Having read the previous books in the Imagine series, I was very much anticipating this one because Matt Koceich was stepping up the game by focusing on Jesus’ earthly ministry. I was very interested to see how he would handle placing a 12-year-old boy into the scenes of some of Jesus’ works. In the earliest installments in this series, I felt that the author did well overall in making famous Bible stories understandable and relevant to early adolescent readers, providing applicable Biblical lessons in each. However, I didn’t think that “The Giant’s Fall” focused enough on the Biblical part of the story. It is a very delicate balance, and even more so in a children’s short novel, and I applaud Koceich for undertaking this challenge because we need more children’s literature with a godly, inspirational focal point.
With “The Miracles of Jesus”, I was hoping for a compelling book that would give readers a glimpse at what it might have been like to see and listen to Jesus in person two thousand years ago. Did this book live up to my expectations? Yes and no. Chapters one and two are very powerful, and John’s first encounter with Jesus brought tears to my eyes. However, a somewhat disjointed narrative follows. There is a scene that seems to be representative of the book of Revelation, and this one was out of place in my opinion. Other good versus evil scenes that followed made more sense in connection with the storyline. Although I understand what the author is trying to convey, I would have liked more details about Jesus Himself. The main character John Le’s experiences with Jesus are brief, and overall this book did not seem as cohesive as Koceich’s earlier stories. Nevertheless, I did get a strong sense of the theme of faith over fear and appreciated this story. The target audience of 8-12-year-olds will most likely have fewer, if any, issues with it than I did, and I would recommend this to kids within that age range and perhaps even a year or two older.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.
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