Posted on by Adrienne Meador

Lent and Easter Kids’ Book and Gift Recommendations

Do you guys make Easter baskets for your kids or godchildren? We do! I think it’s a super fun reward for all of the hard work the kids have been doing to make sacrifices for Jesus during Lent. Our Easter baskets usually have a book for each kid, some favorite candy and snacks, and a religious item. Last year my family did this Lenten Devotional together, and I really loved it. The book was geared toward older children (not little ones) and follows the Eastern Rite observance of Great Lent. However, we still found it useful as Western Rite Orthodox Christians, and we learned so much. Here are my favorite suggestions for reading books together during Lent and Easter or for filling those Easter baskets!

In our house, we usually do a Lenten read-aloud around the dinner table, while the kids are finishing their meals. If it’s the feast day of a saint, we will read a picture book about them, if we have one. If we have an icon of that saint, we place it near our table with a lit candle. The books below are also good for bringing along in your Mass bag. Little ones who are too young to follow along with the Mass can flip through these picture books quietly in the pew.

Our family always tries to attend both the Easter Vigil and the morning Easter service. My little kids like to wear pajamas to the vigil but dress up for Easter morning. My babies usually sleep through the night service, but my other children always stay awake somehow. Personally, I think it’s because they are so excited about the feast coming up after church. The kids love it when all the lights suddenly come on and the icons are uncovered. It’s the one moment of the year when they are allowed and encouraged to make noise inside the church.

When we get back home, my husband and I put the children to bed, and then we put out the Easter baskets. Our kids are permitted to look through all the goodies in the morning, but they can’t eat the treats until after the morning Mass (yes, we are THAT cold). We also enjoy exchanging gifts with our god-families after the Easter vigil or on Easter morning.

Picture books for the whole Lent and Easter seasons:

  • Into the Sea, Out of the Tomb: Jonah and Jesus by Maura Roan Mckeegan. This is my favorite pick for Easter because of the side-by-side comparison between the story of Jonah and that of Jesus. Another gem in this series is The End of the Fiery Sword: Adam & Eve and Jesus & Mary.  
  • Miracles of Jesus by Tomie dePaola. We use this book all during Lent to talk about the life and ministry of Jesus. I love the author’s inviting artwork.
  • Parables of Jesus by Tomie dePaola. We like this one obviously because of Tomie dePaola but also because it describes the teachings of Jesus through his parables in an easy, accessible way for children.
  • The Egg Tree by Katherine Milhous. A Caldecott Medal winner, this book from 1950 features an egg hunt and a grandmother introducing her grandchildren to the Easter tradition of painting eggs and creating an egg tree.  
  • Tale of the Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt. This book is the story of a legend in which three trees are cut down and become the infant Christ’s manger, His fishing boat, and His cross.
  • Pascha at the Duckpond by Mother Melania. A great message about the true spirit of Lent (hint: it’s not all about following rules) using animals to tell the story.
  • Rechenka’s Eggs by Patricia Polacco. This is a Russian tale of a Babushka who cares for an injured goose and receives an Easter miracle in return.
  • The Story of the Easter Robin by Dandi Daley Mackall. A retelling of the legend of how the robin got his red breast through an act of compassion toward Jesus.
  • The Miracle of the Red Egg by Elizabeth Crispina Johnson. This is the story of Mary Magdalene’s courageous testimony to the Resurrection before Emperor Tiberius.
  • God Gave Us Easter by Lisa Tawn Bergren. I love all the symbols from nature that this book draws out for young children to help them understand the meaning of Jesus’s sacrifice and resurrection.
  • Catherine’s Pascha by Charlotte Riggle. What I like most about this book is that it portrays modern Orthodox children (like mine) going to church in the middle of the night for the Easter vigil and enjoying the feast afterwards.
  • The Story of Easter by Patricia Pingry. This is a very simple presentation of the meaning of Easter for babies and toddlers. It’s a board book.
  • The Berenstain Bears and the Easter Story by Jan and Mike Berenstain. This book features a children’s Easter play which helps the main characters learn the true meaning of Easter (spoiler alert: It’s not about chocolate bunnies and marshmallow chicks).

Resources for specific saint feast days which often fall during or around Lent:

  • February 10th: St Scholastica
  • March 6th: Saints Felicity and Perpetua
  • March 19th: St. Joseph
    • MP3 to listen to about St. Joseph

Easter Basket Ideas: (for more suggestions, see my post on Christmas gifts)

  • Saint socks (kid and adult sizes)
  • Peg dolls set of 4 (priest, monk, nun, altar server), also these saint peg people
  • Pillowcase (Many Orthodox options: The Good Shepherd, St. Patrick, Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Cecilia, St. Michael, St. Jude, Our Father, St. Joseph, Guardian Angels)

Hope you found some great resources to use this Lent and Easter and for years to come! Visit this post again and again, whenever you need gift ideas. I truly hope you have a blessed and fruitful Lent and a joyous Easter. May these books that you share with your family add greatly to your experience of the liturgical season, as they have done in our home. Christ is Risen!