Book Review: A chic Bible and a yummy journal

A chic Bible and a yummy journal landed on my lap earlier this month as my family were boxing up our belongings to move out of the very first house we called home here in Montana.

I belong to a family of gypsies — we’ve moved from one country to another in the last four years– and I’ve been, admittedly, contemplating about putting an end to this nomadic system of living as we (Jeff and I) already have three children to drag along in every move, not to mention the painstaking effort it takes to pack up clothes, books, mugs, and whatever whatnots the family has accumulated over the years.

I have been turning to Bibles and my journals to keep me sane.

Back in high school, I finished reading the Bible from Genesis all the way down to Revelation. It remains as my favorite storybook replete with stories and tales of different genres. These days, I reach for my Bible for spiritual guidance and inspiration. It is no secret that my husband and I belong to different religious denominations but we discuss Bible stories all the time like we personally know the characters themselves (e.g. Job was a distant uncle or Ruth is my friend’s friend).

I collect notebooks and journals. But I don’t write in all of them. I normally just place all my leather notebooks and journals which were given as gifts or mementos I got from various travels in a drawer. From time to time, I take them out of the drawers, line them up and smell the pages. I love to look at them. I like the thought that they are still empty. They remind that there are still several passions and endeavors I yet have to pursue. Someday, those pages would be filled.

The chic Bible is actually the Girls Slimline Holy Bible (New Living Translation) published by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. while the yummy journal is  a 368-page blank diary called Brain Freeze that mimics the look of an icre cream sandwich.

Yes, this is a Bible!

It’s hard to believe that at the outset because for the longest time, we have been used to the intimidating look of the Bible: thick, brown or black, and printed in small letter fonts.

Tyndale House turned this around by coming out with a chic and hip Bible with features that also keeps us with the changing times.

The look is downright attractive.

It has an electric blue felted front cover with the word “LOVE” printed on top in neon pink font with yellow green outline. The cover’s edges are covered in what appeared to be as laminated silver dust. The book spine reads: “Holy Bible NLT (New Living Translation)”. The book marker is a neon orange ribbon and the page edges are in purple color. The inside front cover features a quote from the Book of Ephesians printed in white font against a neon pink background. it features a 53-page dictionary to locate passages on various topics, a 365-day reading plan, and eight pages of full-color maps.

This is the prettiest Bible in the history of printed material!

Note that this is a Bible in New Living Translation. Simply put, this Bible is a translation of the Bible in modern English from the original Hebrew and Greek.

Why is there a need to do this?

Because there is a need to reach out to the younger readers who may find the previous Bible translations as “hard to digest”. The NLT version is easier to read and understand.

I like how they explained this need in the introduction to the NLT: “It is evident in the Scripture that the biblical documents were written to be read aloud, often in public workshop… It is still the case today that more people will hear the Bible read aloud in church than are likely to read it for themselves. Therefore, a new translation must communicate with clarity and power when it is read publicly.”

It added: “Clarity was a primary goal for the NLT translations, not only to facilitate private reading and understanding, but also to ensure that it would be excellent for public reading and make an immediate and powerful impact on any listener.

This Slimline Edition also comes in different designs for Guys, Kids, and Teens. I love this Bible so much I am buying two more copies for two friends who got married last year . Yes, belated wedding gifts for them!

Reading the word of God, in public and private, is that cool!

Called Brain Freeze, this 368-page blank journal that looks just like an ice cream sandwich. It is about the size of a mass market paperback. The soft cover is brown in color and the inside pages are divided into three colors, brown, white, and pink which mimics the layers of a Neapolitan ice cream sandwich. The front and back covers are the cookies, the brown pages stand for the chocolate syrup/ice cream; the white unlined pages stand for vanilla; and the pink pages stand for strawberry ice cream.

It truly has sweet pages.

Designed by Clarkson Potter, this journal has an exposed spine that completes the ice cream sandwich look. The downside to having an exposed spine though is that the pages can easily separate or be detached from the other pages after repeated use. It is meant to be handled with care in the same way that you are careful when you eat ice cream sandwich because it can get messy.

One of the questions I wanted to ask the designer pertain to the name.

Why is it called Brain Freeze?

Because really, how many blank journals do you know have titles?

I have only encountered this one except for those leather journals that I received that were personalized with my name on them.

This is a yummy journal to keep. I can sit all day in my learning corner working with Brain Freeze by my side, still empty but unmistakably inviting. I vow to write my yummy experiences in this journal but for now, I would have to content myself with staring at its tri-colored pages daydreaming about eating ice cream sandwich by the beach of my home country, the Philippines.

More reading and writing happening this year folks!