A Child's Book of Angels (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Olwyn Whelan (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 3-5-A young boy's guardian angel visits him one night and gives him a guided tour of the realm of heavenly spirits. There are angels of the zodiac, as well as those in charge of the elements, the seasons, the home, birth, death, and healing, and a special guardian for every person in the world. Each of these, in addition to the angelic hierarchy (Seraphim, Cherubim, etc.), is introduced and described, and, best of all, pictured. The watercolor illustrations are a kind of illuminated primitive folk art. Angels of all different colors and sizes fly or walk among beautifully bordered pages, looking fanciful and friendly, rather than ethereal. Most have wings, but no halos, and their clothing is painted in a variety of shades and patterns, including luscious nature prints. The balance of text and illustration is just right. The essence of these spiritual beings could relate to many religious beliefs, and their lore gives a background to angelic references in literature. Ten short excerpts from sources such as John Milton, William Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson, and the Bible are tucked into the text. Unfortunately, the story line that the book is built around is stilted, consisting mostly of a Socratic dialogue between Matt and his guardian angel. The boy plays the straight man, asking Muriel just the right questions to lead to the next bit of angel knowledge. It is a jarring element in an otherwise beautiful offering.-Carolyn Jenks, First Parish Unitarian Church, Portland, ME

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Barefoot Books (October 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841480827
• ISBN-13: 978-1841480824
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 9.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,478,103 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Angel Book, November 6, 2003

By A Customer

I really love angels. And when I saw the cover of this book and some of the inside pages I fell in love with the beautiful and colorful illustrations. I was very pleased with the way the author incorporated all the various levels of angels, right down to the Devas of our earth. The book includes the angels of the seasons, our homes, birth, death and healing. The reading level is for ages 9-12, but my 8 and 6 year old love listening to me read it to them. This book isn't a 5 minute story book, but I find reading a few pages nightly works just fine. This is a nice way to introduce angels to children. It shows that angels aren't just found in "heaven," but that they're a part of our everyday life and afterlife.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully illustrated, stultifyingly pedantic, April 3, 2008

By	MYOB (Radford, VA United States) - See all my reviews

The illustrations are absolutely beautiful. The poems and literary quotations are also very nice. However, the frame story does not make good reading. I suppose it might make a good teaching tool nevertheless, IF you happen to hold this very specific set of beliefs about angels--their hierarchies, names and responsibilities, etc.--AND the influence of the Zodiac. (Which I don't happen to.) Check this one out from your local library and see what you think of it before you buy it. You may decide that the illustrations alone are worth the price of admission and the text isn't a problem. Or not.