Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus

by John Hendrix

Discover the miracles of Jesus in this stunning picture book from award-winning author and illustrator John Hendrix.

In this moving interpretation of the life and ministry of Jesus, John Hendrix brings to life the Biblical accounts of Jesus’s miracles, crucifixion, and resurrection. From the feeding of the five thousand to walking on water, this is a story of faith told through Jesus’s miraculous deeds.

The story of the Miracle Man is one of the best known in human history, and it has been retold by countless writers and artists for more than 2,000 years. In this handsome edition, Hendrix brings his signature style—interweaving hand-lettering with original illustrations—to create a sophisticated approach that readers of all Christian denominations will find both extraordinary and inspirational.

“These miracles give Hendrix the opportunity to showcase his inventive artwork, which forms letters from birds and butterflies and uses strong graphic elements to capture the wonder of Jesus’ life . . . a visually exciting and fresh take on the age-old story.” — Booklist

Genres: Picture Books, Christian, Religion, Nonfiction, Childrens, Christianity, Biography

40 pages, Hardcover

First published February 9, 2016

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John Hendrix is the illustrator of Nurse, Soldier, Spy and author/illustrator of Shooting at the Stars, among others. He lives in St. Louis, Missouri.

Reviews

[Heidi Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hadn't been putting picture books on my "read" lists on Goodreads before because I didn't want them counting toward my yearly reading goal. But I realized it's more important that the greats get their due in reviews.

You guys, this is the most beautiful children's book about Jesus I have ever read. John Hendrix is an exceptionally talented artist (we fell in love with McToad) and his portrayal of Jesus' miracles is both enchanting and moving. I am so grateful that God moved him to write and illustrate this story. I had requested it from the library, but it's going at the top of my "to buy" list.

If you're a believer and you have children (or you're a believer who just likes good art, or you're not a believer but want to know a little bit more about Jesus) please go out and get this book right now.

[Becky B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Hendrix himself best summarizes this book in his author's note at the end, "This book is based on the life of Jesus, as found in the Bible, in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Miracle Man is my own version of this story. Though based on the gospel narrative of his life and ministry, it should not be confused with the authority of the actual Biblical accounts. The words of Jesus and the disciples here are not direct quotations but my own interpretations of his life and teachings on Earth. These interpretations are not from the head of an academic but from the heart of a disciple." (Side note: I strongly recommend reading the full Author's Note. It helps clarify Hendrix's purpose of this book and his reasons for writing are touching.) As he mentioned, many of the words that come out of people's mouths in this aren't quite direct quotations from any current version of the Bible. Most are really, really close or compounds of different passages. Think of it kinda like an illustrated summary of the heart of the gospels, the life of Jesus and purpose of his time on Earth all condensed into 38 pages. (No small task! Go try it. Only 1-3 sentences per page allowed.) Overall, Hendrix says his goal is to help these Bible stories come alive in fresh ways, and get people going back to re-read the originals. I think he accomplishes his goal quite well. The book is illustrated with both drawings and words in graphic design that sometimes are part of the text to be read so the pages require careful scrutiny. I love that Hendrix tried to make the illustrated people authentically Middle Eastern and the buildings and clothes authentic for Jesus' time period.

A great resource for Christian families to use at bedtime, for Sunday school classes or those interested in getting a quick overview of Jesus' life and work. Some Christian families will want to discuss how Hendrix's summaries of Bible stories are slightly different from the original or condensed versions of several stories. It would be a good tool to encourage critical thinking and also get kids thinking beyond the miniscule facts to the overall message of various Bible stories.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: Ages ago, in a dry and dusty land, the people were in need. The land was a sick place, in need of healing. The land was a blind place, in need of sight. The land was a thirsty place, in need of water...the kind of living water that would last forever.

Premise/plot: Miracle Man is a picture book for readers of all ages. It is the story of Jesus. It begins, not with his birth, but with his ministry. The book ends on the verge of the greatest miracle of all: his resurrection. Readers see the empty grave clothes, the stone rolled away, and read the words, "But God's Son, Jesus, the Miracle Man, had in store one last glorious miracle...."

