If you have a small child and you are looking for age appropriate Orthodox children’s books, then this is the list for you! The target age for these books is 0-3 years old, and I’ve broken it down based on age. As a homeschool mother of 3 (soon to be 4) young children, I know how important it is to have good books for my children. I’ve only included books that we have read, own and loved so you can be confident that these books are tried and true. Many of these books are still in our church bag on a weekly basis, so know that they can be enjoyed by children even beyond the toddler years. Be on the lookout for my upcoming blogpost about how to start building an Orthodox library for kids.

Age 0-12 months:

Developmental Milestones of Early Literacy: Around 3 months your baby should be developing a better grasp not only of what you're reading to them (or at least the expressions on your face) but also the books themselves as they learns to swipe at objects and attempts to bring them to their mouth. Around 6 to 12 months your baby will be taking an active interest in what’s in front of them. Your baby will develop many new skills, including the ability to sit up tall with their head steady and grab at pages. Don't be surprised if books end up in your baby's mouth, as this is not only to be expected but a good sign that they are interested in books and wants to explore them further. This is the time to invest in durable board books. I don’t recommend paper back books or books with thin pages. Children at this age are drawn to books that contain plenty of color, simple objects, and photographs of faces that babies seem to prefer.

My Recommendation: Board Books

What Do You See at Liturgy? By Kristina Kallas-Tartara

What do you see at Liturgy is a small board book with up-close pictures of things they will see while at church (i.e. candles, priest, censor, etc). This is probably my favorite picture book to bring to church with us - it is permanently in my church bag with 3 small children.

Goodnight Jesus by Angela Isaacs, illustrated by Nicholas Malara

Goodnight Jesus is a sweet board book that introduces veneration to children through association of kisses of those we love and see and those we love in our icons. It’s perfect for babies who love giving kisses to begin practicing too! This book also lives in our church bag as my beginning readers enjoy it as well, both for the simplicity of the words, but also because they enjoy helping their baby brother give kisses to the saints in the book.

My Very First Book of Orthodox Words by Orthodox Lighthouse

With simple words, engaging photographs, and a hardbound cover and pages, this books is sure to be loved by your growing toddler. No surprise here, my 2 year old is obsessed with this book, so its guaranteed to be loved for many years to come! If you like this book, there are 3 other books in this series that you may also be interested in including a few seasonal books (1) My Very First Book of Nativity Words (2) My Very First Book of Pascha Words (3) My Very First Book of Orthodox Counting and Shapes

Age 12-24 Months

Developmental Milestones of Early Literacy: Around 12 to 18 months it’s all about a hands-on experience. Not only should be holding books and turning board pages (albeit several at a time), and likely to demonstrate their already well-developed love of reading by carrying his books around, eagerly handing them to you to read, and answering your questions of "Where is the…?" by pointing to pictures with one finger. Around 18 to 24 months: Taking charge. By now your baby will not only have turned into a toddler but also a true book connoisseur adept at turning his own board-book pages. Paper pages may still take a while to fully master. Ask "What's that?" and your toddler is sure to respond by naming familiar pictures. Pause before completing the sentence in a favorite book, and your toddler will finish it for you. I Pray Today (below) is a perfect book for this particular milestone as the words “Lord Have Mercy” are repeated on every other page.

My Recommendation: Board Books

I Pray Today by Angela Isaacs, illustrated by Amandine Wanert

Written by the same author of Goodnight Jesus, this board book has quickly become one of our favorites! This book is a great tool to introduce prayer to children by showing many scenarios throughout the day where children can pray an abbreviated version of the Jesus Prayer “Lord Have Mercy.” I’m including this one in the early childhood section because there are very few words so even busy babies can sit through this book. My early readers still enjoy this book and can now read from memory as it has “Lord have mercy” on every other page.

