Imagine-...The Great Flood- Book Review

In light of all of the hurricanes lately, flooding has been a popular topic of conversation in our house.  How can that happen?  What would we do?  Are we safe?  I have a 10 year old after all.  All of this talk eventually brings us back to the greatest flood of all, the Great Flood in the Bible!  So you can imagine my excitement when I was able to link one of our latest Homeschool Review Crew's reviews,  Imagine... The Great Flood by Matt Koceich from Barbour Publishing, to some of those discussions.

Imagine... The Great Flood is a 110 page paperback book written by Matt Koceich.   Written for kids ages 8-12, this Christian fiction book seeks to bring The Great Flood to life, seen in the eyes of a young boy, Corey.  The book opens with 10 year old Corey walking with his mom and his dog, Molly.  As a storm approaches Corey and his mom begin a discussion about their upcoming move, one which Corey is obviously unhappy about.  Things quickly turn as Corey falls and hits his head...and wakes up in a different time and place.

The book then tells of young Corey's adventures as he witnesses first hand the events leading up to The Great Flood.  After meeting one of Noah's sons he helps him load animals on the ark, encounters friends who betray him, and comes across several enemies who threaten his very existence.  After much adventure, the books ends with Corey returning to the real world, moving, making friends, and most of all, realizing the depth of God's love for him.

Our thoughts and experiences-

Like most review books that come our way, I asked my son, 10 years old, to try to read this on his own.  He had NO problem doing so and read it in two sittings over a two day period.  A few days later I sat down and read it in about an hour.  It's a cute book.  The main character, Corey, is likeable and realistic.  He is concerned about his upcoming move- something my son can easily relate to as we are a military family who moves often.

I would definitely call this a Christian fiction book rather than an historical fiction, focused mostly on entertainment.  While it holds loosely to the story of Noah's Ark from the Bible, it is not altogether theologically sound.  There is mention of animals waiting to be gathered rather than coming to the ark on their own and there is mention of Nephilim, which are set on stopping Noah and his family.

Imagine...The Great Flood does teach several great truths though, which I really appreciated.  Such things like-

• The Lord is our shield.
• Rely on God.  He never changes.
• God is a promise keeper.

So while I would not allow my child to build their Bible knowledge on this book alone, I think it is a book worth reading.  I would encourage you to use this fun adventure as a way to jump start a conversation with your children about what the Bible really says about the flood and then the lessons we can learn from it.

Reading time

All in all, I liked this book.  I have come to appreciate any book that is Bible focused rather than world focused.  One that is void of controversial modern day issues, snarky attitudes, and questionable language.  That alone makes me value and appreciate books written for kids, with kids AND the truth of the Bible in mind.

From Colby- "I like this book because it is about the Flood and the Flood is one of my favorite things in the Bible.  They did a very good job describing the Flood as powerful.  I thought the funniest thing in the book was when they described the Nephilim as the hulk minus the green.  That made me laugh!"

And this quote is one of my favorite!!

Noah and his family had no idea where they were going, but they knew the One who was calling. p.29

Such a beautiful reminder, and maybe now my new battle cry for this God loving, military moving family of six!

Imagine... The Great Flood by Matt Koceich is the first in a series.  The second book, Imagine... The Ten Plagues is due out in March 2018.  Colby can't wait for that one!