My thoughts: I thought the storytelling was excellent. No story book--or picture book--will ever take the place of Holy Scripture--but writers can creatively craft a narrative worth reading and sharing.

I definitely enjoyed this one. It was one of those books that I wanted to reread a couple more times before turning back into the library. One of those books that I wanted to get everyone in my family to read so I could talk about it with someone.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miracle Man is by far the best children's book about Jesus that I have read. John Hendrix illustrated the highlights of Jesus' life exquisitely. I loved the image of flowers and grass growing in the places Jesus' feet walked, leaving footprints worthy of the Man bringing life to a "dry and dusty land." The tone of the story is not preachy (which most children's books about Jesus seem to be), the language is not boxy by trying to remain faithful to the exact text of Scripture, it did not turn Jesus into a flat two dimensional figure in a second rate story. Those are what the story was NOT. What it WAS...was beautiful. It made Jesus come alive. It showed his power and humanity through word and picture. I have to admit, this title was sitting on our shelf awhile before I picked it up to read with my son. I was afraid it was going to be another pasty version of our amazing Savior. I was proud to read this story with my son.

[Talia Messina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jesus is an untouchable being. In his creative word-artsy style, Hendrix makes Jesus human. Jesus’ followers followed a simple man with miraculous powers, not a heady theology. I love love love how Jesus is portrayed as a merciful man of miracles. This book is incredible.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The power of this considerably abbreviated life of Jesus focusing on the many miracles he performs is in Hendrix's dramatic, inventive illustrations that offers a personal, reverent, visually exciting picture book portrait.

[Kermit · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.8 stars

Got this title from a list of 2017 Caldecott predictions. I certainly liked the subject matter. But I was not wowed by the flow of the text or by the illustrations.

My library has this cataloged as a picture book. I had thought that it might be cataloged as junior biography.

[orangerful · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is gorgeous. You can tell how much Hendrix put his heart into creating this story, retelling the gospels. I like how he doesn't refer to him as Jesus until the very end, up until that he is just the Miracle Man, which I'm sure is what those who heard of him might have called him. Lovely.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

We have loved all of Hendrix’s picture books and this one is fantastic! It is a dramatization of the story of Jesus. The words of Jesus are beautifully illustrated and illuminated to stand out in the story.

[Danette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Miracle Man is revealed on the last page to be God's Son, Jesus, who is risen from the grave.

4/29/19 Read with Simon
10/18/20 Read with my Children's Church class

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truncated bio of Jesus. Beautifully and rather bizarrely illustrated.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus is a children's picture book written and illustrated by John Hendrix. It centers on Jesus and some of his message, but the focus is on selected miracles and the wonder thereof. Since today is Easter (4 April 2021), I thought it would be apropos to read this book today.

Jesus was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity. Christians believe that he is the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited messiah prophesied in the Old Testament.

Hendrix's text is rather simplistic, straightforward, and informative. Hendrix enhances pivotal moments through his customary use of bold, hand-lettered text, giving dramatic visual power to the godly force behind Jesus' words. Hendrix uses dynamic visual to depict the story of Jesus’ adult life, betrayal, death, and resurrection.

The premise of the book is rather straightforward. It explores the adult life of Jesus, focusing on his relationship with his disciples, several miracles, his betrayal, death, and resurrection. It's an emotional and approachable account of the gospel that should have broad Christian appeal.

All in all, Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus is a beautiful depicted and approachable story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

[Anthony Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want John to return to this, drop the Miracle Man thing, and expand it with his theology in the vein of his other works. I wanted the Jesus version of the other works.

I love his artwork, and here is an actual Children's telling and rendition of Jesus life.

My only note to John is that even Children are told of Jesus' crucifixion beyond "They killed him". The Christian tale of 'be good and this Earth will kill you.' is still, after detaching from all the complications around the religion, probably the best singular lesson a child can learn about reality.

Knowing this and choosing good anyway is the Christian path, and the path for anyone who wants to enjoy this life and possibly the next. You can't compromise from that. Jesus chose the good and was killed for doing so. Children must know this even more than they must know if he was the son of God.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Hendrix artwork is always phenomenal. I do not love that the story is an interpretation as details that we are provided in the Bible should not be changed even in an interpretation. I do appreciate that he has a note at the end of the book telling the reader it is not an accurate account. Artwork is 5 stars, story is 3 stars: hence the overall 4.

