I can’t overstate how much having a child has changed my life, but even before her arrival, I was aware that there was something special about really good children’s media. When adult creators set out to make something for kids which really respects their capacity for depth and wisdom, it’s magical. That’s one of the reasons I obsess over cartoons like Bluey, Encanto, Batman: The Animated Series, The Spectacular Spider-Man, and others; these sorts of shows reveal the creators’ clear respect for their intended audiences. At the same time, the messages in these shows tend to be so pure and direct in a way that adult media seldom achieves. It’s like children’s writers understand they only have so much time to get their points across, so they communicate quickly and deftly. And in doing so, they not only capture the attentions of children; they also speak to adults who may be learning to nurture the child within.

One of the media where it’s most difficult to achieve this balance is children’s books. With children’s books being one of the first places where kids will see printed words, there’s a temptation to keep all content overly simple and rely on gimmicks like pop-ups or textures. Children’s books are also very short, with most being readable in just two or three minutes. How can you pack much meaning into such a small space? And yet, every year, authors pull it off.

In My Heart: A Book of Feelings can be read in three minutes,
but it says so much about our capacity for feeling.

The Ghost Who Was Afraid of the Dark seems like a simple little Halloween poem,
but I can’t think of many stories which better show the power of friendship to overcome of fear.

Tiny T-Rex and the Impossible Hug is about the silliest premise I can think of,
and yet, the book challenges us to work harder in care for the people we love.

The Leaf Thief not only explains changes in the seasons;
it also gives us both positive and negative examples of adapting to change.

And we haven’t even touched on the complex social commentary of Dr. Seuss yet!
(Sidebar: the first season of Green Eggs & Ham on Netflix is exceptional, but we haven’t gotten around to season two yet.)

But then there’s When God Made You. This little book (which clocks in at about four minutes when read aloud) is a masterclass in theology. The book emphasizes creativity and hope and peace and love as attributes of God which God also hardwires into humanity, and all of this is presented through the eyes of a delightfully creative child. I’ve got shelves full of commentaries and theologies and philosophies, but I’ll always go to succinct powerful books like this one first. So thanks for letting me share excerpts with you throughout Advent, and I really hope you’ll pick up a copy for yourself.

A dear friend and mentor has frequently reminded me over the years,
“the Gospel is simple: God is love.”
Something can be simple and still be deep.
Something can be short yet powerful.
Something can be geared toward kids while still speaking truth to adults.
So go pick up a copy of When God Made You, and let it speak.

Merry Christmas, friends.