Jared and I were talking to a dad from our church recently, and he was telling us about how he reads to his kids before bed most nights. On the way home, I told Jared about the books my dad would read to us at bedtime, and how we’d all sprawl across the living room floor half-asleep, listening to The Magician’s Nephew or The Boxcar Children. It is one of those small ministries a dad offers to his kids, and one I’m thankful for.
But there’s a sad lack of good books these days that don’t just entertain children, but capture their imaginations and make them want to be brave, creative disciples of King Jesus. When I do come across a book like that, I buy a copy, read it, and file it away on my shelf for my own kids someday. I imagine Jared reading to them after dark, crickets chirping outside, and them listening with heavy eyelids.
Where the Green Train Goes will be one of those books.
I had the honor of proofreading this middle-grade novel for my friend, Jess Davis, who authored it. In an age of quick reads with cheap storylines, Where the Green Train Goes is a piece of artwork. It is written beautifully, illustrated meticulously, and the world Jess has created teems with color and thought.
It’s the kind of book that will make a kid want to paint a picture, or plant a seed, or build something with sticks in the backyard. It kind of made me want to do those things.
Children these days are held to a lower standard than in generations past. They read less, play less, and are expected to contribute less to the household. As a mom herself, the author seems to understand that kids are way smarter than we give them credit for and are capable of much more than we realize.
Two themes threaded carefully throughout the book are ones of aging and grief, as the three Bonneclaire siblings are on a mission to help their friend, Bisbee, who has lost his memory after his wife died. They accomplish this by caring for and serving their elderly friend, walking beside him through his grief journey. I don’t know many children’s books that handle a real-world problem like that; but the truth is, there are grandchildren everywhere who need to go visit their Papa or Nana, and who would make a world of difference by just being there for them.
What a beautiful, biblical truth that echoes the Proverb:
“Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers” (Pr. 17:6).
I don’t write many book reviews and am not even sure this counts as one. I’m just here to say that I’ve found something good, true, and beautiful—a book called Where the Green Train Goes—and I hope I get to read it to my own children at bedtime someday.
A crisp wind carried in the mixed perfume of wet earth, rain, and lavender and they all breathed in deeply. Ruby held her hand outside the shelter of the umbrella and let the raindrops fall on her upturned palm.
“I can’t remember the last time I saw this view,” Bisbee said. “I guess sometimes a person can get so clamped down around their own pain… you can forget to lift your chin and look out at the world around you.”
Bash nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. “It sure is a big, glorious world the Maker made.”
~ Jess Davis, Where the Green Train Goes
You can learn more about Where the Green Train Goes and preorder a copy here.
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