The nature scenes and warm family interactions reinforce and make visible the message of God’s love.
Gentle rhyming verses introduce young children to the enormity and steadfastness of God’s love.
Every spread except the final one starts with the titular question. A rhyming ABA verse goes on to describe the vastness of God’s love: “More than every cloud above. / He watches and protects you / and keeps you in His love.” On this page, readers see an adult with their arm around a child as well as a parent-child cat duo curled up together in slumber and a cow watching out for its calf. Many pages echo the message in the illustrations like this. “If ever you feel small and scared, / He will hold you in His hand” shows a parent holding an infant as the family explores a tidal pool. God’s love is described as greater than all sorts of natural things, including grains of sand, raindrops, ocean waves, trees, and twinkling stars. The illustrations depict families that are diverse in gender, race, skin tone, age, ability, and number of members, and the nature scenes go through all four seasons as well as an entire day, from sunrise to nighttime. Wildlife is anthropomorphized to emphasize tender expressions and loving actions. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
The nature scenes and warm family interactions reinforce and make visible the message of God’s love. (Religious picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-66430-015-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
A tender book to help little ones make sense of the emotions around prayer.
Actor Metz and songwriter Collins join illustrator Fields in their second faith-related title for young children.
Instead of focusing on the language of prayer—what to say or how to say it—this book explores a topic central to the lives of the very young: their feelings around talking to God. Rhymes and near-rhymes in the AABB verses enumerate the simple challenges and triumphs experienced by a series of animals: “Sometimes I’m sad, not sure what to do. / There are days I feel teary, unhappy, or blue. / I fell off a log. I’m embarrassed and hurt. / My coat and paws are all covered in dirt.” An accompanying illustration depicts a sad wolf pup, a definite contrast to its siblings, who are delighting in their play. The highlight of the book is Fields’ animal characters. Whether happy, nervous, or sad, their expressive faces are easy to read, and their feelings will be familiar to young tots. The beaver’s frustration is palpable, and the tears in the scared raccoon’s eyes may just make readers’ own eyes well up. Some of the animals have a God stand-in to help them with their feelings—a friend or family member—but the final spread shows all the individual animals coming together in a couple of group hugs that express where children can find support (and sweetly defy predator–prey relationships).
A tender book to help little ones make sense of the emotions around prayer. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780593691366
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Fans of this popular series will find this a rewarding addition to family Easter celebrations.
Bergren and Bryant attempt to explain Easter to young children in a gentle, nonthreatening manner, with partial success.
When Little Cub questions her father about Easter, Papa Bear explains the religious significance of the holiday in various symbolic ways to his cub. He uses familiar things from their world, such as an egg and a fallen tree, to draw parallels with aspects of the Christian story. Papa Bear discusses his close relationships with Jesus and God, encouraging Little Cub to communicate with God on her own. The theme focuses on the renewal of life and the positive aspects of loving God and Jesus. Easter is presented as a celebration of eternal life, but the story skirts the issue of the crucifixion entirely. Some adults will find this an inadequate or even dishonest approach to the Easter story, but others will appreciate the calm and soothing text as a way to begin to understand a difficult subject. Bryant’s charming watercolor illustrations of the polar bear family, their cozy home and snowy forest scenes add to the overall mellow effect.
Fans of this popular series will find this a rewarding addition to family Easter celebrations. (Religion/picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-307-73072-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: WaterBrook
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2013
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