Blog Tour and Review: A is for Abinadi by Heidi Poelman

About the Book:

Title: A is for Abinadi

Author: Heidi Poelman

Hardcover: 36 pages

Publisher: Cedar Fort, Inc. (February 11, 2014)

Genre: Picture book, religious

Source: Publisher for review

My Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

A is for apple but also for Abinadi! Teach your children about some of the greatest heroes in the scriptures with this beautifully illustrated alphabet book. They will love searching for items that represent each letter while they get to know heroes like Captain Moroni and Esther. Along with learning their ABCs, your children will learn to recognize and love these great Book of Mormon and Bible examples.

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About the Author:

Heidi Poelman has always loved learning about inspiring people. In A is for Abinadi, she found a way to write about many of her favorites. Heidi received her degrees in communication from Brigham Young University (BA) and Wake Forest University (MA). When she’s not writing, cooking, cleaning, or carpooling, Heidi enjoys reading bedtime stories and going on outdoor adventures with her family. She lives in Utah with her husband and three children.

My Thoughts:

There are a million ABC books in existence, and it always amazes me when someone comes up with a new way to introduce the alphabet to toddlers.  A is for Abinadi is intended for an LDS (Mormon) audience.  The characters used to illustrate the letters of the alphabet are taken from The Book of Mormon and from the Holy Bible.

The thing I like about this book are the stories behind the people representing each letter.  The author condensed each person's story into a short paragraph that is easy for kids to understand. She included a wide range of people (both men and women) from both The Book of Mormon and the Bible.  I also really like the illustrations.  They are goofy and entertaining, and include other items that start with the featured letter.

The only thing I'm not sure about is the way some of the stories are "softened". For example, I can't decide if it's better to portray Uriah the Hittite as a brave man that went to war for the love of king and country, or to tell the whole story - that he was murdered so the king could have his wife.  It's kind of like Santa Claus.  Do you lie to your kids because you don't know how to tell them the truth, or do you rip the band-aide off and let them cry because they'll eventually find out anyway?

4 STARS

  

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.