Lunches at Mela and Salsa’s were great. Reading with Cathy Smith Bowers and Barbara Kremen was a real treat.

The Beatitudes: From Slavery to Civil Rights

By Carole Boston  Weatherford; art by Tim Ladwig

Published by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers

Booklist Top Ten Religion Books for Youth

A poetic hymn and stirring art evoke the spirit of Immanuel (God with us) and show how faith undergirded the African-American freedom struggle.

The publisher’s site offers a free reading guide, bookmarks, postcards and posters.

I can’t wait to see President Obama’s  new children’s picture book Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters, which is probably set to become a holiday best-seller, at least in some circles. The book spotlights 13 American icons who exemplify various virtues. The most unlikely subject: Billie Holiday–my muse but no role model. Holiday also figures into Obama’s pre-Oval Office memoir Dreams from My Father. As a youth struggling with identity, he found her music transcendent.