SAINT SPOTTING

Two-time Caldecott winner Raschka shares his mother’s special way to visit a church: “saint spotting.”

“A church is a weighty thing, isn’t it?” With heavy doors, high ceilings, and stone walls, a church can be an intimidating place for a child. Raschka invites readers to think differently by joining a school-age version of himself and his mother on a personal tour—complete with a painted map. Saint spotting is just what it sounds like: a sort of religious scavenger hunt in which one spots saints by their associated symbols inside a church. Through Raschka’s brief introductions, readers learn about 36 saints and their symbols, including the most important figures of Christianity: Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, Saint Joseph, and the Evangelists. Illustrations in broadly stroked watercolor primarily of golden hues boost the book’s warmth and welcoming tone. Beautiful endpapers depict rows of animals, such as doves and lambs, that underscore the book’s biblical nature. The book begins and ends with an illustration of Raschka and his mother, hand in hand, at the entrance of a huge Gothic church with a beautiful stained-glass rose window, the book’s exceptionally narrow trim echoing the verticality of the building. Clearly this was a special shared mother-son childhood experience, and readers will leave feeling like they were just let in on a cherished secret game. Most characters depicted, including the protagonist and his mother, present White, but there are some saints of color.

A charming, light, and personal introduction to saints and their symbolism.