Customer Reviews

Give Thanks to the Lord: Celebrating Psalm 92

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
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This story frames Psalm 92 around a family's Thanksgiving celebration as seen through the eyes of a little boy. The illustrations are attractive watercolors that contribute to the homey, welcoming feel of the Thanksgiving celebration. You see him thankful for times shared with family and for all of the wonderful food. The text is done in a rhyming fashion. An example:

The day is lovely, cool, and bright.
Our house is filled with noisy cheer.
A perfect day for giving thanks
as we all gather here.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord!

This is a nice enough book, but it's not a must-have. We had previously read the author's book I Will Rejoice which is charming, oh-so-enjoyable, and read very frequently in our household, especially to my three girls, ages 6, 4, and 2. This book, however, is not read nearly as often. It just doesn't have the same rhythm and flow as you read it. It's a nice enough book for a Christian look at Thanksgiving for the preschoooler, just not quite as great as I expected.

At first I was a little disappointed that this book doesn't have the same rhythm as the Bear stories, which I like so much. However I guess that meter is appropiately unique to that series. This is the first book of Wilson's Psalms series that I have purchased, but the others continue to be on my wish list.

First page:
It is good to give thanks to the Lord!

Friends and family here at last.
Hugs and kisses all around
Everybody says "Hello!"
Laughter makes a merry sound.

From the middle of the book:
The house fills up with tempting smells--
turkey, stuffing, yummy pies!
And just when we can't wait much more,
"It's ready!" Mama cries. . . .

The table makes a lovely sight./ The food is good, it tastes just right./I savor every single bite./ I feel so full of love tonight.

Last verse:
I'm so tired I have to yawn/as we all say our sad goodbyes./I climb in bed, whisper prayers,/get a good-night kiss and shut my eyes.// And it's good, so good to give thanks to the Lord.

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord!" is the refrain repeated often in the text, and the picture of the boy with black olives stuck on all his fingers (mentioned in the editorial reviews) is a favorite of mine too. This book is a welcome addition to our Thanksgiving collection - not an easy holiday to find meaningful selections for.

Thanksgiving is about, well, giving thanks. When giving thanks it's good to know WHO you are thanking. The children's book Give Thanks to the Lord by Karma Wilson makes it clear that we are thanking God for his blessings.

The book follows a little boy through his family's Thanksgiving celebration. Friends and family members arrive. The children play in the leaves. And eventually they eat their Thanksgiving dinner. After each activity occurs we read the refrain "It's good to give thanks to the Lord."

With cute illustrations and easy to read words, Give Thanks to the Lord is an excellent book to read with your children and remind them who we are thanking this holiday season.

Another wonderful book by this author. I purchase a lot of her work because she seems to be able to get the message across to children. The art work is so beautiful. My grandchildren love her books.

We love this book; bought it to have in our collection for reading with the kids during fall/Thanksgiving time of year. It is fun reading, with good respect to family gathering, sharing love, food, cherished times with our families/loved ones. Our son, now 7, puts it on the top for reading just prior to the Thanksgiving holiday; we usually read it several times during the fall season.

This is a biased review: My daughter illustrated the book and used my wife and I as the models. It is dedicated to us. If there were 10 stars I would check all ten! Amy June Bates is the best illustrator of children's books in the country. Possibly the world! :o)