Crowned with Glory by Dorena Williamson. Illustrated by Shellene Rodney

A young girl celebrates her identity as “a gift from above” and is excited to discover God’s world. As she plays in the rain, practices ballet moves, swims in a pool, and skips rope with her friends, she wears her hair in different styles. While having her hair braided in a beauty salon, she thinks, “Reflections of culture all around— / such glory in creating beautiful crowns.” In church, the girl wears a pretty hair bow and learns to worship God, pray to her Creator, and thank him for her daily bread.  

Enjoying nature or performing acts of service, the girl revels in her God-given beauty: “The Creator crowned me with melanated glory, / and every day I get to live out my beautiful story. / Using that passion / that God gave me / to make a difference / in my community.” 

Empowered by God, supported by her family, and encircled by a community of faithful friends, the girl “is full of hope from head to toe. / There’s no limit to the places I can go! / Plans before me—just walk them out, / a future full of seeds to sprout. / Goodness and mercy follow all my days, / and this crown of beauty will never fade.”  

Artist Shellene Rodney’s cheerful, positive illustrations and author Dorena Williamson’s encouraging, inspiring narrative offer young readers a Christian worldview in which their worth lies in being made in God’s image, their lives have purpose because they have been given gifts to serve God and others, and they have a future because God’s goodness and mercy will follow them all their days. Christian parents and caregivers can use this book as a conversation starter to help children focus their dreams for the future on what God wants for them, and to talk about the reality that our goal isn’t to be all we want to be, but to be what God wants us to be. We live in a fallen world, yet by God’s grace, our lives have meaning and direction when they are submitted to God’s purposes. (WaterBrook)