O Is for Orthodox by Newrome Press

Not only is this book absolutely stunning, the die cut designs throughout the book are sure to interest your tiny book connoisseur as they add interest to turning pages (which isn’t that the whole fun of books is turning all the pages before mom or dad can read them?). O is for Orthodox is an Orthodox alphabet book which introduces your baby to 26 words related to the Orthodox Faith as they learn their ABCs. I may be more excited about this book than all my children, but that’s saying something because they truly love it too. It was much thicker in person than I expected and my 2 year old has adopted it as his “Gospel” reading book for his liturgical table. So rest assured, it will be loved for several years to come.

Age 2

Developmental Milestones of Early Literacy: Around 24-36 months. Your 2 year-old child can enjoy sharing the same book over and over and over again! That’s why having good books is important at this age. You are beginning to lay the foundation for them, both with a love of reading but also with familiar things they will be at church. They will begin to make connections with what they see in the pages to what they see in front of them. These books below would be a perfect addition to any church bag! My Recommendation: Board Books.

All of the above books I mentioned would be suitable for 2+ as well, so be sure to check those out as well

Saint Ia Rides a Leaf by Melinda Johnson Illustrated by Kristina Tartara

Introduce the life of Saint Ia in this sweet board book by SVS Press. Not only is it durable, it also is a small size which is appealing for young readers. Saint Ia Rides a Leaf is a charming story from the life of Saint Ia, an Irish missionary to England in the fifth or sixth century. The town and parish of St Ives in Cornwall, England, are named for her, and she is commemorated on February 3 in the Orthodox Church. There is even sheet music available to sing a St Ia’s song with your kids, which just makes it that much more fun!

Love Comes Down by Natasha Frasch Illustrated Avery Meeford

This board book is easy to read and the illustrated are sweet and simple and I know your 2 year old will be brining it back to you to read together over and over again. Love Comes Down is a song about the humble nature of God's love. Children all over the world will connect their everyday experiences to the Incarnation of Christ whether planting seeds, kissing cats, or choosing to be kind to a sibling. Written as an original song, the sheet music is found at the end of the book, and a downloadable audio recording is available HERE. I love the combination of lyrical words and the music recording. This makes it ideal for a 2 year old!

The Life of Christ in Icons : by Marina Paliaki

I hesitate to mention this one since it is often out of stock, as I believe it may be out of print. Although I have found it in stock at various times. That being said, I’ve includes the next two books in the 2 year old category because they are board books with a squishy hardback cover and they are durable for young toddlers. Although there are quite a few words on each page, we read and enjoyed them when my daughter was 2. The Life of Christ in Icons includes the major events in Christ’s life beginning with his birth, and ending with the Ascension and Pentecost. The illustrations are Byzantine style and consistent with Orthodox iconography so it’s been a great resource to teach the major feasts and the stories of Christ’s life. Paired with The Mother of God in Icons, I was able to teach most of the feast days to my daughter last year. I think every family with young children should have this in their book collection.

Since God Loves You and You Know It ... Sing Out Loud! By Christina Romos Connant

Want to start singing some fun songs together? How about teach your child to make the sign of the cross? This is not a normal “read aloud book” but I mention it because I think it’s a great resource for parents to have on hand because it pairs familiar nursery rhymes with reinvented words to help teach truths about our Orthodox Faith to children. My favorite song is “How to Make the Sign of the Cross” and you can watch us singing it together on my instagram reel HERE. I think this book makes for a great addition to an Orthodox home library. You can buy it through Draw Near Designs.

Age 3

Developmental Milestones of Early Literacy: Age 3. Your 3 year-old will usually begin to explore books independently now and have a little longer attention span for read alouds (about 3 mins or so). They will be able to retell a familiar story, begin to recognize letters and imitate the actions of reading a book aloud. I’ve included some of our favorite books below, which will also help you begin to Build your Orthodox Home Library for Children. By 3 years old, you can instill a proper relationship with how we treat books, specifically the delicate pages. I begin this training when my children are 2, but certainly continue through the 3’s, reminding them how we don’t throw books, step on books, or tear the pages. That being said, the books mentioned below are not board books for this reason. I believe they should be able to carefully learn how to interact with books beyond the board book category, so this category is slightly larger given there are more books available for this age.

