Have you ever wondered what it was like for Noah and his family when he was building the ark and gathering the animals? Barbour Publishing gives you a first-hand account of what it was like in Imagine. . .The Great Flood by Matt Koceich. This is the first in a new series of books. The next book coming out in the Spring of 2018 is Imagine … The Ten Plagues.
I have definitely had my moments of wondering what it was like for Noah during that time. Movies have been made about it, trying to depict what it was like. Some funny, like “Evan Almighty” with Steve Carell and some on the serious side, like “Noah” with Russell Crowe.
While neither one of those movies is meant to be an entirely accurate account, there is one thing I think they both do well. They both portray a man who is trying to do as he is commanded by God. No matter how silly it seems to build an ark and gather animals, they do it because it is what they feel God is telling them to do.
The theme of “Imagine…The Great Flood”
If I were to have to give this book a central theme, that’s what it would be… following what you feel God is telling you to do, regardless of whether or not you understand it. It may not make sense. It may seem crazy. Others may think you are losing your mind. That’s okay as long as you are doing what you feel God has asked you to do.
That is what Corey, the main character of the story learns throughout the book. He learns to listen to God. He learns to trust in God.
The Story
Corey is ten years old and his family is getting ready to move from Texas to Florida. To put it simply, Corey is not happy about it. He doesn’t understand why they need to move.
While he was out on a walk with his mother and dog, he falls and hits his head. When he opens his eyes after the fall, he is no longer in Texas. And soon he has two lions coming towards him. A man assures him they won’t hurt him, though. That man is Shem, one of Noah’s sons. The lions are two of the animals that will go on the ark Noah is building.
Corey then goes on an adventure with Shem and his brothers to round up the rest of the animals for the ark before the rains come.
Along the way, there are many obstacles and many ways we can try to imagine what it was like to be there in that moment.
The Nephilim are trying to stop them.
The rain clouds are getting darker.
A bad man labeled a sorcerer tries to tempt Corey with going back home and giving him all he wants. Of course, he has to turn on his new friends to do this and not follow God’s command of rounding up the animals.
He gets to see the doubters. He understands why they might doubt. Corey thinks he may have been one of those doubters if he lived in that time.
Through all of these adventures, Corey realizes he has to put his trust in God. And that also means putting his trust in his dad that he is doing what is right for their family by moving to Florida.
The story ends with the family in Florida. Corey finds that it’s not as bad as he thought and he may just make some new friends.
Our Thoughts
I loved how this book placed us in the time of Noah’s ark through the mind of someone living in today’s world. Since we already know what happens it’s great to be able to live the story and read what it was like for them. From getting made fun of for being crazy, to seeing the animals calm and doing what the humans tell them to do.
It is a great example of following God no matter how “crazy” the request may be.
The book is intended for kids ages 8 to 12. I could have just handed it to one of my kids to read, but instead, we used it as our read-aloud time. It did not take long to read because it is only 110 pages. Your child could read this in a week’s time, depending on how fast they read.
I definitely recommend it. It makes it a bit more fun to learn about Noah’s ark to hear about it from a 10-year-old’s perspective.
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