From toddlers to tweens, Lucy Rycroft’s recommended reads help families and churches celebrate women’s stories and God’s design for mutual flourishing
International Women’s Day (IWD) is one of those annual events that we’re grateful to see but often a bit stuck about celebrating.
Are we meant to have a party? Join a march for equal pay? Write to our MP about the ongoing shocking treatment of women around the globe?
For me, IWD is less about what I have lined up on March 8th (church, my daughter’s Duke of Edinburgh training walk, my son’s football match and some ironing, thank you for asking) and more about reminding me that raising my children with a healthy understanding of gender equality is a year-round task. It’s something I need to be constantly engaging in as I recalibrate society’s skewed understanding of how men and women operate in the world, by pointing myself and my kids back to God’s design for mutual flourishing, as seen in the Bible.
When we read about the achievements and experiences of women alongside those of men, we are helping to shape our children’s mindset
One of the easiest ways to do this is through the books we read to our kids. When we read about the achievements and experiences of women alongside those of men, we are helping to shape our children’s mindset, which will in turn help to shape culture as they grow up and take their place in society - in church, work and family.
So, as a parent of 16 years, a Christian parenting blogger of nearly 14, and a Christian book reviewer for over a decade, here are my top picks of books for children which tell the stories of women and/or promote biblical gender equality. I’ve arranged them by age to help you find what you need quickly.
0-4s
First Word Bible Heroines series
These fabulous board books for very young children tell the stories of Esther, Ruth, Miriam and Martha in just one word per page. They were mainstays of my son’s library when he was a toddler - and he’s 16 now, so they’ve clearly stood the test of time!
As a grown-up who knows the story, you can use these words to fill in the details. If you’re not sure, use them as a prompt to look up the full story in the bible!
Deborah and the Very Big Battle and Esther and the Very Brave Plan
These two are part of The Good Book Company’s ‘Very Best Bible Stories’ series for young children. They’re super engaging, with short text which invites interaction, and appealingly bright illustrations which burst off each page.
There are now so many beautiful books out there to celebrate women - not just on International Women’s Day, but all through the year
4-7s
Extraordinary Women of Faith
I had the honour of endorsing this beautiful hardback picture book. Each page features a different Christian woman from history, with biographical details about their life, work and how their faith played a part in what they did. Everything is packaged up in short bursts so that it feels easy to read to a young child.
The featured women cover all aspects of life and culture: healthcare, sport, art, politics, science and more. Some you’ll have heard of (Jane Austen, Mother Teresa, Rosa Parks), whilst others will be a joy to discover (Wangari Maathai, Wilma Rudolph).
Mighty Girl, Mighty God series
Full disclaimer: I wrote this series, so can’t tell you whether or not to buy it - you’ll have to read the reviews and make your own mind up!
But what I can tell you is how this series came to be. I was concerned that my own kids (three sons and a daughter) were likely to receive a skewed outline of the Bible if left to the children’s books already on the market, which were biased towards the stories of the men in the Bible. True, there are more men, and often more is written about them - but to ignore the women entirely is to miss out whole swathes of important salvation history.
So, this series currently covers Esther (who saved the entire Jewish people), Rahab and Ruth (whose faithfulness led to them being in Jesus’ family tree), Deborah, Abigail and Hagar - all of whom have stories which show us important truths about God and the gifts he gives us.
Can you spare 5 minutes to help Premier NexGen? Answering this short survey will help us make our great content for Christian parents even better
Do Great Things for God series
I couldn’t love this series more. Each Christian woman from history is given her own book, where her story of life and faith is told succinctly but inspiringly - with beautifully whimsical illustrations and a text which keeps you reading. There are further biographical details at the back of each book.
The series has now expanded to include men, but the list of female titles is impressive - 13 at time of writing, including Joni Eareckson Tada, Corrie Ten Boom and Queen Elizabeth II. Some of the best in the series feature women you won’t have heard of, but who did incredible things in the name of Jesus.
7-11s
Queen Esther, Nation Saver
This beautiful book for older children makes an enticing bedtime story. Each chapter is a stand-alone story of a different woman from the bible. The story is real - but the gaps are filled in by master storyteller Amy Scott Robinson, making them gripping, edge-of-your-seat stuff.
Alongside Esther, Miriam and Lydia, you get the stories of lesser-well-known women, such as the Daughters of Zelophehad. A really lovely - and important - read for any older child.
9+
The Hiding Place - a graphic novel
Few Christians don’t know the story of Corrie Ten Boom and her family, who risked their lives to hide Jews in the Second World War. This beautiful graphic novel edition of her story brings it to a younger generation - and my twins absolutely couldn’t get enough of it when we read it together (they were 10).
Parts of the story are horrific, and whilst I’m sure some of the more gruesome details of concentration camp life from the original book have been omitted here, there is still a fair bit of detail which it might be wise to keep from sensitive children. But the message shines through, nothing - even life on earth - is worth more than loving, following and obeying Jesus.
***
It wasn’t always the case that biblical women, or historical Christian women, were given much space on the shelves of children’s bedrooms, so I’m really delighted that over the last 5-10 years, publishers have been rising to the challenge. There are now so many beautiful books out there to celebrate women - not just on International Women’s Day, but all through the year.
We return to the puzzle of how we celebrate International Women’s Day. Building up our children’s libraries with rich reads about women and how God has used them in brilliant ways would seem to be a very good way of celebrating. So why not pick one of these gorgeous books to give to a child in your life this year? Happy choosing - and happy International Women’s Day!
