A lovely, serious picture book about the birth of Jesus and the visits by the three wise men and shepherds. Along the way, the book includes vignettes that tell what the historical context may have been. This is a good book for older Christian readers who want to learn more about biblical history.

The Wonders of the First Christmas
by Andy McGuire

The Wonders of the First Christmas was a delightful Christmas story. I especially liked the emphasis on all the actions being part of "God's plan". The illustrations were eye-catching and very life-like. They added to the warmth to the story. The text was well researched, and flowed nicely. It hit all of the important points, and it is Bible based.

The side-bar information, which was located on almost every page, was extremely informative and makes for great conversations. The book can be read without them, however, so that the storyline isn't interrupted and it flows better. The reader has the option of reading the story with or without the side-bars.

I'm sure this book will become a yearly tradition in my household. I can imagine reading it to my grandchildren amongst mugs of hot chocolate and sweet Christmas cookies . . .

This an exquisite book with a delightful retelling of the Nativity story, accompanied with beautiful pictures. For the younger children, the story is straight-forward and endearing. For older children, the accompanying explanations add another dimension to the familiar tale. This would be a wonderful addition to any library.

I love when stories are presented with fun facts as well, my kids always enjoy learning that way. I liked the focus on God’s plan always being fulfilled. I also appreciated that this Nativity story was not white-washed in the illustrations.

The Wonders of the First Christmas was the sweetest book. The illustrations were beautiful and I loved the historical context given for the events surrounding Jesus' birth. This would be a great book for Christmas or anytime of year to spark a conversation about the gift of Jesus.

What a beautiful book that tells the true story of Jesus’ birth with information from the Bible. The illustrations are gorgeous . The extra added information at the bottom of pages is insightful and historical. Absolutely a beautiful and well written book.!
Thank you NetGalley for an advanced reader copy.

I thought this was a wonderful book! The artwork is beautiful and was wonderfully rendered. The artwork makes this story even more special. This is a lovely book and a great addition to the telling of the nativity. It's written in a way that children can understand it and in a more modern way of telling the story.I appreciated the side notes explaining certain aspects of the passages on the page. This helps clarify things, as our modern view can be very different from that time period. I definitely recommend it!

What an incredible book. The illustrations are great and the story is so good. I love the story of Jesus being born and in this book I love how there are side note descriptions continually through the book. I highly recommend it!!
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy. I will be purchasing it for me and my church.

Review of eBook

The Christmas story told with a combination of gorgeous, full-page illustrations, the Gospel text, and historical, biological, and geographic about Israel at the time of the birth of Jesus.

The target audience for this amazing, full-color book is the young reader, ages four through eight, but readers of all ages are certain to appreciate the added facts about Israel at the time of Jesus’s birth and relevant gospel texts. These all work together to strengthen the reader’s understanding of the Christmas story within the context of the world at that time. An exquisite book with an inspiring story sure to strengthen the reader’s faith.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Zonderkidz and NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving this review.
#TheWondersoftheFirstChristmas #NetGalley

The Wonders of the First Christmas by Andy McGuire is a children's book that talks about the birth of Christ and also give some historical information about what some of the references actually meant. It explains a little about the Wise Men, shepherds, and even the manger. This book is a "picture book" that is great for young children, but it also is nice reading for adults and children of all ages. Thank you NetGalley.com.

“The Wonders of the First Christmas”
(Explore the Birth of Jesus through History, Archaeology, and Art) by Andy McGuire
A Very Good 1st Christmas Book
The story is well done as is the art work. The ‘Fact Blocks’ are, for me, what sets this book apart from the others. I would enjoy reading this book with little ones and hear their questions and exclamations, too! Happy Reading ! !

Thank you ZonderKidz for allowing me to read and review The Wonders of the First Christmas (Explore the Birth of Jesus through History, Archaeology, and Art) by Andy McGuire on NetGalley.

Published: 10/07/25

Stars: 4

McGuire traditionally tells the birth of Jesus with muted colored illustrations respectfully done. In addition, he gives explanations and definitions of terms that relate to the times.

The formatting caught my attention. There is the story itself, and throughout the pages are information boxes. I liked the setup.

Giftable.

Thanks to NetGalley and Zonderkidz for an advanced reading copy of this book. It will be released to publishers on October 7, 2025.

