IF GOD WERE A GREAT BIG BEAR

What if God were a bear? A lilac bush? A star?

Harbridge imagines God as a series of different creatures and even objects, in each incarnation assigning a different pronoun—He, She, or They—and describing in rhymes what God would bring forth or become in the world. A squirrel would “surround Himself with beauty / That He’d see from His tall tree.” A worm would cultivate rich earth, rotting leaves, and trees. “If God were a little child, / And She very well may be, / She’d make secret paths and summer fields / And puppies, wouldn’t She? // For Creator God made all that is, / that was, and will ever be. // Which means God’s in the great big bear, / And God’s in you and me.” The rhythm of the verses is solid, and Harbridge relies on near rhymes (bottom/autumn, dinner/winter, friends/weekends) to make a lofty idea feel accessible to a young audience. Dorado’s brilliant colors and a point of view that changes from page to page will keep little listeners poring over the pages. And if the words and pictures inspire the next generation to protect the environment fashioned for the enjoyment and well-being of all God’s creations? All the better. Two tan-skinned youngsters appear alongside the animals.

Harbridge brings the difficult concept of an invisible creator down to a kid level by putting God in the creations.