Review of Little One, God Loves You

Little One, God Loves You is a board book that clocks in at under 10 pages and roughly 80 words total. It was written by Amy Warren Hilliker. If the “Warren” sounds familiar, it’s because the author is the daughter of Rick Warren, founder and senior pastor of Saddleback Church and author of The Purpose Driven Life, which has sold over 30 million copies.

This book is actually a reissue from the original version that was released in 2004. The original version had illustrations of a cartoon multicultural family. In this version, they decided to go all bunny. The illustrations by Polona Lovsin are painted in watercolor style. The detail is exquisite, from the flowers and butterflies of the opening scene, to the family dinner of mommy, daddy, and brother/sister bunny sitting down to eat their carrot dinner with grandma and grandpa bunny (with the grey fur). The little baby bunny who’s the protagonist of the story is really, really adorable, and your child will instantly be able to identify with the little one as it wakes up, eats with its family, plays, helps out with chores, and says good night.

The message is “inspired by The Purpose Driven Life”. If you never read that book in years (or ever), here’s a reminder of how that book is organized:

  • What on Earth Am I Here For?
  • Purpose #1: You Were Planned for God’s Pleasure (Worship)
  • Purpose #2: You Were Formed for God’s Family (Fellowship)
  • Purpose #3: You Were Created to Become Like Christ (Discipleship)
  • Purpose #4: You Were Shaped for Serving God (Ministry)
  • Purpose #5: You Were Made for a Mission (Mission)

 

Rather than teaching these principles in a heavy-handed approach, this book does a nice job of demonstrating these principles through the life of this little baby bunny. The rhyme that corresponds to Purpose #3 reads “Little one, little one on the go / God’s the one who helps you grow”, along with cute pictures of the bunny playing in the grass. Purpose #4 is communicated by the rhyme “Little one, little one, show you care / Be God’s helper everywhere” with an illustration of the little bunny helping gather acorns.

 

Even though this book was inspired by The Purpose Driven Life, the book works regardless of whether you know that or not. That’s because the principles themselves are scripturally sound. It’s never too early to start to teach kids that God does have a purpose in their lives, and that their lives will be successful if they love God and serve others.

Great book, great illustrations, great message, and an easy read with lots of great pictures to look through. The marketing material for this book says that it’s for kids aged 4-8, but it’s so simple I think you can go younger.