ricardo the fierce, by tom welty.

i saw this little book — a tiny and short children’s book — reviewed in christianity today. i can hardly believe they reviewed it, and i’m so glad they did. once in a while, a children’s book can say something in a way that a book for adults just can’t. or, a children’s book can say something beautiful and profound with such a limited amount of words. maybe we should force all authors to use so few words!

ricardo is a butterfly, born with crossed-eyes. he’s goofy looking. but he has an inner strength and courage that sucks the wind out of you. all the little characters — his parents who love him perfectly, the other young animals about to tease him on the first day of school, and the lumbery bears who are a bit odd themselves, but offer him instant “place” and cred — they’re all just wonderful little characters. there’s both so much and so little to this book. i read it to my family the other day, and we all got choked up, and we all felt warm and gushy inside, and we all felt god’s unconditional love for us and our mostly-unconditional love for each other. i will definitely be using this book in ministry.