I Spy a Nephite

I really like this book by Pat Bagley, not to mention its sequel, A Nephite in the Works. Why? Because they're a cheap Mormon ripoff of Where's Waldo? No. Because the characters have fun, occasionally clever names like Norman the Nephite, Larry the Lamanite, and Rover-hah the dog? No. Because if I take them to sacrament meeting my kids can appear more spiritually in tune than even the Bishop's? Of course not. Then why?

I'll tell you. I like them because in a world of fan magazines, movie merchandising, and generally seeing everything and everyone you don't want your kids to think about or be like displayed all over everything they have to have to get by (i.e. Barbie shoes, Disney princess crayons, Bratz clothes, Hannah Montana...everything, etc...) these books take Book of Mormon, Church History, and Mormon cultural settings and make them a part of kids' play lives - which in many ways is the most important part. In other words, they provide opportunities for casual encounters with scripture, heritage, and culture that make our small home more of a refuge and less a vast pit of materialism.

I know that seems ironic because you could argue that these books are just a way to capitalize on Mormonism, both cultural and doctrinal. But I don't see it that way. Whether or not there ever was a Nephite named Norman, these books give my kids a visual reference point for such important scenes as the departure of the 2000 stripling warriors, the miracle of the crickets and the gulls, and the ward party. And what's more, they get the kids involved in trying to figure out what's going on there.

You don't need this sort of thing to be a "good Mormon." But that doesn't mean I can't like the impact they have on my little family.