THE LORD'S PRAYER
edited by Rick Warren & illustrated by Richard Jesse Watson
Warren, author of the mega-bestseller The Purpose Driven Life (2002), and Watson join forces for a thoughtful and visually appealing introduction to the Protestant version of the Lord’s Prayer (with forgiveness for debts, not trespasses). Each line of the prayer serves as the text for a double-page spread with an illustration of a child (or several children) relating to that phrase in some imaginative way. For “give us this day our daily bread,” a little boy feeds a flock of birds in a readily obvious choice of illustration, but for “as it is in heaven,” a line of joyous children and animals (including a lion and a lamb) skip along in a procession into a mysterious swath of swirling stars and streaks of sunshine. The illustration for “lead us not into temptation” is inspired, showing the image of a solemn-faced boy in a mirror against a dark background lit by a single candle. The final pages include smaller reproductions of each page with short commentary by Warren to help explain the meaning of each phrase of the prayer. Watson’s light-filled, expressive paintings bring the famous prayer into focus for younger children with greater accessibility than any other currently available edition. Both highly useful and beautiful—an unusual and welcome combination. (author’s note, illustrator’s note) (Picture book/religion. 3-8)