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A unique spin on the biblical story of Christmas, The Christmas Blessing predominately focuses on the animal cast. I’ve actually struggled writing this review. I tend to be hard on books with a specifically Christian theme as I want accuracy, while needing to understand creative liscence as well. So let me walk you 32 page book and let you make up your own mind! 🙂
The Basic Details
32 pages, produced by Source Books, written by Erin Guendelsberger. Illustrated by Gail Yerrill in full colour on completely coloured pages. An ARC version reviewed for Raincoast Books. The Christmas Blessing: A One-of-a-Kind Nativity Story for Kids about the Love That Brings Us Together has been released as a hardcover book. The audience would be children aged 4-7.
The Christmas Blessing, looking deeper
Erin Guendelsberger presents his story in a-a-b-b rhyming verse. This makes the story very easy to read and I found it rolled very easily off my tongue.
Erin’s message is one of faith and inclusion. I struggled with the star being taken out of context. The star did NOT show Mary and Joseph were to go to have their baby. But I appreciate the imagery of the star “rocking her baby” and then doing what God wanted and pointing out the way for “his baby”. I struggled also with the message of inclusion being pushed into the Christmas story. Love is love, but the God’s word and call on our lives shows the depth of what love should be. At the same time, the animals were being a bit ridiculous in their complaints about each other. They needed to be reminded to stop fussing about and do what needed doing!
Love, Love, LOVE the illustrations! Gail Yerrill did an excellent job of bringing the story to life! The details on all of the animals, the beauty of the night sky, the wonder of a baby born. Just excellent.
To be on your shelves?
I dunno. My hubster’s was somewhat less then impressed, my son thought the illustrating was top-notch.
Me, I’d want to change the words as I read through The Christmas Blessing, to be more reflective on the biblical story even from the animals perspective. But I’d ooh and aah over the pictures with a little one at my side. So many talking points just looking at the pictures. Words are just words and are easy enough to change, but pictures are worth so much eh?
So what do you think? Do you think it’s one that you’ll give a look at?
You know, I struggle with rhymes like this because they force so much into the format. I also struggle with the ideas being somewhat out of context. That being said, you hit the nail on the head talking about the illustrations. They are gorgeous. You know, one of my girls favorite Christmas books is about animals in the stable and targeted to ages 3-5. It is more focused on Christ than this one seemed to be but it was also focusing on the animals and the star giving what they had to Christ. So, sometimes, that smaller message about loving and giving is bigger than the freedom taken with the storyline. Still, love the illustrations!
I adore the illustrations, so very well done. 🙂 the message… it feels very “meh”
OH, I really like them! 🙂