Lord Help Me: Inspiring Prayers for Every Day

by Emme Muñiz, Brenda Figueroa (Illustrator)

Overview

The everyday power of prayer comes to life in this inspirational picture book written by twelve-year-old budding singer Emme Muñiz.
 
We all have moments every day where we can use a little help. Some are small, like waking up for school or getting along with a sibling. Others are big, like helping to save the planet and all its creatures—especially sloths! But asking God for help always brings us the strength to get through anything. Emme Muñiz shares her own daily prayers to offer families a way to embrace the peace and power of everyday faith.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593120088
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	09/29/2020
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	657,035
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.60(d)
Lexile:	AD510L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Emme Muñiz is a fun-loving, creative, and joyful twelve-year-old. She enjoys singing, cross-country running, and all forms of art, and is dedicated to protecting sloths and other wildlife. Emme is the daughter of Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, and she loves to spend time with her friends and family, especially her dog Lady. Her passion for prayer started when she was five years old. It is one of Emme's dreams to share this passion with the world.
 
Brenda Figueroa is an illustrator based in Madrid, who is passionate about color, coffee, and picture books. She studied graphic design in her homeland of El Salvador, a small tropical country in Central America with amazing landscapes and wildlife, such as macaws, toucans, and cusucos (the Salvadoran name for armadillos, which are distant relatives of the sloth). For more on Brenda, visit her at brendafigueroa.com.

Editorial Reviews

08/07/2020

PreS-Gr 2—A young girl reaches out in prayer for help in accomplishing tasks during her day in this quiet and calming title. From the moment the narrator rises, to when she prepares for school and completes homework and chores, she prays for help in accomplishing projects that seem at first glance to be simple, everyday tasks, but that come together to reveal how special each moment is, and how lucky we are to be able to experience even the smallest effort. The subtitle misleads: This is not a list of prayers, but a journey as a young white girl with light brown hair faces lighthearted obstacles (she prays for help getting out of a soft warm bed) and pricklier ones (she breaks a lamp and prays for the ability to own the truth). The text is little more than one or two sentences in each spread, with corresponding illustrations in soft colors depicting each scene. Character expressions depict the real emotions readers experience in an ordinary day, as well as unusual ones—a subtext depicts the problems for sloths facing deforestation. The narrator closes out her day being grateful to Jesus for everything in her life, and finding ways to help the world around her. The words for "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep" are included, as is an author's note expressing her wish for children to feel comforted by prayer. VERDICT A solid choice for bedtime stories and for those searching for simple but effective prayer books for a very young demographic.—Selenia Paz, Harris County P.L., Houston

School Library Journal

2020-06-30
Routine activities are grounded in childlike faith demonstrated through everyday prayers and guileless optimism.

A brown-haired, beige-skinned girl with the first initial E, who readers might assume shares the name Emme with the 12-year-old author, takes them through a day of simple and sometimes profound prayers. She starts her day with prayers for the motivation to leave her warm, cozy bed, to get out the door on time, and to pay attention in school. E prays to develop her patience, honesty, gratitude, and self-discipline; she prays for her family, friends, and pets; and she even throws in a quick prayer for her favorite animal, the sloth. The author’s note reveals that the prayers were inspired by her own daily prayers and how the simple practice of praying throughout the day has brought peace. While the author may not be a household name, her parents (Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony) are, yet despite her famous family the book is endearingly down to earth. Figueroa’s cartoons depict E in a comfortable but fairly unremarkable suburban setting; readers will enjoy seeing E’s sloth-themed décor as well as dog Lady and bunnies Nibble and Skittles. The everyday activities that inspire E’s prayers are sure to resonate with many readers, as will the encouraging message to trust God with the small stuff. The full text of the traditional bedtime prayer “Now I lay me down to sleep” appears at the end. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at 30.3% of actual size.)

An accessible and even fun book of useful prayers for the modern kid. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews