It’s getting ever harder in our time to keep the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ at the centre of Christmas celebrations. The simple yet ‘catchy’ rhyme, and the beautiful illustrations in this book will help any significant adult in a child’s life share the true meaning and divine purpose behind the birth of Jesus—in an enjoyable way.

The story opens with a little girl asking her Nana about the birth of a baby boy whose bed was made of straw and whose home was in a stable—or so a popular song goes. It’s a short segue from the song to the Bible and the accounts written by Matthew and Luke. Jesus’ ancestry is described in detail as they both set out to trace the history of Mary (Luke) and Joseph (Matthew)—all the way back to Adam.

The author cleverly utilizes a child-friendly genealogy-of-Jesus chart to simplify the telling of the story.

“Now, look at this neat diagram
I’m sure ‘twill help a lot,
You know that game we sometimes play,
The one called ‘dot-to-dot’?”

“Well, this game’s something similar,
And makes a picture too,
So we can fully understand
What Matt and Luke both knew.”

The story follows the exploits of Noah, Abraham, David, and on until we come to the astonishing visit of the angel Gabriel to the young Mary. Jesus is born. He visits the Temple in Jerusalem when just 12 years old and spends time conversing with the Elders. Jesus’ earthly ministry starts in earnest at the age of thirty and the story ends with a brief synopsis of His death and resurrection.

If that was all there was to this book, it would certainly paint a clear picture of the lineage of Christ and the reason for His birth. It would likely raise many questions though; and so, as for all the Please, Nana books, there are extra notes at the back, indicated by numbers throughout the poetry. These expand on the simple story to provide answers to some questions a youngster might ask.

This book is the third in the very popular Please, Nana series. The fourth, Please, Nana: What’s a miracle? delves more deeply into Christ’s earthly ministry.

Format: Hard Cover
Product Audience: Preschool-Primary/Elementary
Series: Please, Nana
Pages: 40
Author: Margaret Wieland
Published: 2021