The Book of Belonging: Bible Stories for Kind and Contemplative Kids

by Mariko Clark, Rachel Eleanor (Illustrator)

Overview

A beautifully illustrated Bible storybook to help the next generation of kids understand the rich diversity of God’s people, emphasizing identity, contemplation, and wonder.

The Book of Belonging is designed for families seeking a Bible storybook that reflects the diversity of God’s people and for every reader seeking a more expansive and wondrous view of God. The thoughtful text and rich illustrations present some of Scripture’s most important and overlooked stories—including many female-centered ones—alongside old favorites reimagined to convey greater inclusivity, diversity, and historical representation. 

Through narratives, mindful practices, and guided wonder moments, children and grown-ups alike will learn who God is and be reminded over and over that God tells each of us, “You are Beloved, you Belong, and you are Delightful.” Because when it comes to the love of God, everyone belongs.

The Book of Belonging features

• Forty-two Bible stories: twenty from the Old Testament, twenty-two from the New Testament
• Rich, vibrant illustrations on every page, showcasing a variety of body shapes, ages, abilities, and skin colors
• Historically accurate depictions of Jesus and God’s people, including original Hebrew and Greek names
• Lifelong lessons that make it a perfect gift!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593580318
Publisher:	PRH Christian Publishing
Publication date:	09/24/2024
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	21,886
Product dimensions:	7.40(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	7 - 9 Years

About the Author

Mariko Clark is a Japanese American author, mother, and storyteller on a mission to help kids embrace diversity and wonder. Her time as an editor with National Geographic Learning sharpened her ability to make complex topics accessible and engaging. She equips kids and caregivers with spiritual resources to navigate the messy middle, wrestle with tough questions, and find community in the journey. Mariko lives outside of Indianapolis with her husband and three sweet and spicy kids.

Rachel Eleanor is an illustrator known for doodles of questing travelers, friendly spirits, and all manner of creatures. She uses drawing as a way to explore the wilderness within and without, focusing on themes of spirituality and mindfulness. Her whimsical characters have inhabited books and stationery, championed brands, and even bedecked beverages. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, son, and tabby cat, where they enjoy taking long walks, picking flowers, and cooking with their friends.

Read an Excerpt

Introduction

This is a book inspired by stories from the Bible. And what is the Bible? The Bible is a very old, very long book, made up of many different types of stories. Some of the stories are told through poems and songs, some are more like history lessons, some are official royal records, and some are letters.

But they all work together to teach us what God is like. What is God like? Well, that is a big question with many lovely, complicated answers—answers that you will likely spend the rest of your life exploring, because most of the time, these stories don’t just come right out and give us the answers. (That would be much easier.) Often they show more than they tell.

And they present to us who God is through the history of God’s family: people who were learning to trust God in the middle of their messy lives. They learned bits and pieces of who God is and they saved their stories for us to learn from. But God is too big to fit into even our most imaginative human words, so all throughout history, people who have tried to describe God say things like “God protects us like a mother bird sitting on her nest.” Or “God is everywhere, like the wind.” Or “God comforts us, like a hug.”

We’ve tried to display that too, in our different illustrations of God. We’ve imagined God with a face that frowns and smiles, with arms that help and hold, with a mouth to breathe and speak. In some stories, God is shown looking like a hovering bird, a covering cloud, or a brightening fire. But it’s important to remember that we don’t know what God looks like. We only know what God is like. So each picture is a beautiful, true idea for our eyes to rest on while our hearts do the important work of learning to trust God’s big, mysterious fullness.

One of the most special things about learning stories from the Bible is that they teach us about who we are. We get to learn the names God has for us, the people God made. The more we read the Bible, the more names we will learn. There are three big names that seem really special to God, three that show up again and again in the stories we’ve shared here:

Belonging

Is there anything more cozy than the feeling of belonging? A place especially for you that no one else could ever fill? Sometimes we feel it in our families or with our friends. Sometimes we feel it on our birthday or when we climb our favorite tree. The Bible is filled with stories of God telling God’s people, “You belong with me!” No matter how lost or lonesome we feel, there is always a place for us with God.

Beloved

Love is the most powerful force in the universe. It is bigger and deeper and truer and brighter than we can understand.

Beloved is really just a fancy way to say, “Someone Who Is Loved.” Someone who is loved so thoroughly that it becomes who they are. It becomes their name.

Here’s something pretty amazing: God loves people so much that God says each and every one of us should have this name. Beloved Me, Beloved You, Beloved Us. We are all Beloved.

Delightful

You make God happy, just by being you. Before we did anything or said anything, God was delighted with us. But we often forget, and it trips us up! So the Bible is full of stories of God reminding people that they don’t need to earn God’s delight or hide when they make mistakes. They just have to trust God says that they Belong, they are Beloved, and they are Delightful.

