Redeemed Reader Starred Reviews

With the onset of COVID-19 in early 2020, we, like many others, closed up the shop to customers and went to an online-selling-only format for a few weeks. That period coincided with the closure of libraries, schools, and many other activities families participated in, so demand for reading books became intense! We had never seen fiction fly off our shelves like that before! And customers weren't bringing us used books to keep those shelves full, so we quickly had large gaps in our inventory. 

We had a decision to make. We could simply start ordering more at a time of the books we normally carried; or, we could start using all of our free time (ha!) to expand our selection. If you know us at Exodus at all, you know which path we took.

Now, we like to read, but we pull ideas for titles from all over. Along with suggestions from friends, book lists and curriculum catalogs have been our main go-to for years. But they tend to focus on the tried and true, and while wonderful, they can get a little stale. 

Enter Redeemed Reader. This blog, written and administrated by four remarkable ladies—Janie Cheaney, Betsy Farquhar, Megan Saben, and Hayley Schoeppler—is an excellent answer to the problem. Primarily focusing on new books, they rate and review books from a Protestant Christian perspective, and they do it extremely well. Active for 9+ years, they have several hundred reviews on the site, and include picture books, easy readers, books for middle grades, teens, and adults. Their rating system is designed to show how well a book reflects Truth & Story. Since it's possible for a book to be excellently told artistically, yet be antagonistic to Biblical faith; or the converse: a story may be Biblically sound, yet poorly written—so their ratings (scales of 1-5) show both, and then are averaged. If that average rating is 4.5 or higher, they might give the book a "starred review," meaning the book is among the best of the best. It's a book worth owning or giving as a gift, and will probably bear potentially frequent rereading. 

Although they've reviewed many other books we carry as well, we've decided to intentionally carry as many of the starred reviews as we can, and those are collected here. We'll continue to add more as they do! 

