Special meaning books

Our tradition is to buy a special book for each child on their birthday. We find books that mirror something about what we see in them, a book to inspire them, or a book with a particular lesson they seem ready to learn. On the inside cover, we write why we chose this particular book for them. They will read that letter many times over the years. The evening of their birthday we read the book and discuss it with them; it is their moment.

Here are a few I thought were great:

• Fanny’s Dream by Caralyn Buehner. The lesson on ordinary, committed love is beautiful. It’s geared for young readers, but I’m 36 and I loved it.
• The Mixed-Up Chameleon by Eric Carle. This was for our daughter when she was starting to feel peer pressure at age 9; it’s a timeless lesson about being yourself.
• The Tale of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt. A beautiful story of how three trees play a special part in the life of Jesus. The lesson: God gives us the kind of life that is bigger than we can imagine.
• I Promise I’ll Find You by Heather P.Ward. Written for a young child afraid of being separated from her parent. What I saw? A parent’s love and God’s love are inescapable.

We have quite a library now of books we have found along the way, lined up on a shelf with a sign, “Special Meaning Books.” The kids say, “read me the one you bought for me when . . .” and I pull it off the shelf and we read and laugh and sit close to each other. Is there anything better than that?

Teresa Klassen attends Sunridge Community Church, Kelowna, B.C.