Product Description

A Guide for Jewish and Christian Educators and ParentsChildren speak about God in ways that are different from adults. They ask many questions about God, questions that can be startlingly direct. Oftentimes adults—parents, grandparents, and teachers—feel uncomfortable answering them. Through fantasy, involvement, and imagination, Sandy Sasso and Annette Compton invite children of all faiths and backgrounds to encounter God openly through moments in their own lives—and help the adults who love them to be a part of that encounter. This book provides a gift of images that nurtures and encourages children in making meaning of their world. With over 100,000 copies in print, God’s Paintbrush remains one of the most popular spiritual books for children of all faiths, all backgrounds. This special anniversary edition includes new ideas for interaction between adults and children, and an important new message from the author. Sandy Eisenberg Sasso, author of the award-winning God’s Paintbrush, In God’s Name, For Heaven’s Sake, Cain & Abel (all Jewish Lights), Butterflies Under Our Hats and other books, is rabbi of Congregation Beth-El Zedeck in Indianapolis. She is active in the interfaith community and has written and lectured on the renewal of spirituality and the discovery of religious imagination in children of all faiths. Click here to visit her website. Annette Compton, an artist and designer, is author of Drawing from the Mind, Painting from the Heart: 12 Essential Lessons to Becoming a Better Artist.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #107838 in Books
• Published on: 2004-02-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Books for children that deal with spirituality are often a dicey proposition. Here Sasso, the second woman to be ordained as a rabbi, undertakes an ambitious project to help readers define for themselves the nature of God and their own connection to God. Using a variety of images--some from the natural world, some from everyday life, all of them well within a child's frame of reference--the author presents a series of simple scenarios (a friend moving away; the ticklish quality of fizz on an ice cream soda) and then poses related questions ("How can you be God's friend?" "What do you think would make God cry or laugh?"). Commendably, Sasso doesn't presume to answer the questions but instead allows readers to ponder and formulate their own answers. However, the (somewhat lengthy) text presents an anthropomorphic view of God that may not fit in with some readers' beliefs. Compton's watercolors, though vigorous and multicultural, are somewhat amateurish. Overall, some will find this well-meaning book and its joyous spirit helpful, while others might consider it inappropriate. Ages 4-9.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 3-- A first-person narration supplies observations about God and personal feelings about life in one- or two-page vignettes; questions appear in italics, asking readers how they feel about these observations, and about their experiences with God. Soft, detailed watercolor pictures realistically portray the situation described, mirroring the concept of God's paintbrush. They show people of various ethnic backgrounds and ages in a variety of situations, from a best friend moving away to the wind blowing through one's hair. Many of the pictures appear as double-page spreads, integrating two different experiences. The ideas and emotions presented are not organized in any apparent way, but are more stream-of-consciousness. The book is overwhelming in the sheer number of situations described, feelings explored, and questions posed. It is hard to imagine reading it in its entirety to a child or to a group in one sitting, though perhaps it would be useful in religious classes. The queries are interesting, and in some cases, unusual; the concepts relate to God more as a spiritual being than a religious one, and attempt to personalize children's ideas of Him. --Susan Kaminow, Arlington County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People
Wonderfully interactive...will open the souls of children, and of their parents who read it to them.