Did you find this review helpful?
Parent Categories
Redeemed Reader Starred Reviews
67 Items found Print
Active Filters: Preschool (Ages 4-5)
Adrian Simcox Does NOT Have a Horse
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Beetle Book
by Steve Jenkins
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Insects & Arachnids (Location: SCI-BUG)
$19.99
Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible
Beginner's Gospel Story Book
by Jared Kennedy, Illustrated by Trish Mahoney
from New Growth Press
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
Boy, a Mouse, and a Spider
by Barbara Herkert, illustrated by Lauren Castillo
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
Choo Choo
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Houghton Mifflin
Personification Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Christmas Is Here
by Lauren Castillo
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$12.99
Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
by Barbara Kerley
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd Grade
2002 Caldecott Honor Book, NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$19.99
Dragon Quest
by Allan Baillie, Illustrated by Wayne Harris
First US Edition from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Drawn Together
by Minh Le, illustrated by Dan Santat
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Each Peach Pear Plum
by Allan & Janet Ahlberg
from Puffin Books
Rhyming Story for Preschool-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
Finding Narnia
by Caroline McAlister, Illustrated by Jessica Lanan
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$19.99
Finding Winnie
by Lindsay Mattick
First Edition from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
2016 Caldecott Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Firefly July
by Selected by Paul B. Janeczko, Illustrated by Melissa Sweet
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$8.99
Flora and the Penguin
by Molly Idle
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Friend Who Forgives
Tales that Tell the Truth
by Dan DeWit & Catalina Echeverri
from Good Book Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$16.99
Gingerbread for Liberty!
by Mara Rockliff, Illustrated by Vincent X. Kirsch
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.99
Girl and the Bicycle
by Mark Pett
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Give Thanks to the Lord
by Karma Wilson, Illustrated by Amy June Bates
from Zonderkidz
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
God Counts
by Irene Sun
from New Growth Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
God’s Very Good Idea
by Trillia Newbell and Catalina Echeverri
from Good Book Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Diversity & Multicultural Books (Location: HISMC-MUL)
$16.99
Golden Plate
by Bernadette Watts
from NorthSouth
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.95
Grasshopper and the Ants
by Jerry Pinkney
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Gravity
by Jason Chin
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$18.99
He is Risen
by Patti Rokus
from Zondervan
for Preschool-1st grade
in Easter & Lent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$17.99
Hugo and the Impossible Thing
by Renee Felice Smith and Chris Gabriel, illustrated by Sydney Hanson
from Flamingo Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
I, Too, Am America
by Langston Hughes and Brian Collier
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99
If You Plant a Seed
by Kadir Nelson
from Balzer & Bray
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Jesus Rose for Me
Beginner's Gospel Story Book
by Jared Kennedy, Illustrated by Trish Mahoney
from New Growth Press
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Board Books (Location: PIC-BOARD)
John Ronald’s Dragons
by Caroline McAlister, Illustrated by Eliza Wheeler
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$21.99
Last Stop on Market Street
by Matt De La Pena
1st edition from G.P. Putnam's Sons
Realistic Fiction for Preschool-3rd grade
2016 Newbery Medal, 2016 Caldecott Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Honor 2016
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Leaf Can Be . . .
by Laura Purdie Salas, illustrated by Violeta Dabija
from Millbrook Press
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Library Book for Bear
by Bonny Becker, Illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Lion and the Mouse
by Jerry Pinkney
from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-1st
2010 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Little House
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Sandpiper Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
1943 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Long Ago on a Silent Night
by Julie Berry, Illustrated by Annie Won
from Orchard Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$17.99
Mission Accomplished
by Scott James
from New Growth Press
for All ages
in Easter & Lent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Mr. Squirrel and the Moon
by Sebastian Meshemoser
from NorthSouth
for Preschool-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
My Brother is Away
by Sara Greenwood, illustrated by Luisa Uribe
from Random House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
My Daddy Rules the World
by Hope Anita Smith
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-4th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$17.99
Nana in the City
by Lauren Castillo
from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
2015 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
New Shoes
from First Second
for Preschool-4th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$19.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Nya’s Long Walk
by Linda Sue Park, illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
On the Wing
by David Elliott, Illustrated by Becca Stadtlander
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$6.99
One O’Clock Miracle
Tales that Tell the Truth
by Alison Mitchell, Illustrated by Catalina Echeverri
from Good Book Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$16.99
Piglet Named Mercy
Mercy Watson #0
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Pilot and the Little Prince
by Peter Sís
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
Press Here
by Herve Tullet
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover
Rabbit & Robot
by Cece Bell
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2013 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover
Rabbit & Robot
by Cece Bell
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2013 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.99
Saving the Liberty Bell
by Megan McDonald, Illustrated by Marsha Gray Carrington
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$19.99
Sidewalk Flowers
by Jon Arno Lawson, illustrated by Sydney Smith
from Groundwood Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.95
Sing a Song of Seasons
by Fiona Waters (selections), illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon
from Nosy Crow
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$40.00
Sneaky Sheep
by Chris Monroe
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Snow Queen
by Hans Christian Andersen, Retold by Allison Grace MacDonald and Illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
So Tall Within
by Gary D. Schmidt, Illustrated by Daniel Minter
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
Something Better Coming
by Megan Saben, illustrated by Ryan Flanders
from Literaritea Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Easter & Lent (Location: HOLIDAY)
Sparky & Spike
by Barbara Lowell, illustrated by Dan Andreasen
from Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
Picture Biography for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.95
Three Bears in a Boat
by David Soman
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Tops and Bottoms
by Janet Stevens
from Harcourt Children's Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1996 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Waiting Is Not Easy!
An Elephant and Piggie Book
by Mo Willems
from Hyperion Press
for Preschool-1st grade
2015 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Water Can Be . . .
by Laura Purdie Salas, Illustrated by Violeta Dabija
from Millbrook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Water is Water
by Miranda Paul, Illustrated by Jason Chin
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-4th grade
in Water Cycle (Location: SCI-EARTH)
$18.99
We Are (Not) Friends
by Anna Kang, Illustrated by Christopher Weyant
from Two Lions
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
You Are (Not) Small
by Anna Kang, Illustrated by Christopher Weyant
from Two Lions
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Zacchaeus and Jesus / Jesus and Zacchaeus
Flipside Stories
by Dandi Daley Mackall, Illustrated by Lisa Manuzak
from Tyndale House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)