Picture Books
The Buck Stops Here
The Children's Book of America
The Children's Book of Faith
The Children's Book of Heroes
The Children's Book of Virtues
The Donkey and the Golden Light
As he made his way into the city, Bethlehem thought of the donkeys seeking comfort in one another, the woodcutters struggling to make a living, the village children looking for fun, the farmer helping him find strength, the peasants hoping for a bountiful future, the merchants pursuing riches, the vagabonds entertaining the villagers, the students seeking knowledge, and his family searching for safety...The repetition can get bit tedious, not only for me but even for my almost 3 year old; mostly because there are so many items in the list by the end. At the same time, it works quite well as a subtle reminder of the universality of salvation. Bethlehem later reenters the Gospel narrative when he carries Christ into Jerusalem, thinking as he does so that there is something familiar and special about this man. He stands outside in the street during the Last Supper, unaware of the momentous event happening above him. The crucifixion is not really dealt with directly in the story. The donkey is only aware of an earthquake and a great disturbance as angels challenge the forces of evil in a painting inspired by Brugel's "The Fall of the Rebel Angels". A small circle with three crosses hangs in the background almost lost in the tumult and confusion. I think it rather works, though. I like the oblique approach that allows the adult reader to mediate for the child the details of Christ's passion and death since the crucifixion itself can be rather strong material for very young children. The book ends as Bethlehem meets the resurrected Jesus in the garden and recognizes him and finally enters into his rest and peace:
The donkey's sadness, pain, and weariness left him. With joy, Bethlehem went to Him and His promise of peace, goodwill, and a new beginning for all.I really appreciated the fine art aspects of the book. The detail-rich paintings are fascinating to our toddler, who loves to point at and ask questions about various figures in the scenes. Though I'm not sure she understands the more hidden meanings just now, as she grows she will be able to appreciate other layers. Older children will be able to understand more about the Biblical themes, to hunt for the scenes from the life of Jesus, and to connect their reading of this book with a study of Brugel's paintings. Although this book is aimed at 4-8 year-olds, it will appeal to all ages simply because of the beauty of the art and the simplicity of the story.
The Easter Story
"Take and eat this," said Jesus, holding the bread. "It is my body." And the donkey watched as Jesus lifted up a cup of wine. "Take and drink this,"Jesus said. "It is my blood."The bloody details of the passion are gently minimized so this book is easily read to even the youngest toddlers. For example, there are no details about the scourging just the mockery of the soldiers:
So the soldiers took Jesus away. They put a crown of thorns on his head and made fun of him. 'Hail the King of the Jews!' they said. They gave him a huge cross of wood and forced him to carry it.A this point the donkey wishes he could help Jesus carry the cross and Simon of Cyrene does help Jesus. I like the way the donkey becomes a stand-in for the child and how this aside opens up a space to discuss with the child how we can help Jesus carry his cross. And the crucifixion and death are all covered in a simple statement: "They crucified him between two thieves." The narrative moves directly from that to Joseph requesting the body from Pilate. This allows the adult reader to help a sensitive child navigate the more difficult aspects of the passion narrative. The donkey witnesses the resurrection and the ascension and then returns home:
And the donkey stayed there the rest of his life, remembering the kind and good man he had carried on his back to Jerusalem.I'm not thrilled with reducing Jesus to a "kind and good man" in the final sentence. There are plenty of stories and pious legends about animals recognizing the divinity of Christ and I'd have preferred the story take that tack. But it isn't a terrible distortion of Christ. At least the book covers all the essentials of the story. This is a good introduction to Easter and works well with my three-year old's level of understanding and her attention span. It will appeal to older children as well.
The Easter Swallows
The Easter Swallows, by Vicki Howie, is a lovely book that tells the story of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection from the point of view of two swallows, Long-tail and Short-tail. Though it gets right to the point:
"What are they going to do to Jesus?" she whispered.
"I'm afraid they are going to kill Him," said Long-tail.
That dreadful Friday, the soldiers put Jesus on a cross between two other crosses. They left Him there to die.
it was still gentle enough (and of course includes the joy of the Resurrection) for Ramona. I loved the soft, watercolor illustrations by Paola Bertolini Grudina.
At the end of the story, I was ready to hunt down more books by this illustrator, and Ramona happily proclaimed, "He is Rosen!"
I recently received a couple of new books from Pauline Books and Media and Ramona was taken with both of them. The books are this one, The Easter Swallows, and Jesus Feeds Everybody! by Young-Jin Choi and Jung-Cho Kim.
The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau
Like many parents our age, I grew up with Jacques Cousteau, the Frenchman who brought the life below the water level to everyone's homes via TV and films. Here is a colorful, friendly picture book about his life and accomplishments. Curious episodes of his life and his conservation efforts are explained in simple language. Also, beautiful, direct quotes from him are found throughout the colorful book, such as:
If we were logical, the future would be bleak indeed. But we are more than logical. We are human beings, and we faith, and we have hope.
The art is reminiscent of illustrations from the 60s and very pleasant. We read this aloud and some of the facts of his life listed on the last page. We also found plenty on You Tube including longer films of his adventures on his ship, the Calypso.
Together with another picture book about Jacques Cousteau entitled Manfish by Jennifer Berne, this book can bring alive the life of a great man and his work to any young student .
Note: An interesting piece in the NYT about these books on the "red-capped" ocean explorer is worth reading!