The ESV Reader’s Bible was designed for reading in mind. Rather than cluttering up the text with distractions such as numbers and links, section headings, and footnotes, this Bible presents to the reader just the text of Scripture. This creates a Bible that is perfect for reading.
Pros
- Reads like a book
Cons
- Construction quality may vary
Features
- 2011 ESV
- Cloth hardcover
- Slip case
- Sewn binding
- 9-point font
- Black letter
- Single column
- Paragraph format
- 2 Ribbons
- 4 Maps
- 8 x 5.5 x 1.5
- SRP $29.99
- ISBN: 9781433544149
Buy from Amazon: ESV Reader’s Bible
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Cover
I’ve lately been drawn more toward hardcover editions. Most hard covers are cheaply made and lack style. This one is what I’ve been looking for. This one is cloth and looks and feels like an old book. It is two-tone with burgundy and greenish-grey and has four spinal hubs. It comes in a slip case that adds to the elegance. I don’t know why I like the cover and slip case as much as I do, but they’re part of what draws me to read this edition. The binding is sewn and it has no trouble staying open at any page. It feels great in the hand and it’s a joy to use.
Paper
The paper has the slight cream tint that I like. To me it looks and feels like the paper from the Large Print Personal Size that I reviewed earlier. It’s thin, but not too thin. The opacity is a little better than a Clarion. The line-matching improves readability and removing all the distractions improves it even more. My review copy has a few bendy-wavy spots that cross through most of the Bible on the outside edges. This is why I gave it a con for variation in construction quality. It really isn’t bad; especially for the price. The font looks like a 9/10 and is sharp and consistent. It’s about a medium boldness. It is black-letter and about a semi-bold darkness which I think is the perfect boldness for a font.
Typography
The text is presented in paragraph format with no verse numbers or section headings. Chapter numbers appear in the margin next to the first line of the chapter. The numbers are smaller than normal chapter normal chapter numbers and are in a nice red font. I think I would rather have the chapter numbers in the center of the page like a standard book. When you take into account that some chapters break in the middle of a paragraph I can see why they didn’t do this. The paragraphs are like any standard ESV. It’s not like a novel where every character’s dialog is in a new paragraph. Poetry is set to verse and OT quotes are centered. The chapter and verse numbers appear at the top of the page in a beautiful red font. The book names are also printed in the same red font. The red fonts are gorgeous. Each book starts on a new page on the right side. There is plenty of margin space, 5/8’s margins, on both sides of the text ensuring that the text remains far away from the inside gutter.
Maps
The maps are different from all other Crossway Bibles that I’ve reviewed. They have more of an old book look to them. There are only 4 and they’re primarily yellow and grey. They’re printed in thick paper that’s not shinny or glossy. They cover The World of the Patriarchs, The Twelve Tribes of Israel, Palestine in the Time of Jesus, and Paul’s Missionary Journeys.
Ribbons
The two ribbons are brown and long enough to use all the way to the corner. They are thin, but it fits this Bible. Thicker ribbons would have looked odd due to the size of the text block.
Conclusion
The more distractions a Bible has the harder it is for me to read it. The ESV Reader’s Bible takes away those distractions and leaves behind the ideal reading Bible. If you’re an ESV reader you owe it to yourself to make this your daily reading Bible.
Buy from Amazon: ESV Reader’s Bible
Buy from Crossway: ESV Reader’s Bible
Crossway provided this Bible free for review. I was not required to give a positive review- only an honest review.