Every so often, a little jewel of a book lands in your life. Around the Circle; Celebrating the Church Year is one of them. As a children’s minister, I am always on the lookout for resources that teach about the liturgical year. While you can find plenty of books that focus on specific seasons, a resource that maps out the entire year in accessible language for both children and adults simply didn’t exist, until now. It gently pairs our experiences of living in God’s time with worldly time, showing all ages how the church seasons enhance our ability to worship, serve, and love God well.
Around the Circle is stunning. It is the perfect book to be a touchstone throughout the entire year when you begin a session with children and families. It is the perfect book to share at home while you cuddle up on the couch. The illustrations are exquisite and add much depth to the lyrical prose that help us wonder and learn more about the liturgical year.
Around the Circle is going to be my new baptism gift book, and it will be what I give to families this Advent. It is also how I will start our whole group openings at the beginning of the programmatic year. We always take time with the liturgical calendar at our openings, but this book lets us diagram it well. It lets us add in our birthday celebrations. It has space for us to add in other celebrations. It appeals to children and their parents (most of whom I find do not understand the liturgical calendar as well as their children). I will also have copies to take apart and put into framed art for our nursery and our early childhood classroom. I do need one additional copy; one that goes with my own family’s spot for seasonal displays. We like to collect bits of nature, track the moon phases, and put out pieces for the liturgical season. I anticipate the book will be slightly bent and a bit sticky before the end of the year as the little hands in my home open it, read it, and wonder along with the story.
