Saturday, March 15, 2008

Mark Bertrand on Allan's TNIV

Mark Bertrand is a connoisseur of Bibles that are packaged well, good bindings, page layout, etc. He has found an edition of the TNIV that meets his high standards. Mark writes:
there is an edition of the TNIV I can recommend wholeheartedly -- and not surprisingly it comes from R. L. Allan's. The Allan's TNIV is a 4.5 x 6.5 inch hardback, about .875 inches thick, featuring a small print, double-column text. The cover is available in four styles: black highland goatskin, imperial purple highland goatskin, cardinal red goatskin, and British tan calfskin. These sell for £50. There's also a French morocco edition for £40. A tabbed closure keeps the silk-lined cover secure. According to the description at Bibles-Direct.com, these editions have two ribbon markers; mine only came with one.
Mark goes into a lot more detail about this edition and then concludes:
Having said all this, the question is: would I recommend the Allan's TNIV? I would. If you're using the TNIV extensively, then you'll probably want the TNIV Reference Bible as a main edition (you can always have that bonded leather cover replaced, and the font isn't as ghastly as I make out once you're used to it). But for everyday use -- especially carry -- the Allan's TNIV is the best available. If you don't use the TNIV but would like to check it out, perhaps the thought of an Allan's edition is such an usual yet practical format will sway you.

All I know is, the next time I get an e-mail complaining there are no "nice" editions of the TNIV available, I will have to disagree. The Allan's TNIV is superb. I'll be reading a lot of more of the TNIV, I suspect -- assuming my wife doesn't confiscate this edition first!