Holiday Gift Guide 2012: Zonderkidz Books

ByJulie Kieras
219 Comments

A book is always a great gift idea. For any age group, any reason at all. (Said the mom who majored in Creative Writing and who desparately hopes to publish a book someday so you all please buy it when that happens! LOL).

I have grown very fond of the high quality kids books put out by Christian publisher Zonderkidz. Here's a sampling of some titles you may want to wrap up this year for a child you know!

The Friendly Beasts - a classic Christmas carol read and sung by Grammy award-winner Rebecca St. James! This book and CD combo would make a lovely gift or a great holiday tradition to read before bedtime as a retelling of the birth of Jesus through the eyes of animals. The CD contains four tracks - St. James singing the carol, then reading the carol, a bonus track by the singer, and then her narrative recounting her own Christmas memories. The illustrations by Anna Vojtech are beautiful and sophisticated. I found the musical style a bit contemporary for us, so I was glad there is also the read-only track. ($16.99).

Legend of the Candy Cane - newly illustrated by Richard Cowdrey, this classic legend told by original author Lori Walburg has delightful images to make the story come alive for children. Kids will wonder what is going on at the mysterious new store in town, and along with the main character, Lucy, discover the meaning behind the candy cane's shape and stripes. ($15.99).

The Beginner's Bible Series - we're always on the lookout for fresh picture books to share Bible stories with our son. We like to read a few after dinner. Four new books are added to this series this year. Two picture books include Jesus Feeds the Hungry and Jesus Heals the Sick ($3.99 each). I like these particular books because they tell the stories with some detail, unlike many Bible picture books on the market. Original illustrations by Kelly Pulley are vibrant and engaging.

Two jumbo coloring books give kids ways to keep thinking about Bible stories and truths as they color and play games, connect the dots and more. Super-Duper Might Jumbo Coloring Book has 384 pages for coloring just about every Bible story imaginable! And Super-Duper Mighty Jumbo Activity book contains page after page of activities, which are best for the 3+ crowd, but younger kids can still color or be guided through a few activities. ($5.99 each).

The Jesus Storybook Bible Collector's Edition - one of my favorite Bible story books, I was pleased to receive this edition, as it comes with three CDs of the stories read aloud, and one DVD which has ever story animated! The animations are actually the book illustrations with edits to provide moving eyes, characters and scene changes! It's really quite cool - the action is slow-paced, which I like because I think that let's kids settle in and listen to the story.

If you haven't heard of Zonderkidz yet, they are a division of Zondervan, a world leader in Christian publishing. Visit Zonderkidz at www.zonderkidz.com.

WIN IT: TWO of my readers will win this entire set of books for holiday gifting and enjoying! ARV $97! Enter in the Rafflecopter form below!

And for an extra entry, check out Crunchy Beach Mama's giveaway today - she's giving away two of this exact same set of books!!!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

GIVEAWAY RULES: Open US/CAN. 18+ to enter/win. Winner will be emailed directly and have 48 hours to respond to claim their prize! Ends 11:59 on November 22, 2012. Fulfillment handled by Zonderkidz. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook.

Thanks to Zonderkidz for providing books for review and offering this great giveaway! All opinions are 100% my own!

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219 Comments

  1. Pingback: Our DIY Book-a-Day Advent Calendar!
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  9. Please Enter Me In Your HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 2012:
    ZONDERKIDZ BOOKS GIVEAWAY.
    It Would Be Great To Win These Books For My Niece And Nephew.
    In Response To Your Question Of
    What holiday books are your favorites?
    My Favorite Christmas Book Is The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore, Jan Brett (Illustrator)
    Thank You For Having This Giveaway!!!!!!!!!

    Reply

  10. Please Enter Me In Your HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 2012:
    ZONDERKIDZ BOOKS GIVEAWAY.
    It Would Be Great To Win These Books For My Niece And Nephew.
    In Response To Your Question Of
    What holiday books are your favorites?
    My Favorite Christmas Book Is The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore, Jan Brett (Illustrator)
    Thank You For Having This Giveaway!!!!!!!!!

    Reply

  45. Since I was small, every year at Christmas, my grandfather has read the story of the Three Trees. The living room is a LOT fuller now than it used to be, but we all look forward to it still, every year.

    Reply

  46. Since I was small, every year at Christmas, my grandfather has read the story of the Three Trees. The living room is a LOT fuller now than it used to be, but we all look forward to it still, every year.

    Reply

  94. I have SO many favorites (it comes with being a teacher!!) My favorite author is David Shannen... I guess my favorite holiday book would be Twas the Night Before Christmas!

