Counting, Counting, Counting

On Monday, I featured the newest book by these 2 religious leaders. Today’s book is a creative retelling of 3 jewels of The New Testament. Sometimes called The Lost Parables, this book considers a different emphasis from the concept of loss. Additionally, the 3 stories are beautifully rendered in a modern context. 

Picture Book: Who Counts?                                                                                    100 Sheep, 10 Coins, and 2 Sons

Authors: Amy-Jill Levine & Sandy Eisenberg Sasso

Illustrator: Margaux Meganck

Summary: As in Luke, there are 3 separate stories. The first is of a modern sheep farmer. He counts his sheep often. One day he discovers one sheep is missing. He searches and searches. The sheep is glad to be found and returned to the flock! The farmer is so relieved, he throws a party!

The next story has a woman with 10 prized coins. She enjoys counting them. One day she is shocked to realize that a coin is missing. 

She searches and sweeps. Finally the missing coin is found! At the party she throws to celebrate, she explains "Just one coin matters. Without it, something is missing. Now my coin collection is complete." The Prodigal Son story begins as expected. A youngest son spends his inheritance in a faraway place. When the money is gone, he must get work with a farmer feeding pigs. After he realizes the pigs are eating better than he is, he decides to go home, confess his mistake, and offer to work hard for his father. Despite his shabby appearance, the father happily runs to greet the son. The loving father gives the son new clothes, new shoes, and even a new ring. With great joy, the father invites his neighbors to come celebrate, 

but "when the father counted everyone who had come to the party, he realized that one person was missing." After recognizing his neglect, the father runs out to explain his joy to his older son and urges his son to join them. The older son complains that his devotion hasn't led to a party. The father confesses: "I have two sons - one, two. I paid attention to my younger son, but I discounted my older son. I didn't realize that he felt lost." 

In all of 3 stories, the emphasis is on all being together - a complete set, in the last story - all together as a complete family. 
Hanna’s Comments: My favorite aspect of this book is its focus on completeness. In the 3rd story, the one "who counts" is the older son who is missing from the party. Certainly the idea of loss is here, but completion is primary. I suggest you tie this to God's desires for  shalom. Shalom is more than peace. It's wholeness. As in Monday's book, the Note to Parents and Teachers at the end is very valuable. It explains how these parables have been misinterpreted and their new focus on completeness. You'll also find a great list of questions. 

Original Publisher & Date: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017

Age & Grade Appropriateness: 3 and up, Pre and up

Formats other than Book: None at present

Scripture Connections: The 3 “Lost Parables” of Jesus are found in Luke 15. The Parable of the Lost Sheep is also found at Matthew 1:12-14.

Idea(s) for Application: Read this book in 1 session or 3, depending on your audience’s attention span, in order to explore the meaning behind these stories of Jesus. Emphasize the theme that everyone counts, everyone makes a difference, unless all are present, there is not wholeness. 

Fruit of the Spirit: Love

This is the last of the books highlighting one of the Fruits of the Spirit listed by Paul in Galatians. It’s a great book to end on because love under-girds all the ways God inspires us to add to the kindom (sic). If one of your parents are due a gift soon, consider this story of messy but rewarding parental love. I have a couple of more general books to feature. Then I’ll give you a handy list of all the books in this series with links to their posts.

Picture Book: Love is…

Author: Diane Adams

Illustrator: Claire Keane

Summary: This is a common story of a love found, invested in, freed, and then returned. The verses have a simple structure of declaring what love is while telling of a girl, her unexpected pet, and the difficult decision she makes at year's end. It begins subtly on the title page with a baby duck being distracted from its mother because of a butterfly. 

Then the opportunity for love begins the verses, "Love is… holding something fragile, tiny wings and downy head.” 

The hard work of love is comically portrayed again 

and again in ways your children will enjoy. 

Comfort and companionship is central to this relationship! 

Joy and purpose are throughout. 

As the duckling grows, it's troublesome ways grow also. 

Common human experiences incorporate the little duckling in surprising ways. 

So many of these illustrations will directly relate to raising human children, 

like playing Hide & Seek 

and pushing to new heights and strengths with growing bodies. 

Some situations won't translate to typical childhood messes. 

As months go by, this little mother struggles with the limits of her parenting. Between the poetic lines are confusing questions of freedom versus protection. 

Later in the park, she lets her duckling decide. 

I especially appreciate the verbs in this text: nudging, tugging, coaxing, getting to the edge, hoping, and letting. These capture the active work of good loving

and the heartbreak it inevitably encompasses. 

Absence is felt in the words and the illustrations as the girl longs for her duck.  

The seasons change and hope is revived. 

Here love watches, wonders, waves  

remembers and... 

grows!

Hanna’s Comments: This may be a common story, but it’s a story that children will never tire of experiencing because it is so relatable. They can consider how they have been nurtured and be encouraged to develop their own nurturing skills. Pets are obvious subjects of such skill building, but be sure to broaden your conversation to ways of nurturing other human beings and even groups such as your faith family. This kind of loving loyalty is crucial for the future. Also, the theme of letting go that is central to this story is an important one for children. Spend some time on how hard that is for parents and their children. Connect these milestones to stories in scripture and popular media. Lastly, emphasize the joy that is even present in the required work and inevitable difficulties of nurturing and letting go.

