When I received the mail and unwrapped the packaging, I was floored by this beautiful book! Eye Witness: The Visual Bible Experience is a 256-page, fully illustrated coffee table book that brings to life 39 Bible stories and beloved scripture passages. The book contains 120 original works of art by 16 artists from around the world.
Each story is written in plain language from the first-person point of view. The back cover explains, “You’ll walk alongside David as he faces a giant, bloodthirsty warrior. You’ll hear the whisper of Queen Esther as she remembers the perils of being a royal sex slave. And you’ll explore up close what it must have been like for Jesus as Satan did his best to lure Jesus away from his destiny.”
Understandably, there is creative license used to imagine what these characters may have been thinking and feeling, but the author, Jeff White, does a good job of staying true to the story and its central meaning. For instance, this is what Sarah says:
“You can’t tell me God doesn’t have a sense of humor. I’ll never understand why God waited till I was a wrinkly old granny to give me a baby. This whole thing would have been a whole lot easier, oh, 60 or 70 years ago. But I do know God is in the business of showing us he’s more powerful than our circumstances, and often when we least expect it.”
It’s definitely a fascinating read – and for a visual person, the illustrations will draw you in. Each illustrator has his or her own style, and you immediately appreciate the diversity of their perspectives.
My only critique is that I would have loved to see how illustrators from African and Caribbean nations might have imagined a Bible story. The illustrators where from: Poland, Italy, Indonesia, Spain, California, UK, Columbia, Canada, Argentina, Greece, Brazil, and Russia. In fairness, I don’t know how the illustrators were selected for this book project. It’s possible that these illustrators answered a call for submissions. Nonetheless, this is a beautifully composed book, with emotive language and visuals, that really helps the reader imagine each story and extract its deeper meaning.
It’s a book that I’d proudly display on my coffee table!
