Bilingual Bible Story: Noah’s Ark Books in Chinese and English

Noah’s Ark is a bible story that we’ve read with our children over and over again. Today I’m featuring Caldecott award-winning Noah’s Ark books in Chinese and English!

Generally, my husband reads with our kids in English, while I read in Mandarin Chinese. The amazingly detailed illustrations encourage observation and discussing biblical events bilingually.

Related: 讚美之泉 Stream of Praise Chinese Christian Music + Printable Lyrics

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The story of Noah’s Ark

Noah is introduced in the book of Genesis as the person chosen by God to perpetuate the human race after the Flood. When God was troubled by the corruption of the human race, he warned Noah and instructed him to build and ark, promising to save his family and the animals.

We have a versions of the Noah’s Ark story in various languages; this gives my children a chance compare illustrations, interpretations, and drawing styles.

Bilingual Noah’s Ark Books in Chinese and English

1. 《诺亚方舟》 Noah’s Ark by Peter Spier

A few years ago, this was the first Noah’s Ark book that we got, and everyone in our family loves it.

Since the text is sparse, I don’t think it matters what language to get the book. Peter Spier’s drawings vividly depicts the reality of Noah and his family’s preparations for the flood with thousands of animals.

Due to the minimal words as shown in the above images, the focus is on observation, interpretation, and discussion of images. We ask our children what they think is happening on each page and why God made these decisions.

For younger children, we also discuss more basic information, like which animals he sees and what the weather is like.

For example, when my 3-year-old son flips through the book with his 6-year-old sister, I’ve overheard him share things like “好像现在是晚上 (Hǎoxiàng xiànzài shì wǎnshàng / Seems like it’s nighttime now)”.

Because no text is present to confirm their findings, they discuss why purely through observation. This also helps improve their English and Chinese speaking skills.

• Where to buy
  • Simplified Chinese
    • China Sprout
  • Traditional Chinese
    • Books.com.tw
  • English
    • Amazon

Related: People by Peter Spier – Book Review and 人 Chinese Character Learning

2. 《诺亚方舟》Noah’s Ark by Jerry Pinkney

I recently discovered that Luka Reading Robot can narrate this book in fluent Mandarin Chinese, so I decided to get this to improve our Bible vocabulary.

Compared to Peter Spier’s relatively cleaner and modern illustrations, Jerry Pinkey’s illustrations are more dramatic and remind me of famous ancient paintings.

The downside of our bilingual Noah’s Ark book is the tiny Chinese text – the font is actually smaller than the English words. Due to the busy background, many of the Chinese characters are difficult for my near-sighted eyes to see.

• Where to buy
  • Simplified Chinese
    • China Sprout
  • English
    • Amazon
• Audio narration: Luka Reading Robot

Related: How I Taught My Child 1000+ Chinese Characters as a Non-Fluent Speaker

Other favorite Christian books for kids

• Max Lucado Books for Kids in Chinese
• Chinese Berenstain Bears Books about Faith 贝贝熊生命之光系列丛书
• Chinese Christian Songs: Stream of Praise Music Board Book for Kids

Have you read these Noah’s Ark books with your children or students?

If you read these Noah’s Ark books, please share in the comments below! Please also share other favorite bilingual Christian books that we should check out!

We’d love to learn about your experience in the comments!

On Instagram and Facebook, tag a photo @chalkacademy and @chinesekidlit and use the hashtag #ChalkAcademy so our family can check it out!

Happy reading, friends!