Everyone Prays: Celebrating Faith Around the World

Storyteller and author Lumbard (Angels) takes a multicultural approach to the subject of prayer. Both beginning readers and those still being read to should find this pictorial journey through the major religions’ prayer practices, as depicted by Iranian illustrator Sadeghian (The Knight, the Princess, and the Magic Rock), to be informative and engaging. The text is minimal, but the colorful, cartoonlike illustrations offer details that can serve as discussion starters. For example, “others use [water] for special ceremonies” depicts a baptism; “Some pray with their heads covered” shows a group of Muslim women wearing veils. Prayers from Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, and Shintos appear, and geography, rituals, objects, and reasons for prayer are shown (“People pray when they are happy”). An “About The World’s Religions” page that will help adults answer basic questions about the religions mentioned, and a list of notes for each illustration is provided. While everyone on Earth may not actually pray—around one in six people worldwide is not religiously affiliated—Lumbard’s examination respectfully and simply describes commonalities and differences among the billions of believers who do. Ages 4–8. (Mar.)