The wonders of the first Christmas is great for upper elementary students who want to find out more about the first Christmas, from a biblical standpoint to a historical standpoint.

A great buy for parents and church leaders!

this is a retelling of the nativity story, lovely book, enjoyed the illustrations and the story. would highly recommend

These illustrations were GORGEOUS. My 3 year old boy loved learning about the birth of our Savior. He wasn't old enough to appreciate some of the facts but he liked to point out things in the pictures and asked a lot of questions.

The Wonders of the First Christmas by Andy McGuire is a children’s book coming out in October this year. I was struck by the historical accuracy and the definitions of customs of the times. Between the explanation of Roman rulers and gifts from the wise men and even how much a camel can drink, I found this book quite refreshing and interesting, as I’m sure so many children will as well. I highly recommend this book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions expressed are completely my own.

This lovely telling of the Christmas story is aimed at children, probably in the 4-10 year range, but its quiet approach will appeal to all ages. The illustrations have a simple style that matches the bits of historical context that are included to pique a child's interest without overwhelming them. There is a confidence in God as a loving being, yet without religiosity.

More than just your basic retelling of the Nativity story, this book provides small snippets throughout the book that are educational and explain the story from the timeframe of Jesus. Explanations include the work/trade of a carpenter, the design of a manager, commons type of sheep in Israel, etc. The book also highlights many concepts/ideas that are included in the Nativity story but aren't specifically mentioned in the Bible but could be plausible for this time (Mary riding a donkey, Wise Men riding camels, etc.)

This is a great book for sharing the Nativity/First Christmas story and teaching children more details and the history at the time of of Jesus' birth.

Beautifully done pictures. I loved how the animals looked almost realistic throughout the book. Well told beloved story. Will definitely recommend.

Sweetly illustrated, with text that will grow with your child, this classic story is told in a way that parents and little ones alike will enjoy. A great one to keep in your library.
*I received a complimentary copy of this e-book from Barbour Publishing through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is the sweetest book. I absolutely love the illustrations, they are beautiful. And I love the facts on each page and I learned things I previously wasn’t aware of, like the fact animals were kept in the lower level of the home so their heat rose to the humans room above. Altogether it is a beautiful book with a Biblically accurate story of the birth of Jesus with a lot of additional history and anthropology added in. I loved it and will recommend it!

I loved the way this book has a dual appeal. There is a storyline for younger readers and below, a storyline for older readers. As your reader grows, they can start to read one part to themselves as you read the other to them as they get older. The book also gives opportunities for older siblings or cousins to read aloud and show the beautiful pictures to their younglings.

I see this book as a fine investment for families and even schools. It's a wonderful way to teach the story of the Birth of Jesus.

Thank you to the author, Andy McGuire, NetGalley and ZonderKidz for this gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Wonders of the First Christmas
By Andy McGuire

This is a beautiful book. It centers around the biblical telling of the birth of Jesus Christ. But it also includes interpretations of exactly what some of the biblical passages mean, for example that stables were not what we think of as stables today, or that Joseph and Jesus were probably not carpenters as we think of them but more like contractors or stone masons. And all of this is written on a level that children can understand.

There is another facet of this book which is equally compelling – the wonderful illustrations. The visual experience is gorgeous. And adds so much to the storytelling.

I would highly recommend this book to all those with young children or grandchildren to explain the Christmas story. Be sure to sit down and read it with them!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

The Wonders of the First Christmas: Explore the Birth of Jesus through History, Archaeology, and Art
Andy McGurie
Author Andy McGuire offers children a look at the true reason for Christmas. The birth of Christ is told from the beginning when the angel appears to Mary. The story is told in a simple easy to understand manner. On several pages there is a box with more information.
This is a precious story for Christians. (I’ve never been able to understand why unbelievers celebrate Christmas, a celebration of the birth of Christ.) The story moves along at a nice pace from the angel’s visit to Mary to the angel coming to Joseph in a dream. While we see Mary riding a donkey to Bethlehem in the illustration, the information box reminds us that nowhere in the scriptures does it say Mary was on a donkey. But that would have been the most likely method of travel. The young couple stayed in a stable because there were no rooms left at the end.
The story continues with the shepherds and the Wisemen. Again, the box reminds us tht scripture says nothing about the Wisemen/Kings riding camels although it would have been an appropriate method of travel. The Illustrations are beautifully done; they are subdued, which is very appropriate for they compliment the story without overpowering in for the focus should be on the text in this tale.
This book can introduce scripture and can be used to assist parents by opening dialogue that will allow parents to openly discuss the story with their children.
Thank you to Netgalley for my advanced digital copy. All thoughts and opinions are expressly my own.

