Customer Reviews

Sacred Places

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Jane Yolen's text and David Shannon's shimmering illustrations come together in a lyrical, beautiful introduction to a collection of sacred places around the world. A sense of wonder and mystery that pervades a sacred place like the Ganges, Stonehenge or the Wailing Wall come through in a simple yet haunting manner that will touch children and adults alike.

I was so sad to see this book out of print, but I recommend buying it used if you can. It's a beautiful offering by Jane Yolen, the author of many children's books, including the very popular 'How Do Dinosaurs...' books. This offering is a selection of poems, each centered on a sacred place somewhere in the world. The illustrator David Shannon has created lovely, somewhat abstract drawings to accompany each poem/place. Places covered include Delphi, the Ganges river, Stonehenge, the Bodhi Tree, Uluru, the Wailing Wall, Mecca, Cathedrals everywhere, and more. Most major world religious traditions are represented by at least one site. The poems themselves are more evocative than descriptive - they seek to evoke the feeling and intended use of the place. At the end of the book there are paragraph prose descriptions of each place. Children will need guidance to get anything from this book, but it is a great way to spur a discussion about the idea of sacred places, and about all the varying religions and spiritual traditions there are and have been in the world.

There are not words to describe how much this book rocks. My 4 year old son will actually sit and listen quietly to the beautiful, lyrical poetry in this wonderful book. It is pure enchantment when read aloud.

The book consists of poems written in honor of various sacred sites around the world: Stonehenge, Easter Island, Delphi, and others.