    Reply

  95. I have SO many favorites (it comes with being a teacher!!) My favorite author is David Shannen... I guess my favorite holiday book would be Twas the Night Before Christmas!

    Reply

  118. So many favorites! A current favorite at our house is Fancy Nancy. But for Christmas I like "Santa, Are you For Real?"

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  119. So many favorites! A current favorite at our house is Fancy Nancy. But for Christmas I like "Santa, Are you For Real?"

    Reply

  136. I like books that tell the story of Baby Jesus and T'was the Night Before Christmas.Thank you for the amazing giveaway! 🙂

    Reply

  137. I like books that tell the story of Baby Jesus and T'was the Night Before Christmas.Thank you for the amazing giveaway! 🙂

    Reply

  150. the lion the witch and the wardrobe...my daddy now deceased always read it to us girls before Christmas. He never knew his grandaugthers but I will keep the tradition going when they get up a bit older.

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  151. the lion the witch and the wardrobe...my daddy now deceased always read it to us girls before Christmas. He never knew his grandaugthers but I will keep the tradition going when they get up a bit older.

    Reply

  152. probably max lucado's Christmas book is my fav...growing up we'd always read The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe during the CHristmas season...that is special as well!

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  153. probably max lucado's Christmas book is my fav...growing up we'd always read The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe during the CHristmas season...that is special as well!

    Reply

  170. The Nightmare Before Christmas is my favorite Christmas story I can't wait for my daughter to see it for the first time this year. Yeah we are that creepy family lol.

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  171. The Nightmare Before Christmas is my favorite Christmas story I can't wait for my daughter to see it for the first time this year. Yeah we are that creepy family lol.

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  176. Picking a favorite book is so hard! My girl is a big fan of "Twas the Night Before Christmas." She likes me to read it any time of year!

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  177. Picking a favorite book is so hard! My girl is a big fan of "Twas the Night Before Christmas." She likes me to read it any time of year!

    Reply

  178. My favorite holiday story is a book I used to read growing up about the true meaning of Christmas and it was by Thomas Kincade. I don't know the exact title but I've been searching for the same one so I can enjoy it with my two little ones now. Great giveaway!

    Reply

  179. My favorite holiday story is a book I used to read growing up about the true meaning of Christmas and it was by Thomas Kincade. I don't know the exact title but I've been searching for the same one so I can enjoy it with my two little ones now. Great giveaway!

    Reply

  182. I actually love The Friendly Beasts, but somehow don't own it! Another favorite is On the Night You Were Born. And in general, I absolutely love anything by Mo Willems. I <3 the pigeon. And Elephant and Piggie. And Knuffle Bunny. Oh, and I love the Charlie and Lola books...I think I need to introduce them to my son soon. (I could go on like this for days...can't tell I was a children's librarian, can ya?? 🙂 Please publish a book! I would buy it!)

    Reply

  183. I actually love The Friendly Beasts, but somehow don't own it! Another favorite is On the Night You Were Born. And in general, I absolutely love anything by Mo Willems. I <3 the pigeon. And Elephant and Piggie. And Knuffle Bunny. Oh, and I love the Charlie and Lola books...I think I need to introduce them to my son soon. (I could go on like this for days...can't tell I was a children's librarian, can ya?? 🙂 Please publish a book! I would buy it!)

    Reply

  200. I don't have one particular favorite. A couple I enjoyed in my childhood were Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb as well as The Hat Book. For Christmas we enjoy sharing the story of Jesus' birth with our children.

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  201. I don't have one particular favorite. A couple I enjoyed in my childhood were Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb as well as The Hat Book. For Christmas we enjoy sharing the story of Jesus' birth with our children.

    Reply

  210. My favorite Christmas movie is Miracle on 34th Street. My favorite book is The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, especially when Father Christmas comes and the wicked witches spell is breaking.

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  211. My favorite Christmas movie is Miracle on 34th Street. My favorite book is The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, especially when Father Christmas comes and the wicked witches spell is breaking.

    Reply

  212. We love Snowmen at Night and my son loves Robot Zot and How I Became A Pirate. My daughter loves any Winnie the Pooh book.

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  213. We love Snowmen at Night and my son loves Robot Zot and How I Became A Pirate. My daughter loves any Winnie the Pooh book.

    Reply

  214. One of my daughter's favorite books is "Even Fish Slappers Deserve a Second Chance"/a VeggieTales book.

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  215. One of my daughter's favorite books is "Even Fish Slappers Deserve a Second Chance"/a VeggieTales book.

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  216. Oops! I thought it said store, not story. Hmmm, story? Polar Express Movie. That's a story right?

    Reply

  217. Oops! I thought it said store, not story. Hmmm, story? Polar Express Movie. That's a story right?

    Reply

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