Our Father

Our Father couples The Lord's Prayer with explanations written by Sabrina Bus. Each phrase from Jesus' prayer is given one to two sentences of contemporary paraphrase or elaboration.

For example, the first page reads "Our Father" at the top and, at the bottom, reads "God, we can talk to you like a father. You think that everything we tell you is important."

The illustrations by Xavier Deneux feature bold, primary colors and multi-ethnic people. The proportions are a bit exaggerated (some heads too large; some mid-sections too large), but this does not detract from the characters' appeal and friendliness.

What I Like: I love the bright colors. The size of this book (6 x 6") is perfect for tossing into a bag and taking to the doctor's office or wherever. I like that the text quotes The Lord's Prayer in its entirety.

What I Dislike: No Scripture references are offered anywhere. The book doesn't even say which Bible version is used to quote the prayer. Also, I felt the explanations were too simplistic. They offered no doctrine and very little clarification. Some didn't even seem to relate to the portion of the prayer quoted. For example, the last page reads "God, when we are sad you are near to us, and you make us feel like smiling again." This is coupled with "deliver us from evil."

Overall Rating: Good for infants and toddlers, but Ho-Hum for preschoolers.

Age Appeal: Baby to Preschool

Publisher Info: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2006; ISBN: 0802853137; Boardbook; $7.99

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Special Info: You may also be interested in our review of I Can Pray With Jesus: The Lord's Prayer for Children or any of our other reviews of books on prayer.