God's Paintbrush

Children speak about God in ways that are different from adults. Through fantasy, involvement and imagination, Sandy Sasso and Annette Compton invite children of all faiths and backgrounds to encounter God openly through moments in their own lives. This book provides a gift of images that nurtures and encourages children in making meaning of their world.

Colorful, pretty watercolors fill the pages. Each two-page spread has a narrative followed by questions to make you think about to connect to God. A Jewish Lights book meant for all people interested in spirituality, but the target audience seems to be children and the grownups who read to them. I suspect that there are too many words on each page and too many pages for young children; I have never tried reading this to anyone.

This is subtitled: A Spiiritual Activity Kit for Teachers and Students of All Faiths, All Backgrounds.

Books for children that deal with spirituality are often a dicey proposition. Here Sasso, the second woman to be ordained as a rabbi, undertakes an ambitious project to help readers define for themselves the nature of God and their own connection to God. Using a variety of images--some from the natural world, some from everyday life, all of them well within a child's frame of reference--the author presents a series of simple scenarios (a friend moving away; the ticklish quality of fizz on an ice cream soda) and then poses related questions ("How can you be God's friend?" "What do you think would make God cry or laugh?"). Commendably, Sasso doesn't presume to answer the questions but instead allows readers to ponder and formulate their show more own answers. However, the (somewhat lengthy) text presents an anthropomorphic view of God that may not fit in with some readers' beliefs. Compton's watercolors, though vigorous and multicultural, are somewhat amateurish. Overall, some will find this well-meaning book and its joyous spirit helpful, while others might consider it inappropriate. Ages 4-9.
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