BIBLE HISTORY DAILY

The Bible in Living Color

How a graphic novel series brings the Bible to life

The Book of Esther

Word for Word Bible Comic series
(Bristol, United Kingdom: Word for Word Bible Comics, 2024), i–ix + 84 pp.

Review by Jonathan Redding

The Word for Word Bible Comic series aims to present the complete Bible in a graphic novel format. The series currently includes ten comics, each based on individual biblical books, from the Book of Judges to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Here, I review two bright, colorful, and high-quality additions to the series, the Book of Esther and the Book of Acts.

One immediately feels the time, effort, and creativity behind their conception and execution when flipping through and seeing the full-color panels that present both biblical books in a traditional comic-book style. Each uses the New International Version (NIV) as their translation, and unlike other comic-style biblical treatments, such as The Action Bible or The Brick Testament, these use the books of Acts and Esther in their respective entireties. This is a considerable strength, as similar publications only offer selected bits and pieces of certain biblical books. Using complete biblical texts makes Word for Word a unique illustrated interpretation, supplementing complete written texts with visual understandings.

Both books include introductions that unpack how the comics interpret and treat the text. This information is quite helpful, as it orients the reader to the “how” and “why” of specific interpretive choices. Both also include the names of various professionals and specialists who were consulted about biblical and theological issues, as well as ancient history and culture. This is another way Word for Word does not claim to be the definitive, end-all-be-all biblical illustration project. Rather, each book is the result of specific choices made by selected people.

Herein lies a foundational issue: Does placing the biblical text alongside interpretive illustrations limit or bias the reader’s interpretation, like when a popular book gets the movie treatment and readers who see the film first come to associate a given actor with a character before reading the book? This can and does narrow the scope of how one engages a written text. Experienced bibliophiles can approach Word for Word as an interpretive exercise in and of itself, considering the design choices illustrators made for different characters and story elements. However, remembering the Word for Word series calls itself a “Bible Comic” and not “The Bible” highlights the choices necessary to illustrate both Esther and Acts.

The conversion story from Acts 4:1–4. From Acts of the Apostles, wordforwordbiblecomic.com.

Some choices work quite well, like the inclusion of women among men at the conversion story of Acts 4:1–4. Scholars widely accept the presence of women in many such biblical episodes, even when the text itself seems to only reference the number of men who were present (i.e., Jesus feeding the 5,000 reflects the number of men present, not the greater total). Including women visually makes their presence explicit. Acts is a full book with many characters, places, and moving parts. For even the most seasoned reader, it can be confusing and difficult to keep track. That said, the illustrations help the reader keep track of who is who and what they are doing.

Esther and the Persian king Xerxes (Esther 2:17). From The Book of Esther, wordforwordbiblecomic.com.

With Esther, it is refreshing to see that the illustrators make the titular character a typical woman of the Persian period and do not force her into our modern conceptions of beauty, as the biblical text offers few specific details about Esther’s appearance. She looks like a real human being, not a supermodel transported back in time. Such choices create space for young readers to identify with Esther while also eliminating the need to make Esther aesthetically appealing by modern standards. In fact, Esther’s artistic depiction makes her look a lot like the expelled Queen Vashti, showing that Esther is indeed a woman and not some idealized figure of beauty. The book also does not shy away from the overtly sexual nature of the king’s request to spend time with multiple virgins (2:2–4), going as far as to show King Xerxes starting to disrobe. Indeed, neither volume avoids difficult images and issues, including sexually charged and violent, bloody imagery. Seeing the physical altercations that occur throughout Acts makes the words on the page more palpable and tactile. Watching soldiers bleed and die in Esther alongside Haman and his sons’ impaled bodies underscores what is at stake for Esther, Mordechai, and their fellow Judeans.

Other choices do not hold up as well. For example, in Esther, the verses discussing the book’s connection to Purim are minimized and reduced to the margins, making this key point about the purpose of Esther feel rushed. It reflects a potential Christian bias, as contemporary Jewish communities hold Esther as foundational to the Purim holiday and its practices. In Acts, the stylistic choice to have Jesus appear with white hair and a white beard feels out of place and incongruous with the text itself. Further, any time the Holy Spirit possesses or speaks through someone, the speakers’ pupils disappear, and their eyes get a bluish hue. This makes them look like extras in a superhero story more than apostles sharing their faith. It is also odd that both books have a “12+” age advisory (other books in the series have a “15+” advisory), as the Bible itself carries no such guardrails.

That said, each volume’s strengths outweigh potential shortcomings. A welcome addition is the thorough historical explanations after each book’s conclusion. It allows the reader to consider questions of historicity and compare non-biblical evidence to form an independent understanding of complex issues around dating, composition, and archaeological evidence connected to Acts and Esther. This sum total of strengths makes them each a worthy addition to current illustrated interpretations and receptions of biblical texts.

Jonathan Redding is Associate Professor of Religion and Anne MacLeod Cognard, PhD Professor in the Humanities at Nebraska Wesleyan University. He specializes in apocalyptic literature, specifically the books of Daniel and Revelation.