The Berenstain Bears and the Golden Rule (Berenstain Bears®)
by Michael Berenstain
from Zonderkidz
When Sister Bear receives a locket for her birthday with the Golden Rule inscribed on it, she wonders what the verse means. And although Mama Bear explains it, it isn’t until she befriends a lonely newcomer at school that she understands what the rule looks like in action.
The Berenstain Bears: God Loves You! (Berenstain Bears®)
by Michael Berenstain
from Zonderkidz
Brother and Sister Bear learn an important lesson about God's love.
Old Turtle
by Douglas Wood
from Scholastic Press
When all of creation--trees, stones, ants, the sky, fish—-begins arguing over who or what God is, quiet Old Turtle is the only one who has the wisdom and ability to see beyond herself to capture the essence. The debate escalates until Old Turtle finally speaks: "STOP!" She accepts and incorporates the beliefs of all the creatures: "God is indeed deep," she says to the fish in the sea, "and much higher than high," she tells the mountains. "God is gentle and powerful. Above all things and within all things... God IS." Old Turtle, after silencing the crowds with her understanding, makes a prediction about the appearance of a new "family of beings" in the world. These beings, human beings, do appear, and soon are fighting among themselves over the nature of God. It is only when people start listening to the mountains and winds and stones and stars that they actually begin to hear--and to heal the earth.
A graceful fable, with elegant, dreamlike watercolors by illustrator Cheng-Khee Chee, Douglas Wood's modern-day classic makes a hushed but strong environmental statement, as well as a plea for universal acceptance. (Ages 5 and older) --Emilie Coulter
When it was first published a decade ago, OLD TURTLE was hailed as a beautiful fable about ecology, peace, and the interconnectedness of all beings. Now considered a modern classic, OLD TURTLE continues to inspire people all over the world. Few books can match the understated power of its hopeful message or the evocative beauty of its illustrations. Each book will be packed with a CD featuring the author, Douglas Wood, reading the book, accompanied by original musical compositions. To commemorate the tenth anniversary of this best-selling favorite, a percentage of the book's proceeds will be donated to worldwide peacemaking organizations.
A Pebble for Your Pocket
by Thich Nhat Hanh
from Plum Blossom Books
Through vivid metaphors, original allegories, and colorful stories, young people learn about handling anger, living in the present moment, and "interbeing"—the interconnectedness of all things.
Thich Nhat Hanh offers various practices that children can do on their own or with others that will help them to transform anger and unhappiness and reconnect to the wonders of nature, and the joy of living in the present moment. Beautiful illustrations are featured.
The Next Place
by Warren Hanson
from Waldman House Press
An inspirational journey of light and hope to a place where earthly hurts are left behind.
Angela and the Baby Jesus: (Children's Edition)
by Frank McCourt
from Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
"When my mother, Angela, was six years old, she felt sorry for the Baby Jesus in the Christmas crib...."
Frank McCourt's first Christmas book is by turns tender and heartwarming, and wholly unforgettable. Angela is six years old and worries for the Baby Jesus on the altar of St. Joseph's Church near School House Lane in Limerick, Ireland, where she lives. December nights are damp and cold, and the church is dark. The Baby Jesus' mother doesn't even have a blanket to cover him. The Baby is sure to need Angela's help, even if she is not allowed to step near the altar, especially by herself.
Filled with the character and incident that have made Pulitzer Prize recipient Frank McCourt internationally renowned and beloved, Angela and the Baby Jesus is a timeless story of family--and all of its joy, tradition, love, and incongruity--and a book for the generations to cherish.
Amazon.com Exclusive
Angela and the Baby Jesus, the first Christmas book from beloved author Frank McCourt, is an unprecedented event, with a children's edition published by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing and an adult edition published by Scribner. Set in Ireland, the story is about the childhood of Angela, of Angela's Ashes. Each edition has the same story written by McCourt but is illustrated by a different artist. Raul Colon illustrated the children's edition and Loren Long illustrated the adult edition. Amazon asked both artists to write about their experiences illustrating the same scene from McCourt's story to get an inside look at how they interpreted McCourt's words.
Raul Colon on the Fireside Scene from Angela and the Baby Jesus:
This image for Frank McCourt's Angela and the Baby Jesus picture book came to me just by thinking of a warm fireplace on a cold night. In this particular scene the family sits around the fire to chat after tea. Angela's little brother is giving up the secret that the "Baby Jesus" is in the bed upstairs. Angela shows a bit of worry in her face, since she quietly snuck the "baby" into the house. Surely she'll be in trouble now.
Throughout the story I hardly show any of the adult faces, focusing mainly on the children's world. Hence, Mother's back is turned toward us. I also cut off the little brother's face by having Mother's turn-of-the-century hairdo get in the way (A little thing I learned from the great artist Degas.) It gives the scene intimacy, as if the viewer is there taking a snapshot with his camera. All in all a fun and rewarding book to illustrate. It was an honor to turn McCourt's words into actual pictures. --Raul Colon
Loren Long on the Fireside Scene from Angela and the Baby Jesus:
Usually little Angela would want to be right in the middle of the action as the family sits by the fire and talks. But not this time--she has a secret upstairs.
At this point in the story, I'm giving the reader a seat behind the family in the shadows away from the fire. At the same time we, the readers, know about Angela's secret in the bedroom upstairs and we see her hanging back from the others, sneaking peeks up the staircase. We can see that she has something more important on her mind than her family's chattering.
In my visual interpretation of Angela and the Baby Jesus, I wanted to tap into Frank McCourt's sophisticated blend of gritty realism and subtle humor. For this reason, I specifically chose a limited color palette. I worked with acrylics on canvas and tried to keep the paintings a bit edgy and raw.
Choosing images came naturally when working on this story. I was taken with the balance of reverence, innocence, and humor in FrankÂ’s text and I simply tried to come up with creative ways to portray these elements in a subtle but hopefully profound way. --Loren Long