[Jerry Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully artful telling of Jesus.

Finally, there is a picture book about Jesus that feels as magical as the savior himself. The illustrations do a fantastic job showing us the wonders, miracles and love of Jesus, with beautiful type incorporated seamlessly connected to the art and as art itself.

This is a fresh and bold retelling of a story most western people know, but doesn’t condescend as it recounts the classic narrative. Highly recommended!

[Brenda-Jean Shephard · Rating 5 out of 5]

(2016) It's hard to believe I never heard of this prolific and acclaimed young author/illustrator before, but this is my first introduction to the work of John Hendrix. Pen, ink, and fluid acrylic wash are his favorite media; and they are used to give this children's book a popular graphic quality, with the words of the narrative and dialogue frequently incorporated into the artwork. The text, while a very loose paraphrase of the traditional biblical translations, does not contradict or embellish the original literary work it draws from. In fact, Hendrix says he researched "what people looked like, what clothes they wore, how buildings--especially rooftops--were constructed, and even if there were butterflies in the region" to get the setting as culturally accurate as possible. (author's note, epilogue)
So, this story qualifies as hero myth. It recounts in refreshingly contemporary language some of the miracles attributed to the historical Jesus. These include helping fishermen catch a lot more fish than they expected, healing a man of leprosy and another of paralysis, walking on water and ending a storm at sea, turning a child's lunch into a picnic meal for a gigantic crowd, and coming back to life after being executed.
Told in a non-patronizing style, and through appealing graphics, this book is designed to not only be a read-aloud for a wide range of young children, but also an independent read, even for those who are not yet literate. The artwork has a cutting edge, comic-book feel that is likely to appeal to older siblings as well.
Target audience: toddler-5th grade

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations that add emotion, movement, and power to the narrative. Not verbatim from the Bible but not changing any truths. The illustrations are immediately recognizable as John Hendrix. I'm a fan!

[Margaret]

For those who dedicate their lives to the education of children, the time devoted to this profession does not begin or end at a certain hour each day nor does it begin and end during the allotted school year. For many this extends into tutoring academic subjects, coaching sports, advising club members, chaperoning class trips or school-sponsored camping expeditions or instructing at night classes to children or adults. For still others it includes hours in preparation for teaching on Sundays (or other Sabbath days).

For more than ten years I taught students, usually at the middle school level, during Sunday school classes. Having worked with this age group in a public school setting for twenty-one years I was well aware of the challenges. An individual's spiritual life is extremely personal.

It's a rarity to find a title of distinction which would be an asset in the religion section of a public school library and valuable to those teaching Sunday school. Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus (Abrams Books for Young Readers, February 9, 2016) written and illustrated by John Hendrix is such a book. The stories are familiar but the interpretation by John Hendrix in his text and illustrations is extraordinary.

My full review: http://librariansquest.blogspot.com/2...

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most beautiful and unique picturebooks about Jesus I've ever seen. It is worth the read for that alone. There is enough detail to keep you searching the pages for hints to Jesus' identity, such as the lion and the lamb decoration on the earthen pottery, the flowers that grow in Jesus' footsteps, and a few more I won't give away. Because of it's brevity, it does not cover every miracle or event in the life of Jesus, nor does it explain His purpose, but it make you see familiar accounts on a fresh way. The author states in his notes that it is his own version of the gospels and "should not be confused with the authority of the actual Biblical accounts." This imost obvious in the scene where Jesus feeds the multitude. Unlike the Biblical account, it is a girl who shares her lunch, not a boy. The dialogue is also written as it would be if someone were retelling these stories in their own words- they are not quotes. But at the end of the book the stories are named along with chapter and verse so you can look them up on your own. If you don't find these things problematic, there is a LOT of value to be gotten from this book. They story is told and illustrated to make you slow down and think about this person Jesus. I can't imagine reading this book with any child without lots of meaningful conversations taking place.

