“Giving Thanks. Poems, Prayers and Praise Songs of Thanksgiving,” by Katherine Paterson, Illustrated by Pamela Dalton.
Handprint Books, San Francisco, 2013, 56 pages, Grades 3-6.
Thanksgiving is one of the most joyful days of the year. Families come from far and near and share the wonderful food of the festival. Different parts of the United States bake different types of pies and sometimes have delicious food from their area. Most parts of the country find that few things can equal a well baked turkey.
In the early period of our nation, Puritan settlers and local Native American tribes gathered to celebrate the fall harvest. So a tradition of giving thanks for the many blessings from God became part of our national consciousness. The renowned author, Katherine Paterson, has gathered dozens of prayers of thanksgiving from many lands. While the prayers of gratitude and thanks are different in various cultures, there is a common denominator: all the people of these cultures recognize the goodness of God and seek to praise Him and thank Him in verse and song. Written by Katherine Paterson, the name of this fine book is “Giving Thanks. Poems, Prayers and Praise Songs of Thanksgiving.”
Paterson begins this collection with a short reflection on why people should have grateful hearts. She then takes short poems and verses from many people that express the gratitude they have toward God for the gift of food and sustenance. Among these are St. Matthew’s Chapter 6: 9-13 in which we are taught The Lord’s Prayer. This is followed by the well-known American song from the Shaker community, “It Is A Gift To Be Simple, It Is A Gift To Be Free.” She then takes us to prayers and songs entitled “A Celebration of Life.”
The first song of celebration is “Morning has broken, like the first morning.” In this section readers are enriched by prayerful meditations of medieval mystics such as Hildegard of Bingen and St. Francis of Assisi’s famous Canticle of Creatures. Beautiful poems by Emily Dickenson, William Blake and Robert Browning enrich this section. Appropriately, Paterson has included the powerful verses from Ecclesiastes 3: 1-4, 7-8, that begin with “To every thing there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.”
The third series of reflections is entitled: “The Spirit Within.” Lovely songs such as “Precious Lord Take My Hand” and “Amazing Grace” tell us of Paterson’s understanding of the need for God’s grace to support us in life. Repeatedly, the poems and songs lift up our hearts in prayers and songs of gratitude and hope. She chooses to frame these prayers with the magnificent Psalm 23 which begin with the immortal words: “The Lord Is My Shepherd, I Shall Not Want.” Paterson then concludes the book with the fourth section named the “Circle Of Community.” These poems and prayers show the necessity to develop a human community based on charity.
This book is simply wonderful. Katherine Paterson is one of the great writers of children’s literature in modern times. Her books are imbued with a spiritual sense. She was born in China where her parents worked as Christian missionaries during the outbreak of World War II. She later lived in Japan as well. The prayers, songs and poems selected for this book reflect the breadth of her background. Pamela Dalton’s elaborate paper cut-out art is comforting and inviting. It will invite you to keep reading the text. This book can be readily shared with younger family members during the Thanksgiving holiday season. The book will lift your heart to thank God for His many blessings to us all. Happy Thanksgiving!
