The Light of the World: The Life of Jesus for Children

by Katherine Paterson, François Roca (Illustrator)

Two-time Newbery Award-winning author Katherine Paterson tells the story of Jesus's life with extraordinary clarity and grace, accompanied by paintings as human and reverent as the text.

"When the people looked at all the sadness and evil in the world, they had trouble believing that God was in charge. 'God's kingdom,' said Jesus, 'is as tiny as the smallest of seeds, but when it is planted it grows into such a huge tree that the birds make their nests in its branches.'"
Newbery Medalist & minister's wife Katherine Paterson retells the life of Jesus in simple, beautiful language for all ages, making the story new again through her trademark generosity and compassion. Iconic images from Jesus's life light the text with the same warmth and directness. A perfect gift book!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Christian, Religion, Biography, Christmas, Nonfiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Katherine Womeldorf Paterson is an American writer best known for children's novels, including Bridge to Terabithia. For four different books published 1975–1980, she won two Newbery Medals and two National Book Awards. She is one of four people to win the two major international awards; for "lasting contribution to children's literature" she won the biennial Hans Christian Andersen Award for Writing in 1998 and for her career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense" she won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award from the Swedish Arts Council in 2006, the biggest monetary prize in children's literature. Also for her body of work she was awarded the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature in 2007 and the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the American Library Association in 2013. She was the second US National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, serving 2010 and 2011.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and clear depiction of the story of Jesus, the light of the world. The illustrations exactly match the tone of the book. I also appreciated the author's quote on the jacket flap: "The challenge for those of us who care about our faith and about a hurting world is to tell stories which will carry the words of grace and hope in their bones and sinews and not wear them like fancy dress."

[Jaide · Rating 3 out of 5]

The prose explains thing in a simple, understandable way that is also beautiful. Perfect for teaching little ones without dumbing it down.
The illustrations were hit-and-miss for me, though.

[Set · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really don't like this book because the illustrations look like the paintings of Diego Rivera and everyone looks Puerto Rican instead of middle eastern. But most importantly, this book changes the words of the bible.
This book says that the bread and wine is LIKE the body and blood of Christ. But Jesus didn't say that it is LIKE but that it IS. Protestant believe that communion is not the blood and wine of Christ but a representation that we do in remembrance but the bible tells us that They are in fact the blood and body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 11 And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25 After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.
John 6:53-54 King James Version (KJV) 53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

[Josiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a beautiful rendering of the life of Jesus on earth, told by an author whose reputation speaks for itself. The Light of the World ranges from Isaiah's veiled prophecies to the birth, childhood, and ministry of Jesus, followed by his death and resurrection. This might be a good coffee table book for a Christian home, or it could be used alongside a parent's guidance to introduce kids to the gospel.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations!!! The author told the story of Jesus beautifully for children.

[E & E’s Mama · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author of the beloved Bridge to Terabithea wrote this amazing book that spans Jesus's birth through His resurrection. The illustrations are stunning and remind me of masterpieces instead of cartoonish artwork for kids (which definitely is fine, but this stood out and may make it more approachable for older kids who don't like cartoonish illustrations anymore). The book focuses on Jesus as the light of the world, and this symbol really makes the book shine (pun intended) and brought up sweet conversations with my son.

Age recommendation: preschool through elementary (a bit long, so we broke it up in half so we didn't read it all in one sitting with my 3.5 year old and it worked great and kept his attention).

[Jillian]

No Rating

If you are a religious person, you will probably appreciate this picture book more than I would. This is an overly simplified, scrubbed up version of Jesus's story, so if you have a child you want to give this to, there won't be any scenes reminiscent of "The Passion of Christ." Personally, I am not religious, despite my mother's attempts to raise my brother and I with religion, so I'm not the target audience for this picture book on two fronts. That said, the artwork was beautiful and it hit the bullet points of Jesus's story in a straightforward way.

And, I've come to realize, his life was basically some sort of aesthetic, the poor guy. Starting with his mother giving birth to him in a filthy stable in a time without epidural.

