Happy Pride Month, friends!  

Pride is a celebration of the dignity, personhood, and the beauty of diversity in the LGBTQ+ community. It's also a reminder of the importance of visibility, of advocacy, and of the work yet to be done in a pursuit of equality for all.

Last year for Pride, I shared some of my family's very favorite Pride-themed children's storybooks. [Click here for last year's post]. As I mentioned in that post, while I loved each of the storybooks, I couldn't help but notice that our storybook library was lacking in the voices and perspectives of BIPOC individuals overall (and in Pride-themed titles in particular). After publishing the post, I also noticed a similar pattern with a lack of transgender authors on our shelves. I committed to doing better, and the good news is - over the past twelve months, our library has become significantly more diverse!

So for Pride 2021 I've compiled another list of children's storybooks, all of which we have on our shelves at home. Each of the five books below are either (1) written by a BIPOC author and/or illustrator; (2) written by a transgender author and/or illustrator; and/or (3) depicting the perspectives of BIPOC family life in a particularly meaningful way.

To all my LGBTQ+ family: You are seen. You are valued. You are loved.

Happy Pride, everyone!  

I've shared many times about how much the Remaley family enjoys reading together. Storytime is one of our favorite parts of the day! To celebrate Pride Month, I pulled together a few of our favorite storybooks that speak to the experiences of LGBTQ people and themes. Each of these books make regular appearances in the lineup throughout the year (but especially in June, and in the days leading up to and following our local Pride festivals!)

To all my LGBTQ+ family:  You are seen. You are valued. You are loved.

I have a secret:  I LOVE children's books, children's storybooks, and books designed for children and caregivers to enjoy together.

See that? My love is deep enough that I had to add some bold, underline, and italic flair to really get my point across.

But on the other hand, I guess it's not so much a secret. My Amazon deliveries know it to be true. I often meander through the storybooks in the Target aisle, marveling at the beautiful artwork and the inclusive storylines displayed on the shelves.  I've been known to bring new books home from trips in the interest of "an unexpected gift for my child" or "doing research for work."  (It doesn't work. My wife sees right through it!)

But children's books about God, and faith?  I have more of a LOVE/HATE relationship with those. 

“Give thanks to the Lord. God is good. God’s faithful love lasts forever!” (Psalm 107:1)

November, with the Thanksgiving holiday, offers us a natural opportunity for giving thanks and showing gratitude. Yet, as Christians we are reminded that every day is a day to give God our thanks and praise! The practice of gratitude is a spiritual discipline for any age – and need not be limited to “saying Grace” at the dinner table! So throughout November, I've used the Faith Presbyterian Church Midweek emails to offer a weekly book review of a children's storybook for which gratitude is a primary theme.  For those outside the Faith congregation who don't receive those emails, here are all four of the storybook reviews.

At first glance, there seem to be two competing narratives about the prevalence of digital technologies in our society. One perspective holds that the incredible advances and benefits offered by modern technologies are evidence that such products are inherently “good” for humanity. The other perspective, citing troubling statistics of increased isolation and adverse health risks, render such technologies as “bad.”

The reality, as with virtually everything else in postmodern society, falls somewhere between the either/or binary these two perspectives would suggest. Suffice it to say that modern technologies – like all technological innovations that have come before – can be used both for the wellbeing of society and for evil, destructive purposes. (For just one example, the same social media product that helped to fuel a democratic uprising in several oppressed nations also provided the platform for outside forces to influence democratic elections in our own nation!).

“It was a life-changing trip!”

So goes the all-too-common refrain of those returning home from a short-term mission experience. Perhaps the trip has challenged paradigms or broadened perspectives. Maybe it has suggested a need for shifting priorities or reallocating financial resources. Regardless, the rush of the post-trip enthusiasm tends to fade quickly upon reentry to the daily grind of life, and often, this reversal leads to the painful realization that what was once described as life-changing ended up changing far less than imagined or hoped for.

Note: I wrote the following book review for The Presbyterian Outlook. The review was published in August 2018.

If there’s one thing that Rachel Held Evans sets out to accomplish in her newest book, Inspired, it’s to demonstrate just how seriously she takes the Bible.
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One could consider this an ambitious goal for Evans to undertake, considering her previous works led many in the evangelical community to accuse her of diminishing the Bible, and several Christian bookstore chains have banned her books from appearing on their shelves. Yet, the eagerness with which she dives into a deeper exploration of scriptural texts testifies to how seriously she views the task, as does the depth of the citations she includes as bibliographic endnotes. 

As a pastor whose ministry includes the work of faith formation and discipleship across the generations, I have compiled a list of go-to Storybook Bibles for regular reference. (I also have a corresponding list of Storybook Bibles to stay clear of, but that’s a review for another time).

I just added another Storybook Bible to my “go-to” shelf.

In their new title Growing in God’s Love: A Story Bible, well-known and well-respected Presbyterian educators Elizabeth Caldwell and Carol Wehrheim have compiled 150 stories from throughout the biblical canon.