Bless Us All: A Child's Yearbook of Blessings (Classic Board Books) - Hardcover

Rylant, Cynthia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689864507 ISBN 13: 9780689864506

Publisher: Little Simon, 2004

Synopsis

Special moments of the year, such as waking to a snowfall and getting a new puppy, are presented in this inspirational collection of blessings celebrating the diversity of the seasons.

About this title

About the Author:

Cynthia Rylant is the author of more than 100 books for young people, including the beloved Henry and Mudge, Annie and Snowball, Brownie & Pearl, and Mr. Putter & Tabby series. Her novel Missing May received the Newbery Medal. She lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Visit her at CynthiaRylant.com.

From Booklist:

Rylant presents 12 short, rhymed blessings, one for each month of the year. A typical spread opens with the left-hand side displaying the prayer, such as "JANUARY / Bless the houses, / snug and tight / Bless the kitties / day and night, / Bless the trees / and bless the snow, / Bless us all / when cold winds blow." On the right, a childlike painting of a house with a cat in the window is bordered by small squares of colorful print fabrics. The painting also incorporates a small amount of fabric as window curtains. Rylant's tendency to repeat (blessing cats four times in the first six spreads, for instance) makes the verse more palatable to be read month by month, rather than one blessing right after another. Some of the naive paintings studded with fabric, such as the autumn tree scene for October, are quite effective, but others, stylistically bordering on the amateurish, miss the mark. Still, libraries may want to offer this visually bolder book as an antidote to the pastel sweetness of many volumes of children's blessings and prayers. Carolyn Phelan

About this edition

• Publisher: Little Simon
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0689864507
• ISBN 13: 9780689864506
• Binding: Board book
• Number of pages: 28
• Illustrator: Rylant Cynthia