A well-illustrated retelling of the story of the first Christmas. The right mixture of text and pictures to appeal to young readers and those who might read it to them.

In the midst of dozens of retelling the story, Andy McGuire tells the story once again with great illustrations and as a bonus, tidbits of historical information to supplement the topics. This book is geared toward younger children and is the perfect gift for families who want to raise their children with the true meaning of Christmas. I would’ve liked to see a little more expansion or detail on the story and more of the historical facts. Still recommend.

The story of the nativity with interesting historical facts and tidbits woven in. I normally don't love books of this format, but the facts were very interesting and I think really added to this book. The illustrations are lovely and center on different angles of animals that are relevant to the story. It adds a level of interest that I enjoyed.

The Wonders of the First Christmas is a wonderful telling of the birth of Jesus with added historical information. The historical information adds another level of depth to put the story of Jesus' birth into a historical context for readers to understand the story better. The illustrations are beautiful and brings this story to life.

What a beautifully illustrated book! Since I work in a public school, I can not use this book for teaching. I did enjoy the story of Jesus. It gives choices to read the "main" story part, or read the "main" part and add in the additional information. The additional information was very informative explaining information that one may not know or understand. All of it was easy to understand.

I received a copy for review purposes. All opinions are honest and mine alone.


Engaging illustrations accompany informative text in this unique Christmas book. Author, Andy McGuire, is also the talented artist on this project that combines details of history and archeology alongside the biblical story. Readers will learn things like: Did Mary really ride a donkey to Bethlehem? Did carpenters work with wood or stone? What did the manger Jesus was born in really look like? How old was Jesus when the wisemen brought him gifts? What amazing things did the Egyptians create thousands of years ago that we still use today? There’s much more for readers to discover and discuss.

In addition to the above, McGuire includes a nice collection of animal facts that support his wonderful artwork. It looks like he used colored pencil, chalk or a combination of the two. His pictures are soft, life like, pastoral, detailed. I wanted to reach out and pet them because I could make a connection; amazing facial expressions. There are three pages featuring a camel that are a character study; spectacular.

THE WONDERS OF THE FIRST CHRISTMAS will make an excellent gift and addition to family or church libraries. Young children will be captivated by the illustrations while older kids and adults will additionally enjoy learning about and discussing the historical information not usually found in books for this audience. Highly recommended📚

Read and Reviewed from a NetGalley eARC, with thanks.

This is a Christian book about Christmas for ages 4 and up. The illustrations were in a very realistic style and showed historically accurate visuals for the story. The main text recounts the birth of Jesus as described in the Bible, from Mary being visited by an angel until Jesus' family returns from Egypt after Herod's death. There were also boxes with a paragraph or two of historical information that expanded upon the main text, and this would be of more interest to maybe 7 year-olds and up. These boxes provided more information on carpenters, Rome, donkeys, inns, swaddling clothes, shepherds, sheep, angels, mangers, wise men, prophecy about Jesus' birth, myrrh and frankincense, camels, and Egypt. Overall, I think this would be of most interest to kids who have grown up hearing the basic Christmas story but are old enough to like learning more background information. I'd recommend this well-written and illustrated book.

This book is gorgeously illustrated. I enjoyed the insets that were throughout the book that told more about the history and time period. The insets are what set this book apart from other books about the story of Christmas. I recommend this book to be added to a home or church library.

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

History and art come together to celebrate the miracle of the first Christmas. A thoughtful journey that deepens faith by uncovering the beauty of Christ’s birth.

This book includes beautiful color illustrations and an easy to follow text to tell the story of the birth of Jesus. It includes historical and cultural notes to help guide the reader’s understanding. It is a perfect way for families to share the story of Christmas. A bibliography is included.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

A great little story, perfect for young children! I loved the added little facts throughout. 😊

Isabella Ann of The Painted Caravan

thepaintedcaravan.substack.com

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