I finally received my long awaited Personal Size Reference ESV. Long awaited because I have been looking forward to this layout since it was announced late last year.First things first, the inside of this Bible is of more import than the whole package. As much as I like premium leather bindings, of which this is not yet available with, I am more interested in the layout of this Bible. It is a single column paragraph format rather than a double column paragraph or single column verse per line like the Single Column Reference ESV.This edition is the genuine leather, which is very stiff! You need to take care in opening this genuine leather cover. Crossway also offers these in TruTone which is a synthetic leather but much, much softer than this. Sadly, only the genuine leather has a sewn binding. On the one hand you get a stiff cover with a sewn binding and on the other you can get a stiff(glued) binding with a soft cover. For those interested in sending this edition off to be rebound, I would suggest you start with the genuine leather edition only because of the sewn binding.The only thing I liked about my old Life Application Study Bible was the format, it was a single column paragraph layout, which to me makes reading easier. In this format the Bible is laid out much like a novel rather than a reference book. I believe this will help in Bible study and in gaining a better understanding of the context as opposed to just using verses for proof texts.This edition is very similar in size to the Cambridge Pitt Minion and Cambridge Cameo. The text block is 7.25″ x 5″ x 1″, making it slightly taller and wider than the two Cambridge Bibles and just as thick as the Cameo. The interior layout is just what I had hoped it would be. The font is very readable(7.4pt), this Bible doesn’t seem to suffer from the uneven print like my Thinline Cordovan does. The cross references are in the gutter, that is in the spine, rather than on the outside edge. This is a great idea that was carried over from the Single Column Reference. Another detail that was brought over was the three line border that goes around the text itself keeping it separate from the cross references, the title and page number that are on top and the textual variants on the bottom. The title at the top of the page uses a different font from the text and the chapter numbers are a dark gray, the pericope titles are in italics. The book introductions are in gray, which I do not like. Speaking of another thing I didn’t like… the ribbon. Once again Crossway puts in a cheap, thin ribbon and to make matters worse, they only use one.Now to the readability. I already like it far better than the Pitt Minion, and I really like how readable the Pitt Minion is for such a small font. That has more to do with the single column than the larger font of the PSR. Even when compared to the Cameo, which has a larger font than the PSR, the PSR has a cleaner look.Overall, I really like the Personal Size Reference ESV despite some of its shortcomings, the biggest of which is the cover/binding issue. Do you take the stiff binding with the soft cover? or do you take the stiff cover with the loose binding? In my opinion just drop the extra coinf for the genuine leather, even if it is stiff. The cover will eventually soften up but the TruTone will never sew its binding.
For a much better review, check out what my homie, J. Mark Bertrand had to say. Check out pics at my Flickr page.
post script:
do not use an archival pen larger than .03 especially if you are using black
If you would like to see this edition in calfskin, check out this post: Open Letter to Crossway
Nice review and great pics as usual. I’m probably going to hold off on buying one for now. I might change my mind after handling one, but they aren’t in the local bookstores yet.
Thanks, Nathan!
Great review Jesus….your blog has become one of my favorites. :)
Matt Blair
thanks, Matt. very kind words.
“…but the TruTone will never sew its binding…” made me smile. Oh, ye of little faith, art thou sure?
Just got mine in leather yesterday (I don’t have that much faith, myself), and I really like the format. Ironically, my search for just such a format is what led me to this and other sites; also, ironically, the genuine leather I received yesterday would have been entirely satisfying to me until I found these sites; now I want calfskin, or goatskin.
I still would like a larger font, while keeping as close to possible to this book-size. Overall, though, I am very happy with my purchase, and hope to be able to continue to read this size font for several more years. If Crossway doesn’t find it marketable to produce this edition in premium leather, perhaps they could consider a sewn TruTone? Guess not, they wouldn’t be able to charge for it now, would they? Unless they did it in a large print edition?
