Saint Valentine


Robert Sabuda - 1992
    With his healing skill and his deep faith he restored her sight. What we now call Valentine's Day began when he sent the little girl a secret message, which she received after the Christian martyr was executed. For this tale rich in sentiment, master illustrator Robert Sabuda has created exquisite paper mosaics to suggest early Christian art that resonates with both subtlety and power.

Brother Sun, Sister Moon: Saint Francis of Assisi's Canticle of the Creatures


Katherine Paterson - 2011
    Illuminated with the exquisite illustrations of cut-paper artist Pamela Dalton, this picture book offers a stunningly beautiful tribute to nature.

My Big Little Golden Book About God


Jane Werner Watson - 1956
    A comforting, gentle introduction to the concept of God, it is one of the most beautifully written and illustrated books on the Golden list.

Martin de Porres: The Rose in the Desert


Gary D. Schmidt - 2012
    Even so, his mother begged the church fathers to allow him into the priesthood. Instead, Martin was accepted as a servant boy. But soon, the young man was performing miracles. Rumors began to fly around the city of a strange mulatto boy with healing hands, who gave first to the people of the barrios. Martin continued to serve in the church, until he was finally received by the Dominican Order, no longer called the worthless son of a slave, but rather a saint and the rose in the desert.

Saint George and the Dragon


Margaret Hodges - 1984
    George and the Dragon commemorates the 25th Anniversary of the Caldecott Award-winning picture book. Hodges retells an exciting segment from Spenser's The Faerie Queene, in which the Red Cross Knight slays a dreadful dragon that has been terrorizing the countryside for years, bringing peace and joy back to the land. Featuring a fresh new cover design - with artwork that highlights the dragon adventure within - and distinctive embossed gold Caldecott Award sticker, this is the perfect way to introduce the classic tale to a whole new generation of readers.

Noah's Ark


Peter Spier - 1977
    Peter Spier uses his own translation of a seventeenth-century Dutch poem about this most famous menagerie.

The Whispering Town


Jennifer Riesmeyer Elvgren - 2014
     It is 1943 in Nazi-occupied Denmark. Anett and her parents are hiding a Jewish woman and her son, Carl, in their cellar until a fishing boat can take them across the sound to neutral Sweden. The soldiers patrolling their street are growing suspicious, so Carl and his mama must make their way to the harbor despite a cloudy sky with no moon to guide them. Worried about their safety, Anett devises a clever and unusual plan for their safe passage to the harbor. Based on a true story.

Miracle of Saint Nicholas


Gloria Whelan - 1997
    Alexi's babushka was telling him what Christmas was like when she was a girl--before the soldiers came. "Our church was as crowded as a pod full of peas. Candles made the church as bright as the sunniest day. Watching over us was the blessed icon of St. Nicholas." Alexi had many questions, including, "Why can't we celebrate Christmas tomorrow in St. Nicholas?" Babushka sadly replied that it would take a miracle after sixty years. Well, Alexi had heard enough. If there truly was such a thing as a miracle, why couldn't it happen here? And so unfolds a story that poignantly reveals how, though quiet and hidden, faith and hope cannot be suppressed--by soldiers or by time.

Ganesha's Sweet Tooth


Sanjay Patel - 2012
    Ganesha is just like any other kid, except that he has the head of an elephant and rides around on a magical mouse. And he loves sweets, especially the traditional dessert laddoo. But when Ganesha insists on biting into a super jumbo jawbreaker laddoo, his tusk breaks off! Ganesha is terribly upset, but with the help of the wise poet Vyasa, and his friend Mr. Mouse, he learns that what seems broken can actually be quite useful after all. With vibrant, graphic illustrations, expressive characters, and offbeat humor, this is a wonderfully inventive rendition of a classic tale.

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel


Virginia Lee Burton - 1938
    Since it was first published in 1939, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel has delighted generations of children. Mike and his trusty steam shovel, Mary Anne, dig deep canals for boats to travel through, cut mountain passes for trains, and hollow out cellars for city skyscrapers -- the very symbol of industrial America. But with progress come new machines, and soon the inseparable duo are out of work. Mike believes that Mary Anne can dig as much in a day as one hundred men can dig in a week, and the two have one last chance to prove it and save Mary Anne from the scrap heap. What happens next in the small town of Popperville is a testament to their friendship, and to old-fashioned hard work and ingenuity.

Jotham's Journey: A Storybook for Advent


Arnold Ytreeide - 1997
    Rejoice in his encounters with wise men, shepherds, and innkeepers until at last he finds his way to the Savior born in Bethlehem.

The Story of Little Black Sambo


Helen Bannerman - 1899
    First written in 1899, the story has become a childhood classic and the authorized American edition with the original drawings by the author has sold hundreds of thousands of copies. Little Black Sambo is a book that speaks the common language of all nations, and has added more to the joy of little children than perhaps any other story. They love to hear it again and again; to read it to themselves; to act it out in their play.

Mustache Baby


Bridget Heos - 2013
    They are reassured when he nobly saves the day in imaginary-play sessions as a cowboy or cop and his mustache looks good-guy great. But as time passes, their worst fears are confirmed when little Billy’s mustache starts to curl up at the ends in a suspiciously villainous fashion. Sure enough, “Billy’s disreputable mustache led him into a life of dreadful crime.” Plenty of tongue-in-cheek humor and cartoonish illustrations make this the perfect baby-shower gift for a mustachioed father-to-be.

Saint Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend


Julie Stiegemeyer - 2003
    This picturebook rendition of the historical roots of Father Christmas recounts the life of Saint Nicholas, a pastor in 4th-century Lycia (modern-day Turkey), whose generosity was so profound that he became known as Father Christmas.

Miss Rumphius


Barbara Cooney - 1982
    The countless lupines that bloom along the coast of Maine are the legacy of the real Miss Rumphius, the Lupine Lady, who scattered lupine seeds everywhere she went. Miss Rumphius received the American Book Award in the year of publication.To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of two-time Caldecott winner Barbara Cooney's best-loved book, the illustrations have been reoriginated, going back to the original art to ensure state-of-the-art reproduction of Cooney's exquisite artwork. The art for Miss Rumphius has a permanent home in the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.