as per the well known account of Jesus and the children) are very suburban looking.

When Jesus’ disciples scare the children away, Jesus gets…angry! My two-year-old always loves jumping in on the angry part! ANGRY she growls in excitement! There’s no doubt that she clearly understands the message of this vibrant picture book – that Jesus loves the children and that God’s kingdom is for the kids!

A section at the end of the book helps children to introduce and discuss this telling of Jesus and the children, and a page with the scripture (NIV) that the story is based on is also included making it easy for parents to take their children back to the source. There is also a funny, bonus illustration included that cracks my oldest daughter (8) up.

My children adore this quirky, offbeat, Bible-inspired story for children. My oldest reads it to my youngers (5, and 3), and they often ask me to read it for them as well. After all, who can ever get tired of hearing that Jesus loves them?

Reviewed at quiverfullfamily.com

The old McCoy feud. Two brothers have a ridiculous feud. One night each year they have a peaceful dinner (with red and green decor, really?) Then an angel makes an announcement. They visit the baby (who "brings peace on earth") and the feud is suddenly over? While this is a new way to introduce the Christmas story and birth of Jesus, it's almost like it is cut short. I wish the author had taken this a step further and had the brothers apologize or at least explain why the brothers changed their minds about their feud. Just because Jesus came into the world He didn't miraculously fix feuds. This book could have also been used by the author to subtley explain why family is important and brothers (and sisters) should try to get along.

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG