When Mitzy, a sick little girl, unwraps a box, she releases a cloud of tiny angels that renew her mother’s faith in God and scrub away Mitzy’s ailments.
In this spiritual picture book inspired by her niece’s struggle with alopecia and eczema, author Melissa Purdy personifies faith as a childlike angel who shows Mitzy and her mother the importance of smiling through hard times.
Though Mitzy is “the apple of her mother’s eye,” she’s never felt special because of her illness. She’s also bullied and ostracized by peers because of her skin rashes, and at times she cries herself to sleep. Mitzy’s single mom feels abandoned by God. Though she still prays, she distrusts him and is losing faith.
Then one day in the hospital, God gives Mitzy an invisible friend named “Child-like Faith,” who tells her stories, makes her laugh and becomes a constant companion. Mitzy returns home and notices a gift box on a shelf. She opens it, and out fly angels riding beams of light. The angels lift Mitzy’s spirits, swinging on her eyelashes and tickling her as they sing and dance. When Mitzy’s health worsens, Child-like Faith advises her to ask her mother to pray for the angels to cure Mitzy’s sickness.
This tender book is about the importance of having faith, even when you’re overwhelmed by sadness and illness. Purdy never makes moral judgments and her sentiments are heartfelt, but parts of the story are hard to accept. For example, Mitzy’s mother doesn’t trust God but continues praying. Readers are led to believe that only the mother’s prayers will save Mitzy. Why can’t Mitzy pray for herself?
Despite these issues and the low-quality pen-and-pencil illustrations, the book offers a comforting message to readers of Christian faiths struggling with illness.
Also available as an ebook.
