Stories of Heaven and Earth is intended to be a helpful resource for parents, librarians, teachers, and clergy. It offers a critical examination of children's picture books based on stories from the Old Testament, as well as an analysis of these stories as powerful tales of emotional development. The book focuses on a select group of well-known biblical characters, including Adam and Eve, Noah, Moses, Joseph, David, Jonah and Esther. In this original work, the authors make a cogent argument for why these stories matter. Emphasis is placed on the power of these stories as a source of literature rich in universal archetypes, ethical dilemmas, decision-making, rites-of-passage, and emotional growth. Drawing on connections to familiar fairy tales, folklore and mythology through the work of scholars like Joseph Campbell and Bruno Bettelheim, as well as the work of recognized theorists in the fields of child development and children's literature, the authors show how Bible Stories offer children critically important models of the journey from childhood into adulthood, from dependence to independence. Stories of Heaven and Earth shows how bible stories allow children to become the heroes of their own lives as they make the difficult but essential transition from childhood to adolescence and into adulthood.

Author Biography

Hara E. Person is a writer and editor of books for adults and children. She is also a rabbi and was ordained by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Diane Goetz Person, Ph.D., is the co-editor of The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children s Literature as well as the author of several books on using children s literature in the classroom. A children s librarian and a professor of education at Long Island University, she was a member of the 2003 Newbery Committee, and serves on several other committees of the American Library Association and the International Reading Association. Diane Goetz Person, Ph.D, is the co-editor of The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature as well as the author of several books on using children's literature in the classroom. A children's librarian and a professor of education at Long Island University, she was a member of the 2003 Newbery Committee, and serves on several other committees of the American Library Association and the International Reading Association.