Mean classmates, toxic co-workers, difficult neighbors—young or old, many of us have had experiences with people who live or work near us who bring us down in some way. It’s not easy at any age to know the Godly way to handle it—at least it’s not easy for me!

Kids so often feel powerless to change situations they find themselves in at home, at school, and on the playground. Love Bird, the first book in Shelleen Weaver’s new children’s series, Fruit Fables (based on the fruit of the Spirit), helps kids learn that love, in the form of loving words, is something they can choose to do. With gorgeous illustrations, fun characters, and kid-friendly rhyming text, Love Bird demonstrates that kids’ choices can impact others and transform a whole neighborhood!

Do your kids think of love as a choice? In our society, we so often think of love as something that happens to us, i.e., we “fall in love.” When I was in college, a guy I knew talked about how he chose to love his girlfriend. It helped me a lot in my life to think about love as something I had some control over.

In this new book (released last month), Mockingbird moves into the neighborhood and upsets everyone with his mean, mocking ways. Kids will see how the choice to use loving words changes the whole neighborhood! If you’re looking for Christmas gifts, Love Bird is a gift that gives the kids in your life the power to choose love—to show Jesus’ love through the words they say to their family members, friends, classmates, and even the kid down the street who doesn’t play nice.

Sonja Anderson