Cecil, The Lost Sheep Review
Cecil, The Lost Sheep is the very first book from a six children’s picture book series that is written and created by Andrew McDonough. The main character, as you can probably guess is, of course, Cecil, The Lost Sheep. While picture books usually don’t have much meaning, this one definitely does, as it is a version of the lost sheep parable which is told by Jesus in Luke 15:1-7. It is obviously a very loose translation of the story as told in the bible, but it is still quite enjoyable as a children’s book and is great for those families who like to uphold wholesome traditions. If you want to know more about the plot of Cecil, The Lost Sheep and what parents have thought of the book so far, keep reading below.
It all starts with a man who herds sheep in the Middle East because giraffes are not available there. He ends up herding about 100 sheep who all have names, some of these names are Annette, Emily, Micheal, Kevin, Meredith, and, of course, our main character Cecil. Cecil is somewhat of an adventurous spirit and starts to get bored with just eating grass and with drinking water at a river. He starts dreaming of running away with a motorcycle, starting his own rock band, and wearing a headband and sunglasses while he’s on the road. So, one day Cecil decides to sneak away and plans to hide out in the mountains. All is well for a while but along the way Cecil accidentally gets lost, he becomes frightened, scared, and hungry. This is when he starts to wish that the shepherd will somehow find him and he also started to worry that if the shepherd does eventually find him that he will be severely punished for his running away.
Just before Cecil starts to lose hope the shepherd finds him! The shepherd follows Cecil’s tracks to his location where he finds him and, of course, finally takes Cecil home. Cecil doesn’t get punished for his actions but instead the shepherd decides to throw Cecil a party where all the other sheep from the herd get to have cake, ice cream, soft drinks, balloons, and party hats. That is where the story ends in the first book and obviously, it is a pretty far cry from the scriptural version of the lost sheep which is told by Jesus. Now depending on how you feel about this, you will either condemn the book for being way too silly and off point, or you will enjoy the exaggeration and the playful characters that appear throughout the book. Either way, it is a very fun and enjoyable way to start the conversation with your kids about how Jesus who is the shepherd really just wants to save everyone. The book even has a great a list of discussion questions at the back of the book as well as the original version that is in the bible which can make for a really great night of family reading and discussion.
