Children's Book Review: The Children's Book of Angels

The Feast of the Archangels Michael, Raphael and Gabriel is almost here!  We will remember these heavenly helpers on Friday, September 29.  If you have young children in your home, be they grandchildren, nieces, nephews, neighbors or your own, be prepared for the day by having The Children’s Book of Angels on hand. 

Everyone loves angels. Not everyone knows that much about them.  This short little book can help that. The Children’s Book of Angels walks the reader through basic questions like “What do angels look like?” and What do angels do?” and, most importantly, “How do angels help people?” The answers given are age-appropriate and easy for children to understand.

Angels who appear in the Bible are connected to those Biblical stories. For example, St. Gabriel is pictured in original artwork announcing the good news to Mary, and St. Raphael is shown protecting Tobias on his dangerous journey. (The famous family dog is also shown!) Unnamed angels, such as the one who appeared to Elijah in the Old Testament and the angel who helped Peter in the New Testament, are also featured. Scripture quotes from each of these stories are highlighted with each angel.

St. Michael is depicted as a powerful ally who is always ready to come to our aid, while the topic of demons and the devil is presented in a realistic, but not terrifying way, and the Prayer to St. Michael is also included. This is a nice bonus, as children can start to memorize it. The Guardian Angel Prayer is also included on the page about the Guardian Angels.

One of the nicest features about this book is that it includes an explanation of the nine different orders, or “choirs,” of angels, based on St. Thomas Aquinas’ understanding of them. Starting with the Angels, the book numbers the different celestial beings through the Archangels, Principalities, Powers, Virtues, Dominions, Thrones, Cherubim and Seraphim. Each choir of angels has a rough sketch accompanying it, and children are always very interested in seeing the round Thrones and the four-headed Cherubim. This helps them to see that angels are not simply humans who can fly, but that they are different from us, and some are very different indeed. 

The book ends by inviting the readers to go to Mass, so that they can join the angels in worshiping Jesus.  It was written in 2019 by Jerry Windley-Daoust and Illustrated by Austyn Schwartzbeck. Published by Holy Heroes, LLC, (www.holyheroes.com) it is available for around $13 and is a good fit for upper elementary students. 

If you would like to invite those young, special people in your life to learn more about the holy angels - all nine choirs of them - this book is an easy way to do so. Make this the year that September 29 comes and you are ready to talk about St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael and all the other angels God has created.

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