Prayer For A Child Board Book (Classic Board Books)

Rating:
Summary: Just beautiful!
Review: I am always on the lookout for classic children's books, especially re-releases, and especially Caldecott honor or medal books. I was surprised to find this recently in an airport bookstore, as I had not seen it anywhere else! The book is just beautiful. I had been on the lookout for a children's book that introduces the concept of prayer in a sweet way, without being too scary or too overtly religious or too over-the-top or too boring. You'd be surprised how little is out there. This old book fit the bill. The illustrations are sweet, simple, and gorgeous, and the words are snug, cozy, warm and comforting. I loved everything about it, and bought it immediately. What a treasure; so glad for the re-issue!

Rating:
Summary: A review calculated to raise ire. Lovely lovely ire.
Review: I think it all comes down to what you really want out of your Caldecott Medal winning picture books. If you want smart, tightly written, even (dare I say?) amusing stories then you'd probably migrate towards "My Friend Rabbit" or even "Mei Li". If, on the other hand, you're looking for a book that is basically a novelization of those treacly "Precious Moments" figurines, "Prayer For a Child" is for you. Let me say right here and now that I have absolutely no problem with a well-written Christian children's picture book. But to my mind, even the most hastily slapped together "Veggie Tales" novelization has more intrinsic value than this 1942 award winner. And I think we can safely ascribe the blame to one person and one person alone. Illustrator Elizabeth Orton Jones.

In this story, we read a poem intended for every red-blooded Christian American child. The prayer asks for blessings upon their toys, their bed, and their friends. It gives honor to the child's father and mother and is pretty much your standard bedtime fare. So that's fine. Then we get into the pictures. The book itself was written in 1942, a time when children's books were sometimes downright gritty. "Prayer For a Child" is not gritty. "Prayer For a Child" is downright cutesy-pie. Our heroine is an adorable little blonde child dressed in footie pajamas (complete with a flap in the back). She has adorable little white friends and lives in an adorable little room with adorable little angel dolls. That's pretty much all you can say about her. Illustrator Jones didn't pepper this book with much in the way of surprises. She did, to her credit, include a section about blessing children everywhere in which the accompanying illustration shows adorable children from around the globe. But the pictures themselves are poorly done. The shot of the girl as she attempts to lie on her bed is downright bizarre in terms of perspective. Half her body lies happily on the bed while her lower half seems to be standing upright, mid-step. Yet the bed fills the entire frame. This is just one of a myriad of problems in this story.

If you want a good Christian bed-time book to lull your child to sleep with, pick one of the one's currently on the market today. Christain lit. has probably produced thousands of books that make for worthier reading than the sugar-coated "Prayer For a Child". It does not look good, it does not read particularly well. I do not recommend it. Not a jot.



Rating:
Summary: Prayer For A Child
Review: Jamie Thackston; Clemson University; Review of Prayer For A Child; What exactly is a prayer in the eyes of a child? Field describes a prayer through the eyes of a little girl, but this prayer is simple enough to describe a prayer that can be for children of both genders. In Prayer for a Child, Field describes the child's prayer through words as Jones describes the prayer through pictures. Field and Jones use color to illustrate the purity and innocence of the child. The prayer in the picture book is about a girl who wants God to protect her and her surroundings. The words appear in the middle of each page. The white space symbolizes the purity of the child and God surrounding the child and watching over her and the things she prays for. The font is simple and peaceful. An angel surrounds the first word on each page. The font for this first letter is yellow symbolizing innocence. Perhaps this is the guardian angel that God has sent to protect the child. Jones uses pastel colors in her pictures to show the simplicity and innocence of the child. When the little girl is blessing the milk and bread, she appears peaceful. Jones uses yellow and white to represent the simplicity of the prayer and the blessings she has asked. The white milk and bread represent the child's purity. Next, she asks God to bless her awaiting bed. Above her bed, Jones has illustrated a picture of the child, who appears happy and content. The picture, bed sheets, and pajamas are also white. On the mantle below the picture, angels watch over the child. The pastel colors illustrate the simplicity of the book. The following page illustrates the child's actual prayer. She is in a kneeling religious position on her bed staring into the night. Twinkling stars surround the darkness of the night. The darkness represents danger that the child never faces. But Jones has stars shining through the night to protect the young girl. She blesses the lamplight and the fire because she is grateful that God has given her a chance to be warm in the winter. The child wears white winter apparel, indicating that God has wrapped her up in his security so that she will be safe. Also, on this page appears another white picture and white curtains. In the next few pictures of her parents and friends, the child's face shows her thankfulness to be around loving people who care for her. The white face illustrates the child looking out into the world through innocent eyes. Her last request is to let her sleep, wake, and be healthy. In this picture, the colors once again reflect the religious purity of the child. Field's prayer illustrates a child's purity and innocence. A simple prayer can be very powerful in the eyes of all children. Field and Jones used a very dynamic technique to focus visually on a prayer seen through the eyes of a child.

