MESSIAH: ORIGIN

Messiah: Origin is a 2013 graphic novel by Mark Arey, Kai Carpenter, and Matt Dorff. It covers the biblical narrative from the annunciation of the nativity of John the Baptist through the beginning of John’s ministry.

This isn’t a comic book in the conventional sense; the panels are sequential, but all the text is adapted straight from the New Testament (specifically, from John 1, Luke 1–2, Matthew 1–3, and Mark 1). As such, it often feels more like an art book. This is further compounded by the fact that, as Dorff acknowledges, the layouts borrow heavily (read: copy) from various iconic painters and filmmakers.

The unequivocal highlight of Messiah: Origin is Kai Carpenter’s outstanding art. His faces and expressions are fantastic, which is essential given the more static nature of the storytelling here. His use of light and color are also excellent, and the end product is often captivating.

If you’re looking for a comic book version of the Christmas story, Messiah: Origin really isn’t it, but it is a great looking and worthwhile piece of work.

RECOMMENDED

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

PEACE ON EARTH by Mary Engelbreit

Mary Engelbreit’s Peace on Earth: A Christmas Collection is a 2013 children’s book, her celebration of what she loves about Christmas.

This isn’t a collection of stories—Peace on Earth is comprised of the text of various Christmas hymns, the accounts of the birth of Jesus from Luke and the visit of the magi from Matthew, and numerous poems and short essays from other authors, all with illustrations and borders by Engelbreit.

This latter is, of course, why nearly everyone who picks this book up does so, and Engelbreit’s art is quite good, as you’d expect. Her style is distinct, her colors are warm and vibrant, and, with the exception of the fact that she misspells “magi” in one of her illustrations, everything looks excellent.

But while the art is great, the text is largely unimpressive and uninteresting. The hymns we know already, and many of the poems—nothing else really stands out, and you can read through this book in about five minutes. Neither my wife nor my three-and-a-half-year-old daughter, both of whom are big fans of other Engelbreit works, were particularly impressed with Peace on Earth, although they did enjoy looking at the pictures once or twice.

Peace on Earth is perfectly good if you’re looking for a collection of Engelbreit’s Christmas art. But don’t ask it for any more than that.

TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

THE STORY OF THE OTHER WISE MAN by Henry Van Dyke

The Story of the Other Wise Man (sometimes just The Other Wise Man) is a 1896 novella by Henry Van Dyke, a professor, preacher and diplomat (He also wrote the words to “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee”). This novella has become (and remains) something of a Christmas classic, up there with O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi” and such. Here, Artaban, a Parthian magus, intends to travel with his three magi friends to find the infant Jesus. But he is repeatedly delayed by a number of factors, many of which involve him stopping out of compassion to help the needy. In doing so, he wonders if he will ever find Jesus.

The end of the story isn’t entirely expected. But Van Dyke’s message is transparent throughout – it is by serving others that we best serve God himself (Matthew 25:31-46). Artaban is, to some degree, aware of this, even as he despairs of giving away the treasures he had stored up for Jesus, but on the whole he loses sight of the significance of the good that he does. This inner conflict is not played up to the degree it might have been, but nevertheless this story’s impact is powerful.

The Story of the Other Wise Man is mind-bogglingly descriptive. Perhaps half the book is taken up by descriptions like

“The doorway between the pillars, which opened upon the terrace of the roof, was covered with a heavy curtain of the color of a ripe pomegranate, embroidered with innumerable golden rays shooting upward from the floor. In effect the room was like a quiet, starry night, all azure and silver, flushed in the east with the rosy promise of the dawn. It was, as the house of a man should be, an expression of the character and spirit of the master.”

This level of detail is a double-edged sword. It’s terribly immersive, but it also slows down the story, at times to the degree that the reader may skip ahead. Also, kids and adults will want to keep a dictionary handy.

All things considered, The Story of the Other Wise Man has held up very well, and is rightly a Christmas classic still.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED