Review of The Story of the Bible by Larry Stone

The Story of the Bible by Larry Stone is more than just a story book or even a history book, it is tour of the history of the Bible not only as the inspired Word of God but as a document; whose history of survival is tremendous evidence God's plan for his Word. Although "The Story of the Bible" is a beautifully designed book in the large scale of a coffee table book, it is not just a book to flip idly through in spare moments. It is a book to sit down and read cover to cover while lingering over the beautiful illustrations and pull-out documents.

Over the years, I've picked up bits and pieces of the history of the document we know as the Bible. Often, what I learned was given as anecdotal evidence in books or lessons whose main topic was not the history of the Bible. As a result, I knew a fair amount of what I read in The Story of the Bible. However, reading it in a well-organized, well-written presentation gave me a whole new appreciation of how God insures that His Word goes out to the entire world and avoids the corruption that documents of similar age fall prey to.

While I was gratified to discover that I knew more than I realized, I was even more delighted to learn many things I didn't know before. I smiled when I read "America's common language and common heritage was the Bible. Many towns had biblical names and Biblical allusions permeated American literature. Benjamin Franklin and the Congressional committee proposed that the national seal picture Moses leading Israel through the Red Sea, a reference to America's freedom from Britain." (83-84)

In addition to learning what I did not know, I discovered that some things I did know weren't exactly how I thought they were. For instance, I always thought of the Gutenberg Bible as being a cramped document without visual appeal. Thanks to the pull-outs that fill this book, I got to see a reproduction of a page from the Gutenberg Bible and I discovered that it was a beautiful document and that our Bibles today are cramped documents without visual appeal.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Story of the Bible and I can't wait for the opportunity to share some of the pull-outs with my daughters to give them visuals for lessons they learn in school or at church.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. 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 : "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."