From the December 2011 issue of Creation Answers, by Wayne Spencer
I recently looked at a book for young children called “The Oxpecker and the Giraffe,” published by Creation Book Publishers, which is the book arm of Creation Ministries International, from Australia. This is a delightful book for young children. It is authored by Patrick Fitzpatrick, who has a Masters degree in Biology. It is very nicely illustrated. It is just a simple story about the oxpecker bird and a giraffe. The oxpecker bird is trying to convince the giraffe that it needs the birds help. The bird explains what it does and eventually the giraffe realizes the oxpecker bird is its friend. The written content in the book is all done in simple clever rhymes. I think the book would be ideally suited to kids 5 to 7 years old who are learning to read. The subtitle of the book is “I need you and you need me.” This is also the main point of the book. (Picture below.)
Parents can explain the relevance of the book to their kids. There really is a bird like the oxpecker that lives in Africa and helps animals by eating insects that get on them. This shows God’s good design and has implications about people needing each other too. To get this book, go to http://creation.com.