Exodus Rating

Here's the hard truth about this life. Good doesn't always triumph. Justice isn't always served. People don't always change for the better. Life isn't clean, and we can't make it clean by blotting out all the sex, language, and violence that might come before our eyes. Likewise, we can't make things better by numbing ourselves to evil. 

It's a delicate balance, and one that requires discernment (a favorite word of Christian critics, I know, but a good concept.) There are plenty of people who use "clean" movies and books to absolve themselves of the very real evil in their own hearts. And it's to this kind of tendency we want to speak.

If we surround ourselves with an artificial "clean Christian" world, one where there are only happy endings, only inspiring acts of courage, only proper and elegant words, we're not only denying the truth about the world, but inventing our own. And it's one which doesn't show us how badly we need a Savior, or how much He really loves us.

So don't be the kid who covers his eyes during a game of hide-and-seek. The fact that you don't see evil doesn't mean it stops existing. Evil must be faced head on. Sometimes that means reading a book that's messy.

There's nothing wrong with having a tolerance level, nothing wrong with knowing your limit or having a standard. Tragedy happens naturally to children all the time, but that's no reason to force them into reading something inappropriate. People grow at different rates, and common sense should be exercised. Discernment, we recommend. Hiding, sheltering, cowering, and ignoring we do not.

This will look different for every person. We've given you some tools to help you navigate literature, and it's our hope you will do so in a spirit of honesty and love, not censorship and fear. 

1-Star Rating | 2-Star Rating | 3-Star Rating | 4-Star Rating | 5-Star Rating

Our five content concern categories, otherwise known as FLAWS

F = Fighting/Violence
L = Language
A = Attitude
W = Worldview
S = Sex

Review by Lauren Shearer
Lauren Shearer writes words for fun and profit. She also makes films, but everyone knows you can't make a profit doing that. Her other hobby is consistently volunteering way too much of her time. You can read more of her reviews here.
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44 Items found Print
Active Filters: 5-Star Rating, Kindergarten (Ages 5-6)
Albert
by Donna Jo Napoli
from Sandpiper Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Always Room for One More
by Sorche Nic Leodhas
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
1966 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Andrew Henry's Meadow
by Doris Burn
from Philomel Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Exodus Books 5-Star Rating
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Animals of the Bible
by Dorothy P. Lathrop, text selected by Helen Dean Fish
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1938 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Ant and the Elephant
by Bill Peet
from Sandpiper Books
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Sandpiper Books
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Black and White
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-3rd grade
1991 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$6.00 (2 in stock)
Black and White
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-3rd grade
1991 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Caps for Sale
by Esphyr Slobodkina
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Corduroy
by Don Freeman
from Puffin Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Cowardly Clyde
by Bill Peet
from Sandpiper Books
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Crow Boy
by Taro Yashima
from Puffin Books
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1956 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Fables
by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Preschool-3rd grade
1981 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Flotsam
by David Wiesner
from Clarion Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
2007 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
House at Pooh Corner
by A. A. Milne
from Puffin Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
House at Pooh Corner
by A. A. Milne
from Dutton Children's Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$19.99
How My Parents Learned to Eat
by Ina R. Friedman
from Sandpiper Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
by Laura Numeroff
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Joseph Had a Little Overcoat
by Simms Taback
from Viking Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
King's Chessboard
by David Birch & Devis Grebu
Reprint from Puffin Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
King's Chessboard
by David Birch & Devis Grebu
from Sun Dial Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Kiss for Little Bear
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Else Minarik & Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.95
Little Bear
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Else Minarik & Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-1st grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Little Bear's Visit
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Else Minarik & Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-1st grade
1962 Caldecott Honor Book
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$5.95
Little House
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Sandpiper Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
1943 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Locomotive
by Brian Floca
1st edition from Atheneum
for Preschool-5th
2014 Caldecott Medal winner, 2014 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$19.99
Madeline
by Ludwig Bemelmans
from Puffin Books
Realistic Fiction, Rhyming Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1940 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Madeline's Rescue
by Ludwig Bemelmans
from Puffin Books
Realistic Fiction, Rhyming Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1954 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$8.99
Make Way for Ducklings
by Robert McCloskey
from Puffin Books
Realistic Animal Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1942 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$9.99
Mouse Soup
An I Can Read Book Level 2
by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Owl Moon
by Jane Yolen; illustrated by John Schoenherr
from Philomel Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
1988 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Ox-Cart Man
by Donald Hall
from Puffin Books
Realistic Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1980 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Pete's a Pizza
by William Steig
from HarperFestival
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
in Board Books (Location: PIC-BOARD)
$8.99
Quest
Journey Trilogy #2
by Aaron Becker
from Candlewick Press
for PRes
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Snowy Day
by Ezra Jack Keats
from Puffin Books
Poetry for Kindergarten-2nd grade
1963 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Spider and the Fly
by Tony DiTerlizzi; based on the story by Mary Howitt
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
2003 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
by William Steig
from Simon and Schuster
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1970 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
by William Steig
from Simon and Schuster
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1970 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Winnie-the-Pooh
by A. A. Milne
from Puffin Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99