[Mileena · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was beautiful, a cute and simple look at the life of Jesus Christ. The illustrations were absolutely stunning some I would even hang in my own home. I don’t think this told me anything that I wasn’t already pretty familiar with, but I think it was a good introduction into dipping my toe back into learning of the different stories of the Bible. Definitely one I want to eventually add to my picture book collection one day.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would be good to use as a class read aloud to our 1st grade CCD class after we learn about and celebrate holy week and Easter. This book does a nice job of going through the important parts of Jesus' life, work, parables, miracles, death and resurrection. It puts everything we learn about each week into one biography about the life if Jesus.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations, and simple engaging text. My one complaint as a Christian parent is that Jesus wasn't just called the Son of God, He actually was. Even little kids deserve to be exposed to deep theology.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice telling of Jesus' birth and life with many quotes from the Bible. The beautiful illustrations help bring these events to life for children.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully illustrated and written children's book about the life of Jesus. My son and I enjoyed reading it and I felt it was true to scripture. Highly recommend to young and old alike!

[Larena · Rating 4 out of 5]

C: CHILDREN: No offensive language, sex or nudity but might contain occasional comedic Violence.

E:Easy: 3rd grade Vocabulary

Method: Physical Book

Location: Chautaugua-Cattaraugus Library System

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is just what it says it is. The illustrations are quite interesting--different than what we usually see in picture books, refreshingly nonwhite, and, something I appreciated a lot, never show the adult Jesus up close from the front. Many people think we should never see images of Christ, and this book follows that line of thinking. I thought Paterson's text could use a little more specificity, though. It is clear that Jesus came to spread the love of God to earth, but it's not as clear what the actual gospel is (believing that Jesus died for sins--not just to "show God's love"). The final page mentions that we can be like Jesus and show God's love... and, we can certainly show God's love to others, but we can't die for their sins. Still, a parent who wished to make that clearer could do so.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always on the lookout for Bible picture books to read to the kids in the Nursery and my son. It was interesting to find out that Katherine Paterson was a missionary for four years, as well as being married to a minister and the child of missionaries before she became a writer, especially as her book "Bridge to Terabithia" has caused so much controversy for its subject matter. Anyways, the book is basically a well-done summary of the life of Jesus from conception to his death. The book is greatly enhanced by the gorgeous paintings of Francois Roca, who actually makes Jesus and the rest of the people in the book look like the area they came from and not lily-white like most stories like to portray him. Recommended for ages 3-8, 4 stars.

[Kay Mcgriff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I fell in love with Katherin Paterson's writing when I first read Jacob Have I Loved and The Same Stuff as Stars, so when I saw this picture book retelling the life of Jeus, I had to read it. The simple text is beautiful and graceful as it tells an old, old story with freshness. The full page pictures that complement the text are luminous. I wish I had had this book when my daughter was young.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book to donate to my church library. The illustrations are simple and, yet, so lovely. The text (by the wonderful Katherine Paterson are faithful to the Bible words, but accessible to children. I look forward to owning my own copy in the future.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations in this book are like Realist paintings and brightly colored to appeal to children. The story is told in manageable nuggets for a young kid's attention span. Overall, wonderful way to present the life of Jesus to a preschool/young school age child.

[Michael Fitzgerald · Rating 1 out of 5]

A failure in both text and illustrations. When they aren't just boring, the pictures are goofy. The text takes enormous liberties, resulting in the completely wrong "This bread is like my body" - like? like? Failure. Just toss it.

[LibraryLaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures, beautiful text.

[Mary Helene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Straightforward story; non-white paintings - what a relief!

[Corinne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Focusing on the theme of Jesus as the light of the world, Paterson narrates his life. Wonderful portrayal of Jesus.

[Leonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice art work and compact, focused story for children.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sparse text and absolutely beautiful illustrations tell the story of Jesus's life - worthy addition to home, church, or school library.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautifully written and illustrated....but tragically, falls short of the gospel.

[Katie Fitzgerald · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author takes too many liberties with the life of Christ for this to be useful for my Catholic family. Very disappointing.

[Jo]

Gorgeous illustrations.