Thanks for the great pictures and reviews. Also enjoy your jazz section.
If the PSR ESV with the TruTone cover had a sewn binding I would have bought that one instead, maybe two. One to keep and read and keep in my car or my backpack and the other to be sent away for a skin transplant.
Even with the stiff genuine leather… which is softening up, I am really enjoying reading from this edition. If they had used a larger font, 8 or 8.5 and kept the same layout and dimensions it may have been even better. Obviously it would have been a little thicker. Even though I have my ‘druthers about it, I am very happy with it.
I am glad you like the pictures as well as the jazz!
I received a Tru-Tone this past week, primarily to see if I liked the page layout. Nice enough that I have now ordered a genuine leather, and will probably send it off to be rebound in some decent goatskin.
You are Mark have certainly been responsible for some significant purchases on my part this past year!
Thank you for the honest review, and EXCELLENT photos. Would you have the ISBN for this Bible? This is exactly what I have been searching for. (Yes, 8 Bibles is never enough!)
Dave
9781581346794
or
1581346794
Coming back to say thank you for the code. Mine just arrived through Amazon. It’s perfect in so many ways.
You’re welcome.
[…] (PSR) Bible. After seeing that it had some features I like and some favorable reviews here and there, I went ahead and ordered one from the Westminster Bookstore. It arrived […]
Say, is it just me, or are those signatures in my navy/khaki trutone PSR… and when I open up the crease, are those stitches I see down there?
Anyone? I compared it to my daughters gen. leather PSR, and they look very similar from the end, and with the stitches in the crease, (I counted 12 in the leather, and 11 in the trutone, so maybe I am cracked.)
Dude,
Great blog btw, keep it up!
As far as I know, only the GL version has a sewn binding but that may have changed.
Thanks for coming by, mashmouth!
mashmouth,
No, it isn’t just you. Back in May, the ESV Blog specified stated that several upcoming editions (including the new TruTone PSRs) would have sewn bindings:
http://www.esv.org/blog/2008/05/summer.2008.esvs
So, unless someone simply must have black, it’s no longer necessary to choose between a glued binding with a flexible cover, and a sewn binding with a cover that “pulls a muscle.” ;-)
(NB: also replied to your similar post at Mark’s blog)
Thanks for the review. I am leaning heavily on going to the one column pages. Thanks!
Jesus,
Again, thanks for your insightful review. It caused me to take the plunge and buy this Bible. ;)
I just purchased my new ESV Personal Size Reference Bible TruTone,Forest/Tan, Trail Design last night (10-25-08).
Your review mentioned that the soft cover PSRB’s are glued. I looked on the binding and it looked like it might have been sewn, however that wasn’t really what made me think this. What makes me think that it was sewn or have at least a “hybrid” glue bindingis the fact that there are threads every 64 pages following page 17 (Genesis 19 & 20).
Maybe I’m just wishful thinking, but I think this ESV Personal Size Reference Bible just might be at least a mixture of both sewn and glued. Let me know what you think about this. Keep posting such fantastic reviews!
Thanks,
– Erik Kowalker
Jesus,
Sorry for the third consecutive comment but…
I just checked the ESV Blog and two of the TruTone Personal Size Reference Bibles are in fact, SEWN. Here it the link:
http://www.esv.org/blog/2008/05/summer.2008.esvs
Yes, yes, and yes!!!!!!!!! :-)
It feels so good to know that in the future I can put cowhide, calfskin or the granddaddy of them all, highland goatskin on my Bible because of it being sewn and NOT glued.
The newer versions of the PSR edition are all sewn. I’m not sure if they plan to eventually make them all sewn, or if it is based solely on the ISBN. It’s a great edition though I still haven’t taken the plunge myself.
Jefe, jew gots me jonesing for an ESV. Any ideas where i can get a good deal on a ESV with wide margins so i can smear it with all kinds of notes with my brand new copper archival pen?