Title: The Christmas Mystery Written by: Jostein Gaarder (author of Sophie’s World) Published by: Orion Children’s Books Useful for: parents of children aged 7–11 years old Best bit: The story is clever and beautiful, mysterious and fascinating, a treat for adults and children alike, with 24 chapters exploring the birth of Jesus, making it perfect … Read more
Wrap up 24 Christmas-y books then unwrap and read one a day during Advent. All you need to do is collect* and wrap up 24 Christmas books and number them 1—24. Open one a day and share together. I found seven Christmas books for £5.80 in three of my local charity/ secondhand book shops, so … 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: Breathe – child’s guide to Ascension, Pentecost and the growing time Author: Laura Alary Illustrator: Cathrin Peterslund Published by: Paraclete Price: £14.82 Good for: Families with children aged 4–11 years wanting to explain and connect with the stories of Ascension (Jesus returning to heaven) and Pentecost (the Holy Spirit comes to Jesus’ friends) in a simple … Read more
Title: Comfort in uncertain times Author: Rachel Turner Cover illustrator: Rebecca J Hall Published by: BRF Price: RRP £8.99 Kindle edition also available Good for: parents of children age 3-12 years Best bit: I love Rachel’s re-tellings of these 15 Bible stories – you can hear her voice as you read them Worst bit: Because of … 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: 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
Updated February 2022 Easter is a harder story to tell than the Christmas story, but such a vital one, as it is central to our faith. There’s so much detail, so many layers of meaning and relevance, it can be hard to know what to leave in and what to leave out. For under 5s, … 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
Title: Corrie ten Boom – the courageous woman and the secret room From the Do Great Things for God series Author: Laura Caputo-Wickham Illustrator: Isabel Munoz Price: RRP £6.99 but available for £5.94 from The Good Book Company Good for: children age 3-7 years old Best bit: a short, simple version of Corrie’s story, a good … Read more
Title: A smashing day – Jack and Bea’s survival guide to church Author: Emma Browne and David Painting Illustrator: Diane Notman Available on Amazon Price: RRP £4.99 Good for: Anyone who’s been to Sunday School and it wasn’t all that great. Also, people who like funny books. Best bit: Humour and honesty of the voice … Read more