[Becket · Rating 3 out of 5]

This hyper-focused take on Jesus' ministry is mainly notable for the stunning, stylized illustration. Hendrix is doing to really interesting things here, especially in the way he weaves the text into the art--Jesus's words are colorfully illustrated until the passion begins, and then the very landscape starts telling the story. Powerful stuff for a picture book.

A couple of notes:
-Jesus and company look less unrealistically Anglo than they typically do in picture books, which is refreshing, and provides an opening for talking about what historical Jesus might have looked like
-In the author's note, Hendrix described the choices he made for brevity, such as the exclusion of Jesus' female disciples. Seriously? As the author it's your prerogative to decide what appears in the book, but don't throw up your hands a say you couldn't make it fit when all it would have taken was one sentence, and swapping out a few of the figures in crowd scenes.

All in all, though, this is head and shoulders above most of the namby-pamby picture books about Jesus I've seen. Good for one-on-one sharing or for storytime in Sunday school, etc.

[Kari · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really lovely picture book about Jesus. It presents the story in a beautiful way without being preachy or didactic. Jesus is NOT presented as white, which is something that is always important to look for. It presents Jesus as someone miraculous as well as focusing on his messages - the one that really stuck out to me is the message of abundance when it came to the loaves and the fish. There are some details in the pictures that will keep kids' attention (when Jesus is betrayed, at the bottom of one of the pages you can see a partly-eaten apple and a snake). I would be surprised if this is a Caldecott contender this year but I really really liked it.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just love Hendrix's illustration style and his inclusion of hand-lettered words and phrases to complement the pictures. My only complaint is that in the notes at the back of the book, Hendrix specifically mentions doing research into what people would have looked like in that area in Christ's day... and yet the illustrations were still full of white people. Sigh. A lovely book with wonderful representations of Christ's miracles. Doesn't include much of His teachings, but that was clearly not meant to be the focus of the book.

[Christina · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author changed the wording of the gospel! At the last supper the Bible says Jesus took the bread and said this is my body. But this book says that Jesus said this bread is LIKE MY body! Wha?! That completely changes everything. I had to change this wording on the fly as I read it aloud to my kids. I guess this wording better fits a Protestant’s beliefs but it has absolutely no place in my Catholic home. A little perturbed it was recommended by Read Aloud Revival but I guess Protestants will like it and the pictures are beautiful. I donated it.

[Emma Hendrix · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Miracle Man is a version of all the Miracles that Jesus had ever done. It goes to back to the start of finding his 12 disciples and the fish they could not catch. Then The Miracle man told them to cast their nets on the opposite side of the boat. The fishermen were surprised when the net was so full it could break. From there on the men followed Jesus. They traveled and watched all of his Miracles, over the ages. The Miracle Man... Jesus Christ himself.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art work in this book is very creative and fun to look at with great color and some interesting embedding of the narrative in the art. The concentration of the book, however, paints Jesus mainly as the one who did miracles and not the other facets of Jesus life and ministry. The crucifixion is barely touched and the resurrection is pictured but not really explained by the pictures. I wish the story had included the miracle of Jesus' death paying for our sins.

[Kim Hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this for my son but I just have to leave a review because it is one of the most beautifully illustrated books I’ve ever seen. Words aren’t fair...they’re just not fair when it comes to describing it. I’ve left it on my coffee table because it really has helped me remember Christ’s love and power. Sometimes we need pictures like when we were kids.

[Campbell Walters · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this book we follow the story of Jesus. As he does many marvelous miracles. These miracles include the feeding of the 5000 and healing the leopard man and several others.

This book is a great way to get kids interested in the bible yet I think it was poorly designed it had the right idea but poor execution. several pages had one or more words tied into the art but some are just hard to read.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up because of a review of the typography, and it did not disappoint. This book is gorgeously composed, with bold colors and infinite details to study. It also serves as a decent introduction to the life of Jesus.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome! Awesome!!!! So beautifully illustrated!! The illustrations were vivid and brought the text to life! It was Biblically accurate but presented the story of Jesus in a way that children can understand! Soooo wonderful!!!!

[Elizabeth Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful recounting of the miracles of Jesus. Excellent Easter gift for PK-3rd. Fun transition from being read to reading alone. Parents won’t mind coaching because they can linger over the AMAZING drawings.