I remember reading this rather quickly, almost as a flip-through when I was first approved and intending to go back and read thoroughly later. I think it is so nice to have an option to teach the story of Babel, as it is often skipped over in the "preschool" story arc.
I really liked the bold and vibrant illustrations - they reflect God's wonderful creations beautifully.

A educational story about how God spread people of different languages and appearance throughout the whole world. Not only that, but a story that encourages children to accept people who are different because that was God's plan for the world. He wanted us all to be different and unique!
#Godsbigplan #Netgalley

There were definitely red flags when I read this book. The author explained, “Interpreters throughout history have read the story in a way that presents difference as a problem. They believed, incorrectly, that Babel’s tower symbolized human pride and challenged God’s rule...Through this lens, diversity is God’s punishment for sin. God’s Big Plan retells the story of Babel based on new scholarship that challenges this negative history of interpretation. It offers a more accurate translation of the original text for a precise reading that is more faithful to the aim of the original storyteller.”

What I would like to know is: What is this newly discovered scholarship? What is the basis for this new “more accurate” translation? What precipitated the change? Why? Who was involved in coming to this new interpretation? If the author had disclosed this information, I feel like readers would be able to make a better judgment on the context and interpretation. This is a glaring omission.

In the illustrations, the use of halos around some of the characters seems odd to me. I don’t quite understand the authors explanation. “ The artist, Katie Yamasaki, has placed halos around the heads of the characters. She did this to symbolize their common language and sameness.” In general, halos symbolize something else entirely. I googled the general symbolism just to be sure. It says, “Typically surrounding a godly or enlightened person, a halo represents holiness. Christian artists believed that the halo was symbolic of the light of grace bestowed by God. Before the rise of Christianity, pagans used halos to signify not only divine influence but also power, majesty and prominence.” (From the website lope.ca)

As far as the message of accepting everyone’s differences because that was a part of God’s plan, I can agree with that. We need to respect people of all faith traditions whether we agree with them or not. And I do think cultures and peoples are to be celebrated and we can learn things from one another as we share our different experiences. But the way to salvation is narrow. Jesus is the way to salvation.

These opinions are my own. I was offered an electronic copy from netgalley.

I want to thank #netgalley for giving me a copy of #GodsBigPlan to review. This is a beautifully illustrated version of the story of the Tower of Babel. I like how the author discusses God's plan for the people in relation to the Tower. A great early childhood bible story.

God's Big Plan is a children's story book about the Tower of Babbel. It has nice artwork and tells the story in a simple new way.
Not only does it tell of a God spreading the people throughout the earth, but it also speaks of tolerance towards all people. It brings up looks, languages, cultures and customs as well as religion.
All people could stand to read God's Big
Plan.