Who counts? 100 sheep, 10 coins, and 2 sons

Levine and Sasso present contemporary retellings of the three biblical parables with numerical themes: the good shepherd, lost coin, and prodigal son. In the first, a Caucasian farmhand in a plaid shirt and cowboy hat temporarily loses one of his 100 sheep; in the similar second parable, an African-American woman scours her midcentury modern home for a lost silver drachma, celebrating its discovery with a party for the women in town. In the longer final story, Meganck pictures the father and sons as a Latino family running a vast farm. All three stories are true to their biblical roots, but Meganck's handsome paintings of diverse characters and present-day settings may help readers find greater connections to their messages about value, faithfulness, and appreciation-and it doesn't hurt that each parable ends with a party. Ages 3-8. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

K-Gr 2-Three of Jesus's parables from the New Testament are retold here with a secular twist. Each parable is about something or someone lost: a sheep, a coin, and a son. In scripture, human repentance and God's forgiveness are integral to these stories; however, repentance and forgiveness are not mentioned in the sheep or coin parable, and references to God and Jesus are omitted overall. A note to teachers and parents in the back of the book reads, "Our presentation of these parables does not intend to erase the focus on repenting and forgiving. Rather, we seek to add a new understanding based on what we imagine Jesus' original audiences would have heard." The strongest story is that of the prodigal son, and the weakest is the one about the lost coin (when the woman finds her lost coin, she puts it back with her "coin collection," making it look as if the coins did not represent her life savings, but only a hobby). The narratives are light and conversational in tone. Some passages have a storyteller's cadence. For example, when the shepherd goes to look for his lost sheep, "he looked to the right. Nothing. He walked and listened. Still nothing. Then he heard it: a bleating sound." Meganck's use of color and soft lines is similar to Tomie dePaola's style. VERDICT An uneven presentation, unlikely to circulate well.-Jennifer Prince, Buncombe County Public Libraries, NC © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Three parables of Jesus from the Christian Bible are retold with modern-day settings and characters.Levine (Jewish Studies/Vanderbilt) and Sasso, a rabbi, use diverse settings and a multicultural cast of characters to recount the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son. "One Hundred Sheep" is set on a contemporary ranch with a bearded, white shepherd in plaid flannel shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots. He notices when just one of his flock goes missing and searches until he finds her. "Ten Coins" is the story of a brown-skinned woman with dark, curly hair who temporarily misplaces one of her silver coins, identified in the text as drachmas, although that term is not further defined. "Two Sons," the longest story in the collection, recounts the story of a father's relationship with his two adult sons. The father and sons have light-brown skin and dark, curly hair. Each story ends with a celebration including neighbors and friends of different ethnicities. The confident, cheery tone of the text is well-matched with appealing illustrations that effectively convey the emotions of the characters. The large trim size makes this an excellent choice for reading to a group, and no prior knowledge of the specific Bible stories is necessary for comprehension. A thoughtful authors' note to parents and teachers offers interpretation of the three parables, discussion suggestions, and source references for the biblical texts. An unusual and creative interpretation of the three parables, offering the satisfying conclusion that each person (or sheep or coin) matters and should be counted. (Picture book/religion. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.