Link: LATEST PBT WEBINAR

Click on the link above to see me presenting the benefits of PBT with seminary students and others at Knox College, a Canadian institution of higher education. This 1-hour webinar was hosted by picture book author Laura Alary. Additionally, because it was recorded in October, I briefly offer some book  recommendations for the fall & winter holidays as well as many other book recommendations. Here you'll find the best of what I have learned these 10 years of PBT!

To see more at PBT about Alary's books, simply type "Alary" into the PBT search box in the upper right IF you are in the "web version. Go to her website to see the full array of her excellent books, both secular & sacred, picture book & resource book. 

If on a phone, convert to "web version" (see bottom of phone screen) to get the full benefit of PBT. 

800 PBT POSTS!

I’m celebrating my feat of writing 800 PBT posts by taking a little time off from PBT and discerning its direction. I've earned it since there are about 900 picture books here that are connected to scriptures. 

I’d love to hear from you and how you use PBT! Got any wishes or preferences? Tell me in a comment or email.

If you’re wanting a book to read for Epiphany, simply go to the search box in the upper right corner here. Type “Epiphany” (without the quotation marks) and you’ll access 7 posts that mention the word epiphany. If you’re a Barbara Brown Taylor fan, hopefully you know her beautiful book! You’ll find it in the middle of one of those posts.

For any quick book that might easily engage an audience, I suggest you access 2 of the best PBT series by typing in the key words in red below: (Remember, if on a phone, you have to get on the web version to see the search box.)

“God Book” – These are books about the nature of God. Some use the word "God" and some do not. There are 94 of them here!

“Grab & Go” – These are books that require very little prep; their sacred potential is rich and obvious! I have 20 books in this series, but there are many more here at PBT. Simply grab, read to yourself to remember the book’s potential, go read to your audience, and then offer guiding questions that elicit the holy nature of the book. 

Btw, the PBT feature book in the previous post is an example of both a God Book and a Grab & Go. 

Global Hymns of Praise

Picture Book: A World of Praise

Author: Deborah Lock

Illustrator: Helen Cann

Summary: This book begins and ends with psalms! Between those pages, experience simple poetic verses integrated with beautiful scenes of diverse children enjoying the glories of God’s creation all over the world! You’ll see mountains & flatlands, cityscapes & rural spaces, contemplative children & dancing animals. Quiet praise alternates with glorious joyful noises.

Hanna’s Comments: For a children's lesson, have a globe handy and before reading, invite them to ask you where the scenes are. You’ll find a diagram in the back that identifies each of the 16 countries/regions, but you’ll need to do a bit of prep to locate all those countries on the globe. Consider placing sticky notes on the globe to make this process easier for you or for your children to do the searching. This will encourage your children’s curiosity about their world (God's world) and build their globe skills, an added benefit. Too old school for you? Add an internet component with a tablet or laptop. Repeatedly emphasize God is everywhere and the source of all!

There are not a lot of these books on the market so check with your local library system. If your library doesn’t have the book, ask if they will order it.

Original Publisher: Eerdmans, 2020

Age Appropriateness: 4 and up

Formats other than Book: None at present

Scripture Connections: You’ll find in these pages the following scriptures, but any verses about the glory, gifts, and/or beauty of nature will connect here:

Psalm 24:1-2 is on the 1^st page. 

These are on the last pages:

Psalm 67:6

Psalm 113:3

Psalm 148:7-12

PBT Applications: Amidst a recording of quiet nature sounds, invite children to lie on the floor, close their eyes, and imagine portions of this book that you choose to read aloud slowly. Adapt the length of the reading so that listeners, no matter their age or attention span, can attend well and imagine fully.

For very young children, I would open this book to some favorite double page spreads and ask the children to tell you what they like and who made it. Talk about sensory experiences, especially sights/colors, textures, and sounds. Say together simple sentences, like Thank you God for birdsong! OR Thank you for making the stars so beautiful, God!