In God’s Kitchen

In God’s Kitchen is a whimsical book that takes a playful look at Creation.  It is clearly not intended to be an accurate representation of the Creation account; rather, it’s a silly, almost allegorical view of God as Creator, that likens Him to a cook.

While the details may not (at all!) mirror the Creation account, the book’s underlying message – that God made everything – comes through loud and clear.

Because God is depicted as a cook, there are some theological weaknesses.  It says that God “mixed up a little of this and a little of that,” for instance.  If these are viewed as actual illustrations of Creation, these clearly teach incorrect theology.  But if the book as a whole is viewed as a silly allegory – a “what if” God were a cook, these can be overlooked, as they’re clearly connected to the “cook” part and not the “God” part.

There is one line in the book that I particularly dislike, though.  It says, “Some recipes worked out better than others, he made some mistakes, but he also made Mothers.” I really, really wish that the author/editors had found some other word to use instead of  “mistakes.” God does not make mistakes.  (It is worth noting, however, that the pictures for this page are of fictitious, “combination” animals like a “chimpan-bee.”  They are not real-life creatures.)  Something to contrast those creations which are harmful to us with those which are beneficial to us, like, “…He made fleas and mosquitoes, but He also made Mothers,” would have been far preferable, in my opinion.

The left side of each spread is lined with small boxes (nine per page), each containing the image and name of a different plant or animal.  These are biological-type drawings, not the whimsical drawings used to illustrate the story itself.

Overall, I find that this is a fun way to remind children that God made everything – including them – as long as they are aware that it’s a silly, made-up way to tell about this fact.  (And, in our house, we will be whiting out the word  “mistakes” and replacing it with something else.

$15.95

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Disclosure: The publisher provided me with a copy of In God’s Kitchen to facilitate this review.  As always, all opinions are entirely my own.