I received a copy of this eBook from netGalley for a honest review.

I loved this look at 12 people who took Jesus' light and let it shine in them to help the world. It gives us all hope.

Shine Your Light!

A book that introduces the reader to twelve people from the Anabaptist denomination who believe in Jesus and are called to a ministry of some kind. The storyline shows how believers use their gifts and calling for the Lord. The characters represent a unique array of ministries, some they started and some they joined, as a pilot, biologist, podcaster, printer and pastor, to name a few.

I would suggest this book for ages 7-9 since the dialog is lengthy.

I received this book from the author/publisher free of charge, with no expectation of a positive review.

I love the concept of this book and the pattern of introducing a child then describing how they grew to share the light of Jesus. What falls short for me is that all of the people are referred to by first name only and there are many that I don’t know. As the adult (buying the book and likely reading the book out loud) I’d like to know more as I shared this with kids but you can’t always tell what time period the people are from, who they are, or quite what it is they did as adults. There are some exceptions, like Edna Ruth’s organization is named but others are not described as well and could even be fictional. The illustrations are really good and I believe the amount of text on the page is right for the age group intended.

Thanks to NetGalley and Herald Press for an early electronic galley to read and review. I love to preview all kinds of books including books for kids. This book is expected to be published in April of 2025.

A very nice book that shows how various people have walked a Christian path. My daughter (just 5) was excited and saying "hi" to the characters to start, but ran out of steam 6 people in. We paused the book and came back to it the next day to finish. I, as the grown up, found it very interesting and thought it was a great way to show people finding their talents and using them for the Lord's plan in their life. It just was a bit too long and repetitive for my daughter, though she did love the profiles that talked about "when they were YOUR age", she would reply "MY AGE?!" The illustrations are very cute, and the meaning of the book comes through. I read this digital book through NetGalley.

The idea for this book is a good one, but it fell flat. Each 2-page spread is about someone who eventually believes in Jesus and then uses their talents to help people and spread the Gospel. But the repetitive line "say hi..." make it feel like a book for ages 1-5. However the number of words per page and the sheer number of stories in the volume are geared more toward 2-4th grade.

The illustrations are ok. The writing is too simplistic for as long as it is. And there is no actual reveal of the full name of the person so that kids actually connect the story with real history.

This unbiased review was given in exchange for an AeRC from netgalley.