Finally Free: The Story of Exodus (Kaleidoscope) by Will Kassner

This is a retelling of the book of Exodus. There are pictures and maps throughout, much like a story bible. There are also “Kaleidoscope Corner” pages helping to explain or expand on certain topics.

This volume in the Kaleidoscope series retells the familiar story of the birth and adoption of Moses, the exodus from Egypt, the Ten Commandments, the golden calf, and the building of the tabernacle. The writing style is simple and easily understood, so this could be a great read-a-loud in addition to a wonderful independent read. I also greatly appreciate how the author points to Christ throughout this Old Testament retelling, showing our children that the bible is God’s story and Christ is on the first page to the last. The illustration style fits perfectly for the intended age range (elementary school). This is a wonderful resource!

A few small things to note:

-The author does mention briefly the section where God tries to kill Moses on his return to Egypt and says, “We don’t know why; it may have been because of Moses’s disobedience.” There is no mention of circumcision.

-There is an illustration of Moses seeing Pharaoh face to face after the final plague, which some may argue contradicts Exodus 10:29 and that instead, Pharaoh’s summoning of Moses and Aaron was not a face-to-face meeting.

-After God gives Moses the Ten Commandments, the author says, “God was giving them rules to follow so that they could live life to the fullest-just the way God wanted.” I do wish the author would have expanded here a bit to make it clear that living life to the fullest doesn’t mean with earthly things or self-focused desires, but that because God made us, He knows what rules we need to follow to function the way He intended.

-After meeting with God on the mountain and receiving the stone tablets, the author says, “Moses was so joyful after meeting with God that he skipped all the way down Mt. Sinai, excited to tell the people about God’s law.” This does contradict Exodus 32:7-8 where God tells Moses about the golden calf while Moses is still on the mountain top.

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclaimer for more info.