A few weeks ago, Barbour Publishing sent me the book Imagine. . .The Great Flood by Matt Koceich to preview. I decided to read this one to my children, as it is a fairly short book and sounded like something all of my kids would enjoy.
This paperback book is just over 100 pages long and is intended for children aged 8-12. This story follows ten-year-old Corey as he starts out in Texas, only to find himself in the story of Noah’s ark as it comes to life right in front of him. Obviously, you’ll see that this is a strongly Christian tale of adventure, struggle, excitement, and triumph.
Matt Koceich, the author, is a fellow Texan. He’s a father, husband, and public school teacher. It’s clear that he wants children to experience Biblical events in a way that will stick with them in a very real and life-like way.
Warning: This review does contain spoilers!
The fictional story begins with a look back to thousands of years ago when the lead character, Corey Max, is fighting for his life in an incredible struggle with a strong giant and the intense waves in choppy water. He’s fighting to survive. This is our first glimpse into what is to come for the young boy, who we are then introduced to as a typical kid in Texas during our present time. I loved this, because it automatically put us, as readers, into perhaps one of the most exciting parts of the story. It was a great hook!
Next, we find out that the Max family is about to make a sudden move from Texas to Florida. Corey is not enthusiastic about this change and is quite reluctant to support his dad’s decision. His mother tries to tell him that he should trust God with the whole ordeal, but Corey isn’t sure.
It’s storming, and Corey’s dog, Molly, runs out into the woods, barking. As Corey follows the dog, he trips and hits his head. Suddenly, he is feeling intense pain and can’t get his eyes to focus. His world changes in a split second.
As if transported back in time, Corey now finds himself in a time and place with the sun out on a gravel-covered hill. Not only is he in a completely different location, but now he’s face to face with a pair of lions. Scared out of his mind, he’s confused (but comforted) when a man named Shem tells him that the lions are harmless. Harmless? Really?!
Shem requests Corey’s help in getting these creatures onto his father’s ark. Are you following this? YES – his father is Noah, and he’s loading up a big boat with duos of all sorts of animals in preparation for the Great Flood. He soon meets Shem’s brothers, Ham and Japheth. The next thing Corey knew, he came face to face with Nephilim, giant superhuman men who were wielding swords and heading right for him! Shem reminded him that the Lord would be their shield and not to fear.
Corey was beginning to see how God was in control of this whole situation. He sees Shem stand up to the Nephilim and he sees the giants thwarted in their efforts to destroy the humans. He relies on God for help and is kept safe.
Corey meets Noah and begins to see the way that his family relies on God. They trust him with this HUGE task and believe that God is a promise-keeper and will keep them safe. Corey is beginning to see a similarity in Noah’s move and believing God has a good purpose for it and how his own upcoming move is in God’s hands, just like his mother had been telling him.
I don’t want to give away too much here, but Corey gets up close and personal with the Nephilim again. In fact, he becomes trapped by them and is sure that he is going to die and that God will not save him.
He’s confronted with magic and darkness. He has to make hard choices that he’s never faced before. He struggles to find a purpose in the pain and difficult circumstances that he’s being forced to endure. He cries out to God to help him.
Just as Corey felt like maybe he had to give up and accept that his fate was death, he was surprised with his rescue. He was free! There was no time to celebrate, though, as there was still so much work to be done to prepare the ark before the Great Flood came.
Unfortunately, his relief didn’t last long.
I won’t tell you how the story ended, but Corey Max definitely learned a lesson. He learned about trusting God. He learned about caring for others. He learned of God’s love for his children.
My kids and I enjoyed reading this short chapter book and look forward to more.
Barbour Publishing also brought us the great Diary of a Real Payne book as well, so be sure to see what other goodies they have to offer. They’re a fabulous company to turn to for reliably clean and wholesome books for the entire family, including Bibles, audio books, gift books, stories for children, adult novels, non-fiction selections, and more.
See what other families thought of this epic tale of the Great Flood by clicking on the banner below: