Official Review: Don't Bow with Teresa

[Juliana_Isabella]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Don't Bow with Teresa" by Frances Gonzales Martinez.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Don’t Bow With Teresa by Frances Gonzales Martinez is a children’s book about avoiding false idols. Teresa is a young girl who invites the reader to take a look at the Bible with her and read about idolatry. Teresa takes the reader through modern examples of idols before diving into Bible stories about false gods. She tells a short story about the Philistines’ false god, Dagon. Then, she recounts the story of Daniel and his three friends, who show King Nebuchadnezzar that the God of Israel is the true God.

When reading this book, there were both many things I enjoyed and many things that I thought could be done better. The author often tries to bring in helpful things for young readers. She calls Nebuchadnezzar “Neb” to make it easier for kids to pronounce his name. She also explains the meaning behind a couple of larger words used and breaks down some of the more complicated Bible verses included.

However, there are moments in the book when these strategies should have been used and were not. The author includes many Bible verses with difficult, large words and explains few of the words included. She also includes pronunciations for the names of Daniel’s three friends (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego), but she could easily just have called them “Daniel’s three friends.” Along similar lines, there are many details included in the story that are unnecessary. The book feels long and drawn-out, as the author often repeats herself and includes lots of Bible verses that just restate the same things she has already said.

Overall, I would rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. I think the idea behind this book, the story included, and the strategies the author used to help readers understand the lesson were all done well; however, I think the book could be simplified to help young readers stay engaged and see how this story applies to their lives. In addition, as the author mentions, she did the illustrations herself and is not a professional artist, so they mainly consist of simple line drawings of Teresa. While I didn’t find any mistakes in the book, which made the writing feel professional, the drawings did not strike me as professional, and I think that hiring an editor would improve the quality of this children’s book.

I would recommend this book to parents of kids ages six to ten, but I think that the parent would definitely want to read along with the child and help them through the difficult vocabulary included. This would be a good book to help parents discuss idolatry and the idea of putting God first with their kids.

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Don't Bow with Teresa
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[Stephanie Elizabeth]

I think the author has a solid premise for a memorable children's book, but I agree with you, there seems to be too many details for a young audience. Thanks for the engaging review!

[Miraphery]

This book definitely has lessons for children and I agree that the author needs a professional artist, I didn't quite find the book cover exciting. Thanks for the sincere review.

[Caribqueen16]

This book did not sound as joyful as it should have been. Pictures really encourage children to want to read books. Simple language is very attractive and long words can become tiring. The age group that you identify loves to compare pictures with words, for the story to be enjoyable. I agree with your review. Maybe the book needs to be revisited by the author and editor.