Gigantic Book of Games for Youth Ministry, Volume 1, The

Group, May/Jun 1999 by Caro, Stephanie

What it is: The 300 original games in this book, all written by youth leaders, cover three categories: Bible-learning, team-building, and energy-burning.

The scoop: What better method of testing a game book than to ask the kids themselves? I held a game lab one Sunday evening and let my group help evaluate this resource and a sampling of the games. What did we like best about the book? It's filled with helpful leader tips and variations on the games. Many games require little or no setup and few or no supplies.

Helpful overviews for each game include needed supplies and preparation/playing times. All the Bible-learning games come with follow-up Scripture references and questions, as do many of the team-builders. What didn't they like? Even though there are helpful indexes, more details would have made choosing the games easier.

Cost: $21.99 Available from: Group Publishing, Inc., 800-447-1070.

Reviewer Stephanie Caro has 19 years of youth ministry experience and was assisted by the First United Methodist Youth Fellowship of Dunedin, Florida.