I used to think spirituality wasn’t a Christian thing. It seemed a bit of a diversion from or dilution of Christian faith. However, when I read Rebecca Nye’s book Childrens’ Spirituality – what it is and why it matters over, I began to realise that spirituality is at the heart of faith. Without it, all … Read more
Title: Mother God Author: Teresa Kim Pecinovsky Illustrator: Khoa Le Published by: Beaming Books Price: Available from Blackwells from £8.26 (March 2023) Good for: The pages are majority illustrations with small sections of text, so great for children aged 3 to 7, but I will be reading this with my children who are 9 and … Read more
Title: How to pray – a guide for young explorers Author: Pete Greig and Gemma Hunt Illustrator: Patrick Laurent Published by: Hodder Price: RRP £10.99 available from Eden for £8.36 Good for: Children, young people and adults age 7+ especially those who like visually interesting books and not big blocks of text Best bit: Brilliant internal design … Read more
I love mini-books! They are so cute and so quick and very satisfying to make. I recently made this rainbow set for a group of 12 children. It only took me about an hour and only used paper, card and staples. I have a lot of mini-books, both ones I’ve bought and ones I’ve made. … Read more
Title: My Easter Egg Hunt Author and illustrator: Cathy Porter Published by: Amazon Price: £4.57 Good for: children aged 3–10 years Best bit: brilliant relatable storytelling working through the meaning of Easter for a child in a Christian family Worst bit: As always, I would have liked more pictures, but even when they were little, … Read more
Title: Make Room: a child’s guide to Lent and Easter Author: Laura Alary Illustrator: Ann Boyajian Published by: Paraclete Press Price: £8.99 (Amazon) Good for: Families with children aged 3–10 years old who want to introduce them to the Easter story focusing on the transforming nature of the story Best bit: The book is written … Read more
Faithful Families for Lent, Easter and Resurrection Title: Faithful Families for Lent, Easter and Resurrection Author: Traci Smith Published by: Chalice Press Price: £9.59 Best for: families looking for simple, spiritual ways to mark Lent and Easter together Best bit: by focusing on spiritual practice, Traci gives us a great range of options to try, while … Read more
Title: How to include autistic children and young people in church – Creating a place of belonging and spiritual development for all Author: Mark Arnold Published by: Grove Youth series Price: £3.95 Good for: anyone involved in church, especially church and group leaders Best bit: Simple, quick to read with immediate take aways Worst bit: … Read more
Title: At home in Lent Written by: Gordon Giles Published by: BRF Price: £8.99 Useful for: young people and adults Best bit: a simple, daily three page read for each day in Lent, each taking a different every-day item as its theme Worst bit: as a big fan of audio books, I’d love an audio version to … Read more
Title: Dave the Donkey Author and Illustrator: Andrew McDonough Published by: Malcolm Down Price: £5.99 Useful for: children age 3-8 Best bit: Fun re-telling of Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem, death and resurrection from the view point of the Palm Sunday donkey! Worst bit: Very fast re-telling, with few details of the Easter story – for … Read more
Title: Who made God? Author: Joanne Gilchrist Illustrator: David Kuiavskii Published by: Sarah Grace Publishing Price: £5.99 Useful for: children age 4-7 with big questions about God Best bit: I like the bright, bold illustrations, the rhyming text, the way we’re introduced to the different characters and the use of child-appropriate similes to describe God, but … Read more
Title: Found – Psalm 23 Author: Sally Lloyd-Jones Illustrator: Jago Published by: Zonder Kids Price: £5.95 at WHSmith £6.99 on Amazon Useful for: people age 2+ Best bit: Simple, beautiful words and stunning images communicating God’s love for you Worst bit: As a board books it’s brilliant for young children, but might make older children feel … Read more