Sister Valerie Miller’s Children’s Book Now Available: Specially Made by God 📚
A children’s book first created in a classroom many years ago is now available. Specially Made by God, written and illustrated by Sister Valerie Miller, has been published and can now be ordered online.
The idea for the book began in 1995 while Sister Valerie was teaching children from many cultures and national backgrounds. Her classroom included students from Korea, Japan, African American families, and others. She wanted her students to understand a simple message. Every person is created by God, and every life carries equal dignity.
The inspiration came from the words heard each year on Ash Wednesday: “You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Sister Valerie began to reflect on that line from Scripture and Church tradition. If people come from the dust of the earth, what might it look like if God shaped each person from different kinds of soil?
From that idea came the story of God creating people from many colors of the earth. Red clay, dark soil, and light sand become symbols for the many shades of human skin. In the illustrations, the Creator’s hand appears in the same color as the person being formed. The message for young readers, God is present in every culture and every people.
Sister Valerie first used the story as a teaching tool in her classroom. She brought jars of soil collected from different parts of the United States so students could see the variety found in the earth itself. Some jars held red clay. Others held dark soil or pale sand.
The children then took part in hands-on activities connected to the story. They used multicultural crayons to draw people in many shades. Some created figures that looked like themselves. Others drew people using many colors.
Sister Valerie also made different colors of dough so students could shape their own figures. The activity helped children understand that the human family includes many colors and cultures, yet all share the same origin in creation.
Now, more than thirty years after the book was first created, Specially Made by God has been prepared for publication and is available in hardcover. The book offers a simple way to begin conversations with children about respect, dignity, and the beauty of diversity.
Families, schools, and parishes may find many ways to use the book.
Parents can read it with children at home and talk about how each person is created with care. Teachers can use it as part of lessons on diversity, art, or the natural world. Parish programs and religious education classes can connect the story with the Ash Wednesday reminder that human life comes from the earth and returns to it.
The book also works well with creative activities. Children can explore different kinds of soil, shape figures from colored dough, or draw people using multicultural art supplies. These activities help bring the story to life and encourage children to see the beauty in human differences.
At its heart, the message of Specially Made by God is simple. Every person belongs. Every life has dignity. Each one is part of the human family created by God.
Copies of the book are now available online here.