Once in while along comes a gem and with The Children of God Storybook Bible CD, HarperCollins have mined a diamond
Young children love having stories read to them. In the case of my eldest grandson (his brother is too young as yet) he will readily climb up on my knee and get his ‘Da’, his granddad, to read him a story. He loves it when I make up all the voices and quickly tells me when I have got a voice wrong or strayed from the text.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who has just announced his retirement this autumn, has one of the most recognisable voices in the world and, in the eyes of many people, epitomises what a granddad should be. These two things alone make the Children of God Storybook Bible CD a certain bestseller.
The 2 CD set, published by HarperCollins alongside the book of the same title, provides over 100 minutes of superb narration from one of the loveliest and most distinctive of voices. The Archbishop wrote all fifty-six stories himself and so he isn’t just reading someone else’s words. Having the Bible brought to life by one of the world’s leading theologians in this way, accessible to young children, is a treasure to behold.
I first played this in the car and found myself smiling, laughing and marvelling at the resonance, the timbre, the warmth and the fun of the various voices Archbishop Tutu produces.
Track 3 on disc 1, “Leaving the Garden” has a whimpering Adam, a whining Eve and a powerful God portrayed in the voices he uses. I laughed aloud as Adam said, “Eve made me do it” so pitifully in response to God’s question. And I defy anyone not to
roar with laughter at his narration of the story of Noah, especially when he says with a twinkle in his voice (if such a thing is possible) “Boy, did it smell inside the ark!” Check out the videos on YouTube as well.
But there are more and more delights as you go on and we come across Abraham, Ruth, Samuel David and so on, into the New Testament with John the Baptist, Jesus, the disciples and Paul. Wonderful stuff, so much so that I might have to give up reading Bible stories to my grandchildren and leave it to the master.
Another thing I really like about this CD set is that there is nothing extraneous in there; no background ‘musak’ getting in the way, no irritating songs, no adverts for other products, no distractions; just the Archbishop and the words from the book.
Purchased together with the book, this provides an opportunity for older children with developed reading skills to read along with the Archbishop – for every word spoken is just as in the text of the book. For younger ones it can be used to keep them amused in the car or at home as they look at the wonderful illustrations in the book, or just as something to help them get off to sleep. One of my colleagues even said that the Archbishop’s voice was so soothing that she just wanted to gently drift off to sleep, so it works on that level too.
The book itself is a beautiful piece of work with amazing illustrations by artists from across the world and together with the CD, or separately, would make a wonderful gift for children of any age.
The Children of God Storybook Bible by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, published by HarperCollins: CD: 9780007367306 / 2CD / 104 mins / £9.99; Book: 9780007349845 / hardback / 128pp / £9.99