And while we’re talking about names, you will notice that the names I’ve used in stories you are familiar with may look different. Mary is Miryam. John is Yokhanan. That’s because I’ve decided to include the original names for these characters as they would have been known to the Bible writers and its original readers and to many people today around the world who speak Hebrew and Greek.

One way to think about Bible reading is that the Bible can be a mirror and also a window. Like a mirror, the Bible should help us see ourselves. Just like the characters in the stories, we can follow God and learn to trust the names God calls us. But the Bible should also be a window, helping us see into an ancient Middle Eastern world that is probably very different from our own. By noting the original names, I hope to honor the people and traditions with whom these stories originated!

Bible stories have been told and retold for thousands of years. There is so much to learn from each and every story. One of the most special things about the Bible is that we can learn something new and true from each retelling. Wise teachers have said it’s as though people who love God take turns holding a big, beautiful gemstone. With each retelling, they turn it and we see God’s light sparkle through in a new and different way.

Whatever you learn from the way the gem turns in these stories, the biggest treasure I hope you find is this: God is trustworthy, and God’s names for you are true. You Belong. You are Beloved. You are Delightful.

Editorial Reviews

Biblical stories presenting a moving message, contemplative questions, and captivating illustrations.”—Kirkus Reviews

“One of the reasons I’m excited about The Book of Belonging is because I share a passionate vision for freeing Scripture from some of the limiting expressions to which it has been confined.”—Emily P. Freeman, New York Times bestselling author of How to Walk into a Room

“This book is a masterpiece. And I don’t use that word lightly. . . . It’s mindful, experiential, and unlike any other storybook Bible I’ve ever read. It’s thoughtfully illustrated. It’s safe for kids of all ages. It’s informative and hopeful and interesting. You might buy this book for a child and then keep it for yourself and buy another copy for the kid. It’s that good. It’s that beautiful. If you and your family engage the Christian faith in any way, this book should be on your bookshelves. I cannot say enough about it.”—Matthew Paul Turner, #1 New York Times bestselling children’s author

“The Book of Belonging is one of the most important projects coming our way. If we can show our kids a more inclusive world, then maybe we won’t have to spend so much time unlearning as adults, and that excites me.”—Brit Barron, pastor, comedian, author of Worth It and Do You Still Talk to Grandma?

“If the Bible has been weaponized against you but you long to love it, I cannot possibly recommend this highly enough.”—Erin Moon, host of the Faith Adjacent podcast

“As a pastor, I love the Bible. Unfortunately, too many people uncritically endorse and assume whiteness and uncritically glorify violence. I’m excited by The Book of Belonging’s vision for a fresh story Bible that is more inclusive and contemplative.”—Sean Isaac Palmer, pastor, author, Enneagram teacher

“The Book of Belonging is unlike any children’s Bible I have read. As a parent, I love that the stories are engaging and participative for children and parents alike. As a Bible scholar, I appreciate that the stories remain faithful to the original context and key themes of the biblical narratives. With its beautiful storytelling and its strong academic foundation, this book is truly a gift for families who have tried and failed to find a thoughtful—and solidly researched—children’s Bible.”—Jennifer Garcia Bashaw, professor of New Testament Studies, Campbell University, and Nerd-in-Residence, The Bible for Normal People

From the Publisher

2024-08-30
A collection of stories of God’s love inspired by the Bible.

This collection of 42 kid-friendly stories pulls from the Old and New Testaments. Starting with the creation story, it covers Exodus, follows Jesus’ life, and ends with a tale from Revelation. Readers will encounter a variety of both better- and lesser-known stories. Each entry emphasizes one of three main messages God has for us: “You Belong. You are Beloved. You are Delightful.” Clark retells episodes from the Bible in accessible text using her original dialogue and phrasing to convey her messages. Each chapter opens with a title that may trigger recognition of the original story (“She Laughed,” “Jesus and the Party People”), the Bible verses the story stems from, and notes on the characters’ Greek and Hebrew names. “Mindful Moment” sections describe God-focused mindfulness activities, while “Wonder Moment” segments pose thoughtful questions for readers to reflect on. Throughout the Old Testament section, two-page spreads explain key groups of people, such as judges and prophets, and their roles among God’s people. Ample illustrations throughout feature beautiful embellishments and borders, breathing color and life into the descriptive text and adding cultural context. God is depicted in golden hues and given human facial features and a more amorphous body; the human figures are racially diverse.

Biblical stories presenting a moving message, contemplative questions, and captivating illustrations. (notes)(Religion. 7-12)

Kirkus Reviews