I’m a bit of a fan of Patricia Weerakoon and her resources for families and children. She tackles the tricky subjects with gentle honesty and a Christian faith-based perspective. You & Me by the Book is no different. It’s a large form picture book to designed help young children understand, as the text says, ‘God’s good plan for girls and boys’. The illustrations are done by Lisa Flanagan, who also illustrated Weekakoon’s excellent Birds and Bees By the Book series (a series I was privileged to provide editorial support for). The book is supported by an extensive Pointers for Parents and Caregivers section at the end, and this encourages discussion and openness between children and their trusted adults.
0 Comments
The Cartographer’s Presence is illustrator Stephen Reed’s authorial debut and I was excited to get a look, and a read, of his new book. As an illustrator, I’ve been following Reed’s work for a while. He’s collaborated with other writers on several book projects over the years including two collaborations with author and storyteller Naomi Reed: (The Zookeeper 2016 and The Conductor 2019) and one with Nicholas R. Lindeback. On This Mountains (Lindeback 2019) is a powerful picture book about the gospel reaching unreached people groups and Stephen’s work is instrumental in communicating the themes contained. This new book, The Cartographer’s Presence, builds on Reed’s gentle and expressive style. The difference here is that for this book, Reed also contributes as author.
Raising Tech-healthy humans was a well deserving shortlisted book in this year’s Australian Christian Book of the Year. Written by productivity consultant Daniel Sih, this book encourages families to pre-empt the screen/tech balance before things get out of hand. It’s not specifically Christian in content (so there’s no Bible references or justifications) but that’s a strength not a flaw because we all know it’s not just Christian families who are struggling with how to set boundaries with their children and devices.
One of the main recommendation points for this book is the extremely practical and honest approach it takes. The Faithful Spy is an illustrated biography of Dietrich Bonhopeffer for young readers. It is presented in graphic novel format with the illustrations and design work limited to a palate of aqua and red ink. I found this a compelling account of Bonhoeffer’s life and the events of history leading up to, and including, the second world war.
Now, here’s a lovely book about grace for kids (and their adults)!
His Grace is Enough is a delightful picture book written by Melissa Kruger and illustrated by Isobel Lundie. The story, if it can be called that for it’s probably more like a spoken lesson, is an invitation for children to understand the reassurance and hope of God’s grace. The rhyming text is written from the perspective of a parent or loved one reaching out to a child who may have made a mistake or done something they are ashamed of: ‘You’re hiding from me and look so upset. Did you do something wrong that you now regret?’ Over the following pages, various examples of doing the wrong thing, and natural responses to them, are discussed. |
The Penny DropsIn high school I used to write what I'd call 'thinks' - little bits of writing about whatever topic or issue I was mulling over at the time. I still write these little pieces. Categories
All
Sign upReceive The Penny Drops direct to your inbox. Sign up via the form on the contact page.
(Because I couldn't figure out how to add that form here.) |