Sunday, August 3, 2008

Book review "A Pocket Guide to the Bible" by Scott Hahn

I was lucky enough to get included in a book review program sponsored by The Catholic Company . I heard about the book review program on The Catholic Moments podcast hosted by Lisa Hende. Catholic Moments is a talk show that is a part of the SQPN network. I listen to almost all of the podcasts put out by SQPN and love them all!

I was excited to receive my first book "A Pocket Guide to the Bible" by Scott Hahn. I had heard about books that Scott had written from The Catholic Hack podcast and the Into the Deep podcasts (check them both out on itunes, they are worth it). I hadn't read any of his books yet and was excited to get started!!

The book really lives up to the title "a pocket guide" in size, its a 4x6 book! My first thought was, how is this tiny book going to tell me what I need to know about the bible? The bible is huge and can be intimidating and this tiny book is going to explain it all to me? Ok so I'm a skeptic, but that didn't stop me from reading.

I am definitely impressed with the content of the book. In 78 pages, the book efficiently explains the contents of the Bible and why the information is there. I am a lifelong Catholic and learned more than I expected to from this book.

My two favorite chapters where chapter four and chapter eight. Chapter Four "What belongs in the bible" laid it out the best for me. This chapter explains the Old and New Testament and what belongs in each and why. It is easy to read, to the point, and make sense! Chapter Eight "The books of the Bible" ties it all together outlining the books and the prophets. The last chapter is a "where to find" chapter for stories that appear in several places in the Bible.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a quick and thorough explanation of the Bible. It is an easy read and is a great reference book. I also think this book would be a great gift for someone who is new to the Catholic Church or a long time member like myself.

This review was written as part of The Catholic Company product reviewer program. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on A Pocket Guide to the Bible.

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