My Recommendation: Hardcover books with regular pages should be okay to introduce at this age.

Children’s Bible Reader : by the Greek Bible Society

One of my priorities in educating my children is to help them love to read and to be familiar with Bible stories, so having a good children’s Bible is very important to me. I have asked a number of moms which Bible they recommend and this is the #1 most recommended! By the age of 3, my children are listen to stories for minutes at a time, and able to digest in greater detail what they heard. Each major Bible story is 2-3 pages long with large font, so they take about 5 minutes to read - which is perfect for the attention span of young readers at this age. Also, I like illustrations in this version as they are more similar to Byzantine icons. The stories themselves are closer to the actual Biblical text and include many of the same verbiage. For example, in the Creation story, it says “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” which is a direct quote from Genesis. This is a great Bible to have on your shelf to help share the love of the scriptures with your children. Currently only available new in paperback.

101 Orthodox Saints by Sarah Wright & Alexandra Schmalzbach

This is one of my top recommendations for parents (after the Children’s Bible Reader) as it is a fantastic resource for learning more about the Lives of the Saints. The Saint stories themselves are not very lengthy so a 3 year old can certainly listen to them without any trouble and they will enjoy the simple illustrations for each saint. It’s even more fun when they can find Saints that are special to you and your family, as there are 101 of the most well known Saints, so chances are they will already be familiar with some! Definitely add 101 Orthodox Saints to your list as you build you Orthodox Home Library!

The Story of You by Presvytera Angela Alatzakis

I absolutely love this book and I always give it as a gift at a child’s baptism! The Story of You is perfect for the 3 year old who was born into the Orthodox Church and longs to know more about when they were little. Ever since my youngest daughter was born, my oldest daughter has been interested in what she was like when she was a baby. She asks me constantly “did I do that when I was little?” That’s one of the reasons I love this book, because I can tell her about the special events that happened when she was just a baby! The Story of You is a parent’s re-telling to their child of their first steps into the Orthodox Christian faith. It walks the reader through praying for them before they were born, the prayers on their first day, special naming prayers on their 8th day, their entrance into the church on their 40th day, choosing their godparents, the steps of their Chrismation and baptism and beyond as a member of the body of Christ. It’s the perfect book for 3 year olds, and a great option for a baptism or name-day present. Available for purchase through Amazon.

A Taste of Paradise by Katherine Bolger Hyde and Illustrated by Anastasiya Sokolova

If you are looking for a book that combines your child’s love for animals and the saints, then look no further! Taste of Paradise is BEAUTIFULLY illustrated and of course there are an abundance of animals on every page, which my 3 year olds love to point to. It is a collection of 13 inspiring Saint stories which I know your children will love. Even my big kids love this books, especially my emerging readers who love to tell me which one is their favorite. It will be a beloved book in your collection for years to come!

Noah, the Ark and Me (with Puzzle in the Back of the Book) Newrome Press by Anna Iakovou Illustrated by Angeliki Deleha

I couldn’t complete this list without mention this sweet and really unique book for young readers. I’ve never seen a book like this, specifically not an Orthodox book, with a jigsaw puzzle imbedded into the back cover of the book! So not only is a sweet story YOU (you even can write your name in the book) traveling in the times of Noah, seeing the story of Noah’s Ark as it unfolds, but you can also complete a puzzle when you are done. This makes this book a really special church bag book for a quiet activity. An absolute treasure by Newrome Press. The puzzle is for 3+ and not suitable for children under 3.

So those are our favorite Orthodox Children’s books for ages 0-3. I still have a number of Orthodox books on our shelf that we love to read, and there are still plenty more that I want to buy, but these are the ones we read most often! If you have any others that I’m missing that you LOVE, would you mind sharing with me? I love hearing other recommendations! Leave a comment below and tell me which ones are your favorite!

-Khouria Destinie

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