FlyBy Promotions Review: The Sparkle Egg by Jill Hardie #grow4christ #ShareAMoment

by ohiosarah on March 22, 2014

About the book:
Easter is coming, and Sam loves Easter! But this year, he is upset about a lie he told his parents. Even though he apologized and they forgave him, Sam can’t shake the feeling that he is a bad kid for what he did. Meanwhile, his parents help him make a special Easter craft
called a Sparkle Egg. His mom tells him to write anything he feels sorry about or ashamed of on a piece of paper and put it inside his Sparkle Egg.

On Easter morning, when he opens his Sparkle Egg expecting a surprise, Sam finds that it is empty! His parents explain that because Jesus died and rose again, we are forgiven. Like the tomb that first Easter Day, Sam’s egg is empty—and Sam’s wrongdoing is completely forgiven. Once he accepts this forgiveness fully, Sam realizes a truth: we can sparkle and shine with God’s light when we let God’s gift of grace into our hearts. This touching story will strike a deep chord with readers of all ages, and the Sparkle Egg tradition will help readers and their families grasp the totality of God’s perfect grace.

You can purchase your copy at Ideals Publications for $13.59.

About the author: Jill Hardie’s first book, The Sparkle Box, ignited a new Christmas tradition that helps center Christmas in the true joy of the season. Now Jill is hoping to touch lives with a new Easter tradition with The Sparkle Egg. She lives in North Canton, Ohio.

About the illustrator: Christine Kornacki illustrated the highly acclaimed The Sparkle Box. She has a love for painting and a knack for bringing stories to life. Christine received a BFA in illustration from the University of Hartford and spends most days painting in her studio, which adjoins a charming café in New Haven, Connecticut.

My Opinion:

I read this the other night with my two youngest children and we all were caught up in the story of Sam who after getting his spelling test at school and seeing all the red marks (remember how those made us feel in school, small and insignificant?), he goes home only to lie to his mom. While my children can’t relate to the school setting or the red marks – they can relate to the fleshly desire to lie to me in order to get out of trouble, which of course once the lie is found out always results in more trouble. Sam struggles with his feelings of guilt and shame even after his parents find out and forgive him – isn’t that the way with us, even as adults, we know we’ve sinned, we know God has forgiven and yet we still feel that shame and guilt. This book has a message for both the children and the adults who read it and I even want to make my own sparkle egg, if only as a reminder that God has and will forgive me as I repent of my sins.

Only 32 pages this book is a short read with a big message – including what Easter is all about – whether you celebrate Easter or prefer to call it Resurrection Sunday this book will hit home with the message of Christ dying on the cross for us to forgive us and to honor Him we should not hang onto the guilt and shame that He has already taken. Of course, adults will realize that Satan is the deceiver and he is the one continuing to make us feel shameful but children aren’t always in tune to that and knowing that God has forgiven them goes a long way in teaching them what is the basic of knowing the Gospel and eventually they’ll get the rest of the plan. Beautiful illustrations bring home the story with it’s bright colors and realistic images – my 9 year old daughter kept exclaiming she couldn’t believe how real the pictures looked! We are going to be making our own sparkle eggs as part of our Resurrection Sunday activities and we’ll empty our eggs in honor of the Lord who forgives all if we only ask.

Giveaway!

Use the link below to enter using the Rafflecopter form – if you have won this book on another blog you are ineligible to win again. Open to US and Canada only. 18 years old and over.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

“Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post. Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”