Best this month
By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat Winnie the Pooh
Here is a down-to-earth screen interpretation of three A.A. Milne-inspired tales about fear, friendship and the benefits of play. How sweet it is to relish the wonder of clever word- play and delightful characters instead of the usual animated 3-D movies for children. In the story, Winnie the Pooh and his Hundred Acre Woods friends are trying to help gloomy Eeyore find his tail. They decide to have a contest, with the prize being a
How Did I Get to Be 70 When I’m 35 Inside? Spiritual Surprises of Later Life
“Every tomorrow has two doors, we can enter through the door of resistance or the door of growth. The first is fueled by fear, the
second by faith,” writes Linda Douty, a spiritual director and retreat
The Brussats pub- lish the website www. SpiritualityandPractice. com where you can find more information about the items reviewed in this column.
leader. Although there are many challenges in aging, it does offer a door to growth. Douty knocks down say- ings like “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” or “It’s all downhill from here.” She thinks we should see our- selves as getting wiser as we age, as making music with what we have, and as expanding our horizons. Aging also offers us many opportunities to process the messages our bodies give us, especially those about coping with pain and illness, libido and longev- ity. It is also a time to pay attention to the complicated relationships with partners, friends, adult children and the world. Douty also covers the surprises that come with our ever-changing images of God, our understandings of prayer, our discernment of the Spirit’s guidance, and our trusting of the divine mystery (Skylight Paths,
www.skylightpaths. com).
42 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org
pot of honey. All is fun until they become afraid that their human friend Christopher Robin has been kidnapped by the Backson (he left a note saying he’d be “Back soon”). This film is spiced up by the winning narration of John Cleese. Directors Stephen Anderson and Don Hall have come up with some clever ways of linking the story with the written word, and the animation style is very close to the illustrations in the books (Walt Disney Pic- tures, G).
Brother Sun, Sister Moon: Saint Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Creatures
In this prayer poem, St. Francis of Assisi reaches out to the natural world and identifies the sun, the moon, the wind, the water and the earth as our brothers and sisters in the divine family. Modeling a way of gratitude and reverence for life, St. Francis praises God as the gifted artist who has given all creation variety and beauty and bounty. And within this sweep of praise, he also includes those who endure sickness or square off with death.
This picture book for children ages 4 through 8 is an exquisite blend of writing and design. It is easy to see why writer Katherine Paterson has twice won the Newbery Award and the National Book Award. Equally impressive are the illustrations of paper-cut artist Pamela Dalton (Handprint Books/Chronicle Books,
www.Handprintbooks.com).
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