Make the Bible
Come Alive
with Maralee Allen
Children's Christian Author creating faithful, fun, and imaginative Bible Stories
A Little About Me
The Real
Story
I’m Maralee Allen—a teacher, mom, and lifelong storyteller who believes Bible stories should be both biblically accurate and genuinely fun.
Raised by two determined educators who refused to let dyslexia dampen my love of learning, I grew up discovering that God’s truth is best explored with curiosity, creativity, and the occasional laugh.
​I earned my B.Ed. and M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction before spending years teaching in Christian schools, where I quickly became known for making Bible class the highlight of the day. I once told my students to ask me two kinds of questions: the ones we can find answers to, and the ones we can only imagine.
They loved both.
I was very blessed to have been born into a two-parent, Christian home. I had a Dad who would happily haul a hundred-pound piece of driftwood up from the beach because I wanted to use it as a chair. I had a Mom who would happily let me play in the bread dough and build forts under the table.
By the time I was in grade three, I had decided that I wanted to be a heart surgeon. I’m not sure why. My parents did nothing to dissuade me. In fact, they arranged for me to spend a day at a vet clinic to watch animal surgeries. They let me dissect a dead mouse outside the back door, and they helped me memorize all the scientific names of the bones in the human skeleton for my grade four science project.
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You may not think that’s particularly outstanding except for the fact that I was severely dyslexic. I couldn’t read. I couldn’t remember my spelling lists even after practicing the words every day. Multiplication tables never stuck, even with hours of flash cards. How could they let such a kid, who was failing in the world of school, dream of such a career?
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They let me dream because they were both extremely determined teachers. This was in the olden days (late 1970’s) when dyslexia wasn’t much of a “thing,” but they made sure I wasn’t simply labelled. Instead, they dove deep, looking for a remedy, and found a system that promised to help with perceptual problems. The founder of the program lived over 2,000 miles away, but that did not deter them. My Dad arranged for him to come and do a workshop at our school, and my parents learned his program, bought his materials and continued my “treatment” for years. When I stubbornly announced to my mom that I would never read for fun, she calmly replied, “That’s OK, so long as you can read.”
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They gave me the gift of literacy, and even though I did not become a heart surgeon, becoming a teacher has been even more exciting!
I received my B.Ed. degree from Canadian University College (now Burman University) and began teaching in Penticton, BC in 1994. During summer holidays, I worked towards my M.A. (in Curriculum and Instruction), which I received in 2000.
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My teaching career began in junior high classrooms (within the Christian school system), and when principals and superintendents realized I could handle that age group, they never wanted to let me out! It was in these first years that I gained a passion for making Bible class fun. I rejected the textbooks and had kids reading the Bible, asking questions and doing projects. I would challenge them to ask questions that we could find out the answers to, but to also ask questions that were impossible to answer. We could imagine the possibilities with the realization that God has mysteries and surprises!
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When I made it into the world of elementary teaching, I continued with my desire to make Bible class the best class of the day! Singing, acting, building, art… I loved to pour my creative energies into every Bible unit and soon developed an integrated curriculum.
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Nevertheless, a thought began nagging at the back of my brain. Why weren’t the bookshelves filled with fun, Christian books? Why didn’t Christian books compete with the likes of “Green Eggs and Ham” or “The Paper Bag Princess?”
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As the years rolled along my husband and I added a little girl to our lives (2008), and the world of Christian books became much more important! I began discovering bigger problems with inaccurate Bible stories and lack of bedtime story options. However, our girl inspired some of my best writing including, “Will Koda be in Heaven?” and “First He Laughs, Then He Lies - Answers to a Christian Kid’s Questions About Satan.”
She also strengthened my motivation to be involved in my church’s Children’s Ministry department. I had started teaching kids’ classes in church when I was thirteen years old, but now I was fully invested!
Since my daughter began her Christian journey, I have revised outdated church programming materials, written multi-age church programming materials and organized teams of volunteers with the goals of making “church day” the best day and Bible learning the most fun!
Published Books
So God Spoke Up
So God Spoke Up is a Dr. Seuss–style retelling of the creation story, based on Genesis 1 and 2 accounts.
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When I was teaching, it amazed me how much kids loved Dr. Seuss stories, and how easily these stories stick in a person’s head (long into adulthood). Who can’t quote a bit of “Green Eggs and Ham?”
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My goal became to try to make the Genesis creation account stick with a child as easily and enjoyably as “Green Eggs and Ham.”
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Currently being revised.
“I have had the privilege of reading ‘So God Spoke Up.’ It is a book that every parent who believes in creation should use to teach their children. It is well written, provides childlike insights into the handiwork of God, and is rooted in the Bible.”
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– Elder Daniel R. Jackson, President of the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists
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“I was very pleased to have the opportunity to read, “So God Spoke Up” to a group of 25 grade one students. During the reading, it was interesting that there was a physical and verbal response from the students to the pictures of God and to the Day 7 “playdate.” They gasped, laughed aloud, and pointed. Then, quieted themselves to hear the rest of the text. It was if they realized that God had a relationship (an enjoyable relationship) with Adam and Eve. I too felt enlightened and refreshed after reading Day 7. Wow. Thank you Father God for your great love towards your children.”
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– Naomi Brecht, grade 1 teacher at Saskatoon Christian School
Published Books
The Big Ark
Alphabet Book
This book was done by Emily Allen (my daughter) when she was 7 years old. It takes its readers on an imaginative, rhyming trip through the alphabet!
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Her inspiration to write it came from her involvement in teaching the Beginner Class at church, and from reading a very poorly written and illustrated Noah’s ark alphabet book. She knew she could write a much better book… and she did!