Rating:
Summary: Prayer For A Child
Review: Jamie Thackston; Clemson University; Review of Prayer For A Child; What exactly is a prayer in the eyes of a child? Field describes a prayer through the eyes of a little girl, but this prayer is simple enough to describe a prayer that can be for children of both genders. In Prayer for a Child, Field describes the child's prayer through words as Jones describes the prayer through pictures. Field and Jones use color to illustrate the purity and innocence of the child. The prayer in the picture book is about a girl who wants God to protect her and her surroundings. The words appear in the middle of each page. The white space symbolizes the purity of the child and God surrounding the child and watching over her and the things she prays for. The font is simple and peaceful. An angel surrounds the first word on each page. The font for this first letter is yellow symbolizing innocence. Perhaps this is the guardian angel that God has sent to protect the child. Jones uses pastel colors in her pictures to show the simplicity and innocence of the child. When the little girl is blessing the milk and bread, she appears peaceful. Jones uses yellow and white to represent the simplicity of the prayer and the blessings she has asked. The white milk and bread represent the child's purity. Next, she asks God to bless her awaiting bed. Above her bed, Jones has illustrated a picture of the child, who appears happy and content. The picture, bed sheets, and pajamas are also white. On the mantle below the picture, angels watch over the child. The pastel colors illustrate the simplicity of the book. The following page illustrates the child's actual prayer. She is in a kneeling religious position on her bed staring into the night. Twinkling stars surround the darkness of the night. The darkness represents danger that the child never faces. But Jones has stars shining through the night to protect the young girl. She blesses the lamplight and the fire because she is grateful that God has given her a chance to be warm in the winter. The child wears white winter apparel, indicating that God has wrapped her up in his security so that she will be safe. Also, on this page appears another white picture and white curtains. In the next few pictures of her parents and friends, the child's face shows her thankfulness to be around loving people who care for her. The white face illustrates the child looking out into the world through innocent eyes. Her last request is to let her sleep, wake, and be healthy. In this picture, the colors once again reflect the religious purity of the child. Field's prayer illustrates a child's purity and innocence. A simple prayer can be very powerful in the eyes of all children. Field and Jones used a very dynamic technique to focus visually on a prayer seen through the eyes of a child.

Rating:
Summary: Sentimental, Old-Fashioned, Sweet
Review: My 2-yr.-old daughter and I found this book at the library. She loved it right away and asked me to read it to her over and over. So, of course, I had to buy her her very own copy. She still asks me to read it over and over. We both love it each time through. Like an earlier reviewer, I also disagree with the Horn Review. This book is not out-dated at all and it is filled with sweet sentiment. Any small child would adore this book.

Rating:
Summary: A bedtime must-read for us
Review: My daughter got this book for Christmas when she was just two months old. To my dismay, it would be several months before she would be content to sit in my lap and listen to me read books, but now that we do that every night (beginning at about 14 months old), "Prayer for a Child" is one of our very favorites. It is one of about four that we MUST read each night.

I, like other reviewers, disagree with Horn Book's evaluation of the illustrations being "dated." I also find them sweet and simple and beautiful.

Our paperback copy is coming apart so it's time to replace it with a hardback.

I love that this covers all the bases of prayer that are relevant to children - toys, home, family, food, friends, all the people in the world. (not necessarily in that order)

Reading this book to my daughter will be a treasured memory for a lifetime.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Bedtime Story/Prayer
Review: Such a sweet little prayer for bedtime. My daughter and I have read this almost every night since she was a year old [she's now 2.5] and now we're reading it to our 9 month old.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful bedtime book!
Review: This is a favorite in our house at bedtime. Our girls (5, 3 & 2) love to look at and talk about the adorable pictures. They love to read along with me also. We are purchasing our second copy because the baby tore up the last couple of pages not too long ago. We can't live without the complete copy! A great gift idea also.

Rating:
Summary: A great Classic!
Review: When my oldest child was born (he is now 22) a very good friend of my mother's sent him this book. When he was old enough for me to read to him, I read this book every night. After my daughter was born (19 years ago) I read it to her, also. Eventually, I had to read the book seperately to them, because they wanted their special time with me, and they each had special parts of the book that was their favorite.

My friend's daughter recently had a baby girl, and when I was pondering what to send, my daughter suggested this book, because it was so special to her. I came to Amazon to see if it was still in print, and thankfully it is! This book is very special for many reasons. It is a thorough, but simple prayer that covers everything a child may have been concerned about throughout the day. The illustrations are good, and it is these illustrations that my children remember and cherish so well after all these years. I got out the worn out book, with torn pages, and relived the special bedtime readings that I had with my children. I highly recommend this book -- it was special for me, and my children just as "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep" was special when I was young.