Lend a Hand: Poems About Giving, by John Frank, illustrated by London Ladd

Like most parents, I want my children to be kind, generous people who are not self-absorbed and who love to serve others.  That's not easy to teach.  I hope they pick up some of that by example (from my wife's example more than my own, to be sure).  For more examples to look to, parents will enjoy sharing the poems in Lend a Hand: Poems About Giving with their children.

Children don't have much to offer others in terms of money or material assistance, obviously.  But John Frank's poems give first-person narratives of children who give in many different ways.  Kids can get some great, simple ideas from these poems of how they can help others every day: give up a seat on the bus, share lunch with someone who doesn't have one, cut your hair and donate it for cancer victims, teach another kid how to hit a baseball, plant some trees in your neighborhood.

Frank's poems are short and simple, and Ladd's illustrations perfectly complement the poems.  I especially appreciated their choice to include children of a variety of races in the illustrations.  Lend a Hand will inspire children (and their parents!) to look around them for opportunities to serve and bless others.


Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!