The Story of Religion

by Giulio Maestro (Illustrator), Betsy Maestro

Introduces the history of religious belief and the practice of religion in the world today, illuminating the differences that make each religious group unique and the fundamental beliefs that all groups share.

Genres: Religion, History, Nonfiction, Picture Books, Childrens, Education

48 pages, Hardcover

First published August 16, 1996

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A history of the major world religions is presented in this advanced picture book from prolific author/illustrator team and husband and wife Betsy and Giulio Maestro. Beginning with a discussion of what religion is and is meant to do, the kinds of questions about the world and about life that it is meant to answer, the book proceeds to the nature-centered religions of prehistory, and the different polytheistic faiths found around the world, from ancient Sumer and Egypt to the ancient Americas and the classical Greek and Roman world. Specific attention is then paid to Taoism, Confucianism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The book closes with extensive back matter, including sections on the sacred books of various faiths, their festivals and holidays, other religions, the Golden Rule, and an index...

Published in 1996, The Story of Religion is the fifteenth book I have read from Betsy Maestro and the sixteenth from Giulio Maestro. It is an engaging and informative work of non-fiction on an important subject, and with one notable exception, would make an excellent title for use in educational venues, including grade-school classrooms and homeschooling settings. I thought the author did a good job covering a wide range of beliefs and customs, tying them together in a coherent way. The accompanying artwork, done in colored pencil, ink and watercolor, was appealing, and well up to Giulio Maestro's normal high standard. My only critique (the exception noted above), is my disagreement with the philosophical statement at the end of the book, between the main text and the back matter, to the effect that there is no one true way to seek and understand God, and that accepting this is the way to tolerance and peace. While I am inclined to agree with the first part of this on a metaphysical level—I do believe that there are many ways of approaching and understanding the divine—I think it is misguided to expect sincere and pious believers of any specific faith to reject the idea that there is one true way. For many of them, this kind of belief is central to their faith, and to reject it is to reject that faith. I think it is more realistic, and more just, to state that peace and tolerance in this matter rest on accepting and respecting the idea that all people have the right to answer these questions for themselves, and that it is not given to us to try and direct or force them onto any path, even if we sincerely believe it is the one true one. This balances reality—many people wouldn't belong to a religion if they didn't think it offered the correct answers and path—with the requirements of justice. With this criticism noted, and with the exception of that single page, I would recommend this one as a good beginning text on worlds religions, for the study of young students in the primary grades.

[Michelle Teasdale (Yeshe Lhatso) · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 6yr old enjoyed this, a great introduction to world religions.

[Brandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rather than focusing on a specific religion, this book explores a variety of worldly religions and shows how we are all living on the same planet regardless of our beliefs. This book places an emphasis on understanding and respecting others beliefs even though they may be different to your own. World peace is a common theme throughout the book and it shows that respect and learning to value each other's religions is the key to achieving this. With vividly drawn pictures of actual religious artifacts on large pages, this book is great for even the youngest learner.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book with my son last year and it's worth reading with him again. It is a simple story of the evolution of religion from practices and beliefs of early peoples trying to makes sense of the world to religions still practiced today. It has a wonderful message of living in harmony and respecting and appreciating the differences and similarities between ourselves and others. One World...

[Erika Forth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations and easy to understand. Goes through why people need religion, ancient religions, to the major religions today in a storytelling manor. Promotes understanding others religions. I would definitely use this for a social studies read aloud when studying culture & religion.