It’s never too early to show our children how much Hashem loves them and to begin instilling within them the incredible power of emunah. Following the very successful first volume of Living Emunah for Children, ArtScroll is proud to present Living Emunah for Children 2, a brand-new collection of fun and kid-friendly stories, carefully chosen and adapted from the Living Emunah series by Leah Sutton for youngsters ages 4 – 8, with delightful, full-color pictures by Sarah Zee.

We spoke with Mrs. Sutton about children, emunah, and her new book:

AS: How did you go about choosing stories from among the hundreds in the Living Emunah series?

LS: I reread some of the books that I’d loved when I was young, including many of ArtScroll’s children’s books. I thought about my childhood favorites, the books I still remember today, and I analyzed what made me love them so. Then I read through all of Rabbi Ashear’s Living Emunah books, looking for stories that could work for young people. A story with a child at its center, a story with one focus, not with many complicated details, a story with an exciting turn of events. And, of course, I got input from Rabbi Ashear.

AS: How can we inculcate even young children with emunah?

LS: Children have a certain simplicity and acceptance that makes emunah very special to them. When they hear these stories, they see themselves in them. Children often see themselves as the heroes, and in these stories the heroes are ba’alei emunah. And the heroes of these stories are often simple, everyday people, so children feel it could have been them.

AS: What is your personal favorite from among the many stories?

LS:  I love the story called “The Cry of the Baby.” Such simple hashgachah, the very day a person needed to hear a baby cry, Hashem sent that baby. Also, the story “Friendly Competition,” about a famous ice-cream manufacturer coming to the rescue of his competitor. The story was such a kiddush Hashem, it made me proud, and children love ice cream, so it was so appropriate.

AS: What was the feedback you received on the first volume of Living Emunah for Children?

LS: It was really amazing. The number of books that were sold kept going up. People who’d gotten so much out of Rabbi Ashear’s Living Emunah books had been waiting for something like this for their children.

Get your copy today at artscroll.com!