Give Thanks to the Lord

We love this book; bought it to have in our collection for reading with the kids during fall/Thanksgiving time of year. It is fun reading, with good respect to family gathering, sharing love, food, cherished times with our families/loved ones. Our son, now 7, puts it on the top for reading just prior to the Thanksgiving holiday; we usually read it several times during the fall season.

At first I was a little disappointed that this book doesn't have the same rhythm as the Bear stories, which I like so much. However I guess that meter is appropiately unique to that series. This is the first book of Wilson's Psalms series that I have purchased, but the others continue to be on my wish list. First page: It is good to give thanks to the Lord! Friends and family here at last. Hugs and kisses all around Everybody says "Hello!" Laughter makes a merry sound. From the middle of the book: The house fills up with tempting smells-- turkey, stuffing, yummy pies! And just when we can't wait much more, "It's ready!" Mama cries. . . . The table makes a lovely sight./ The food is good, it tastes just right./I savor every single bite./ I feel so full of love tonight. Last verse: I'm so tired I have to yawn/as we all say our sad goodbyes./I climb in bed, whisper prayers,/get a good-night kiss and shut my eyes.// And it's good, so good to give thanks to the Lord. "It is good to give thanks to the Lord!" is the refrain repeated often in the text, and the picture of the boy with black olives stuck on all his fingers (mentioned in the editorial reviews) is a favorite of mine too. This book is a welcome addition to our Thanksgiving collection - not an easy holiday to find meaningful selections for.

This is a biased review: My daughter illustrated the book and used my wife and I as the models. It is dedicated to us. If there were 10 stars I would check all ten! Amy June Bates is the best illustrator of children's books in the country. Possibly the world! :o)