Crossway ESV Pocket Bible, Buffalo Leather, Deep Brown

2 reviews for Crossway ESV Pocket Bible, Buffalo Leather, Deep Brown

1. Rated 5 out of 5

   Jarrod Murdock – September 29, 2022

   After using this Bible for a year and a half, I must say it’s very well suited to its purpose as a pocket Bible. I really appreciate the choices Crossway made in terms of materials and design; for a Bible meant to be carried and stuffed into a pocket, everything works well.

   The cover design is good; it doesn’t overlap the text block, meaning there’s less to get caught on when you put the Bible in your pocket. The thick, leather-like endpapers give some structure, making it easier to put in your pocket.

   The text is actually the same size as in the ESV Compact Bible, but with a smaller footprint and just a little bit of a thicker book. The text appears to be line-matched. For how thin this paper is, I’m satisfied with its readability.

   The greatest thing about this Bible is that it stays open so easily in your hand. This is almost unheard of in pocket or compact Bibles. You don’t have to hold it open (pinky on one page, thumb on the other) like you do with paperback books or most other small bibles. This one springs open almost like a Cambridge Pitt Minion.

   The secret to this is the spine: It’s just the leather cover–no extra material to make it stiff. This allows the book to open fully flat. It balances open in one hand with virtually no effort.

   Many folks that are into quality Bibles like those of Schuyler, Allan, and Cambridge know that there are some times and places that you are nervous about taking your nicer bibles. You can’t just toss a goatskin Clarion or Quentel in your backpack and expect it to not get bent up, for instance. I’ve heard of people stuffing a Pitt Minion in their back pocket, but I’d be hesitant to do that. Art-gilding is beautiful, but delicate, and we go to great lengths to shield our nice Bibles when we leave church in the rain.

   But the ruggedness of this Bible–the cover edges, no gilding–makes it perfectly suited to carry in your pocket without having to worry about “babying” it. If some rain drops get on the page edges, it doesn’t ruin the look. If you want a compact ESV Bible that looks good, but you can use anywhere, anytime, this is it.

2. Rated 2 out of 5

   David – July 13, 2020

   I have to admit to being quite disappointed in the construction of this Bible. The Bible itself is very good, just as described, but the cover, liner, and end pages aren’t done very well at all, IMNSHO. Unusual for a Crossway Bible which are typically top notch.

   First, the cover. Buffalo are very large creatures so I can see no reason for the cover leather to be so small. It’s just *barely* larger than the pages of the Bible. And they must have used a very dull blade to cut the cover; the edges (top, bottom, side, spine, front and back) are quite ragged. Perhaps this is a style thing, trying to make the Bible a bit more rugged looking or it’s just the way buffalo leather is.

   The cover liner is OK, but when pasted to the first of the several card stock end pages, it makes for one page at the front and one at the back that are almost like notepad cardboard, very thick and stiff. Maybe this is intentional, to add stiffness to the Bible? If so, it doesn’t feel good in the hand. And why so many end pages? One, maybe two, OK. But four? Perhaps this is required somehow for proper construction, but given the fact that they’re card stock and seem to be just a sliver larger than the pages of the Bible itself, it isn’t a good look or feel.

   As for its durability, since I just got the Bible I can make no comment on this other than to say typical Crossway Bibles hold up very well, in my experience.

   Other than the issues just described, the Bible is good. The size is what I’ve been looking for, the readability of the font is no problem, the ‘ghosting’ is exactly what one would expect on typically thin Bible pages, and of course, the ESV is my preferred translation.