A Child's Book of Blessings [Hardcover]

Sabrina Dearborn (Author), Olwyn Whelan (Illustrator)

Book Description

With blessings for everyday events from dawn until dusk, for special activities and for specific times of the year, this collection offers children and their parents a simple and practical way of bringing a sense of the sacred into their lives.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Illustrated with a jeweller's attention to detail and ability to attract the eye, this striking volume brings together blessings from many cultures. At the center of each elaborately paneled page stands one prayer, from the well-known Irish blessing for a journey ("May the road rise up to meet you...") to a poem by Wendell Berry ("At night make me one/ with the darkness./ In the morning make me one/ with the light"). Baha'i, Sufi and many Native American blessings sit harmoniously alongside Jewish prayers, a Chinese benediction for the New Year and a Christmas tree blessing ("Lighting this tree, we hope in [the] promise [of Your good and holy Son]"). Dearborn's editorial choices imply a unity of spirit among a diversity of belief systems, so that her book fosters both a reverence for life's gifts and tolerance for other ways of receiving them. Whelan's (The Barefoot Book of Princesses) watercolors, in the school of Jane Ray, surround each selection with little temples of small compositions: for Elfrida Vipont's "Dear Father, bless this day,/ And bless me too;/ Bless me in all I say/ And all I do," Whelan shows a child in bed under a marvelous counterpane, and builds onto that image separate pictures of small speckled roosters, children in pajamas, suns and moons, alarm clocks with hands and feet, an egg cup and a steaming mug; she binds it all together with tiny detailed borders. The art invites scrutiny, luring readers back again and again to the rewards of the text. Ages 4-up. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-4-Two dozen blessings from a variety of cultures and religions are presented in a large, attractive format. Each verse is surrounded by bright, busy watercolor-and-ink borders done in folk-art style. Suns, moons, stars, angels, hearts, nature, children, and houses often appear in the many small illustrations within the borders. A few blessings are familiar and most are suitable for children, exploring such subjects as loved ones, peace, protection, mealtimes, and newborns. Seriousness is balanced with playfulness in both text and illustrations. In a two-page introduction, Dearborn explains the purpose of blessings and how to give them. An enticing spiritual book.
Jean Gaffney, Dayton and Montgomery County Public Library, OH
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Barefoot Books (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 184148010X
• ISBN-13: 978-1841480107
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 9.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,486,907 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Soul Food for Families, March 30, 2000

By 

ed key (Bend, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Child's Book of Blessings (Hardcover)

If you want to nourish your own and your child(ren)'s sense of wonder and gratitude for life, this is a book you will want to read together again and again. Beautiful illustrations by Olwyn Whelan frame a wonderful selection of prayers chosen from traditional and non-traditional sources. The book is a visual feast and the words will stay with you and your children to make your days richer. There are words to bless your everyday life and special occasions. There are words that make you feel at one with all of creation. There are words that speak to your inner life and feelings.

I thank Sabrina Dearborn for creating a book that bestows a blessing as it teaches appreciation for all life. You will love the feelings and values that are expressed and you may find that you want to read more from the authors and traditions represented.

The book is written for young children but you will want to keep reading it and using the blessings even as the children grow. All truly good books for children have a lot to say to adults as well.

10 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the lost star,it shoud be 5, June 24, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: A Child's Book of Blessings (Hardcover)

Sabrina Dearborn's collection of children's blessings is wide ranging ,sensitive, and exquisitely illustrated by Olwyn Whelan.I purchased it for a christening gift, and was initially impressed with it's multicultural approach...until I read the "Halloween Blessing",written by Sabrina Dearborn herself.Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the phrases invoking dead spirits to rise up and bless the living,I decided to find out more about the author.A quick net search found her a speaker at last year's Festival of the Goddess in Glastonbury,England.The festival appears to be a well organized celebration of women and wicca,with pentagrams and "circles of thirteen".It was difficult not to extrapolate that Ms.Dearborn is a sympathizer,if not a follower,and while wicca itself is a valid and recognized religion in the UK,I feel that to present this otherwise lovely book at a profound Christian sacrement would be inappropriate.

5 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Parents - Don't judge this book by it's title!, September 4, 2008

By 

A. Newton - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Child's Book of Blessings (Hardcover)

This book presents a lovely cover with a spiritual
tie-in, but that's where the connection to the word
of God stops.

DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK if you are a Christian who
believes that the Bible represents the word of God.

This book has very broad views on sex, sexual orientation
and immorality that are not consistent with the Bible.

If you're interested - - go to a bookstore and check it
out yourself.