Original Publisher & Date: Chronicle Books, 2017

Age & Grade Appropriateness: 3 and up, Pre and up

Formats other than Book: Tablet

Scripture Connections: In addition to The Fruit of the Spirit verses in Galatians 5:22-23 and stories of biblical parenting such as Jesus' separation from his parents or Hannah's letting go of Samuel… love your neighbor as yourself (Leviticus 19:18); A new commandment I give you that you love one another (John 13:34); The Love Chapter (1 Corinthians 13); Let all you do be done in love. (1 Corinthians 16:14); Above all these, put on love which binds everything together (Colossians 3:14); Above all, keep loving one another earnestly (1 Peter 4:8)

Idea(s) for Application: Read this book to a group of children and talk about how love is the foundation of all sorts of nurturing, risk-taking, longing, and adventure. Tie these to the building of God’s kindom (sic) and a better world for everyone. 

BIG DEAL Anger

Picture Book: Come Home Angus

Author: Patrick Downs

Illustrator: Boris Kulikov

Summary: Kulikov's illustrations are crucial to the power of this story, even on the first page. 

Angus is a young child who wakes up with the kind of anger that is big, huge even. No reason is given for his anger. 

He responds badly to his “slow” dog, his “loud” canary & cat, and his mom who expects and apology.  

Great line here, “In this house, being angry doesn’t let you be rude.” 

After a verbal tug of war, Angus packs a full bag and heads out the door. His mother says, “I’ll miss you.” Angus replies, “No, you won’t.” 

As he walks away, his size diminishes while buildings grow so that eventually he is little, lost, and afraid. 

Angus sits on a bench and realizes he’s forgotten his lunch. 

Just as strangers surround him, his mom brings his lunch (and pets) and asks if he’s ready to come home. 

Is he ever!

Hanna’s Comments: This book reminds me of Sendak’s classic Where the Wild Things Are and 2 PBT books by Molly Bang: When Sophie Gets Angry, Really, Really Angry and her sequel When Sophie’s Feelings Are Really, Really Hurt. See a post about those last 2 [here]. What does this book have to offer ministry more than Bang’s books? First, you have a beautiful maternal image of God, God as provider & comforter and God as one who is expecting more from us than we offer. 

Secondly, you have a perfect visual representation of our human tendency to think we are big deals and shove God away. Daniel Erlander in his brilliant book for adults Manna and Mercy, calls sin “trying to become a BIG DEAL.” See more about this book and the children’s curriculum I’ve written based on it in Other Resources by Hanna, a tab above. It is when Angus realizes he is not such a big deal, that he becomes lost, afraid, and wanting his mom. 

Thirdly, Angus thinks all his “stuff” will comfort him, but it doesn’t. 

Instead, he needs his important relationships with his mom and his pets, all of whom love him unconditionally.

Original Publisher & Date: Orchard Books, 2016

Age & Grade Appropriateness: 3 and up, Pre and up

Formats other than Book: Tablet

Scripture Connections: In Your presence there is fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11); for me it is good to be near God, my refuge (Psalm 73:28); where shall I flee from Your presence (Psalm 139: 7); neither death nor life… shall separate us from the love of God… (Romans 8: 38-39)

Idea(s) for Application: Read this book to children or adults and talk about these human inclinations: our tendency to separate from God although God is always present, our tendency to try to be BIG DEALS, or our tendency to be oriented to our “stuff” rather than our loving relationships. 

For Wind-Wild Tweens & Teens

Picture Book: Wind-Wild Dog

Author: Barbara Joosse

Illustrator: Kate Kiesler 

Summary: This is the story of Ziva, a future sled dog, born with a brown eye and a blue, making potential buyers wary. They believed this would make her half-wild. 

One man does purchase and train her for mushing. 

Told from the point of view of Ziva, the desire to run wild is ever present, particularly when she sees the Man running and hears in the wind the call of a wolf. 

The Man suspects Ziva’s inclinations. At the first opportunity, Ziva does run for freedom.

When she encounters a wolf, it smells wild like the wind, but Ziva also smells on herself the smell of the Man. 

She knows the Man’s smell is her smell now and misses the Man so she returns. 

The Man has tears of relief in his eyes once Ziva returns. He hoped the wind-wild dog he loved so much would stay with him. 

A helpful Author’s Note in the back serves as a glossary of unusual words.

Hanna’s Comments:  Now and then I read a book that connects directly to a Bible story. Do you see the connections between Ziva and the Prodigal Son? Your children will. They are used to finding connections across literature in school. One of the benefits of PBT is that secular books often offer a window into a world in which readers know little or nothing. Few of your children will know the world of dog sledding and particularly how the dogs are trained. 

Children will like this book for that reason. When you add a faith component to this reading experience, the learning becomes more meaningful. Be sure to link the concept of running wild to the scripture as well as to modern contexts. If your children are tweens or older, they are likely already facing temptations involving the “wild” possibilities of adulthood. Learning how to handle their freedom, like Ziva, is an important aspect of faith development. 

Use this opportunity to offer wisdom and direction grounded in their faith. Like the father in the parable and the Man in the picture book, emphasize the freedom God gives us and the availability of God’s mercy no matter what they might do in their futures. Returning is always an option. 

Original Publisher & Date: Henry Holt & Co., 2006

Age & Grade Appropriateness: 4 and up, Pre and up

Formats other than Book: None at present

Scripture Connections: The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32)

Idea(s) for Application: Read this book to a group of children or teens who are studying about Jesus’ parable of the Prodigal Son and God’s ever-present mercy.