Reju, Sarah. Coop Messes Up. Illustrated by Tania Rex. Greensboro, NC: New Growth Press, 2024.

The Wheelies

Summary

In Coop Messes Up, the youngest member of the Wheelie family learns a big lesson in forgiveness and God’s love when he breaks one of the rules. 

Coop Wheelie is the youngest in his family, and like many little ones, he has a problem obeying the rules—and there are a lot of them! When Coop runs out of gas, his sister, Lucy, tries to help him learn to follow the rules, but finds herself right in the middle of the trouble too. Through Coop’s story, kids will discover that making mistakes can be an important way to learn about forgiveness and the gospel.

The first in The Wheelies series, written by Sarah Reju and illustrated by Tania Rex, Coop Messes Up will teach children ages 3–8 about God’s unconditional love for us.

• Children and parents will learn from Coop that being a Christian is not about keeping all the rules.   
• Children will become engaged through a fun story about a family of cars and trucks.  
• Uses easy-to-understand, simple concepts to explain gospel truth to young children.

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My Kid Review

Sarah Reju’s new book Coop Messes Up is a great book for kids. It has a great storyline about a little car that struggles to obey the traffic rules and doesn’t pay attention to his fuel gauge so he regularly runs out of gas. 

Ma catches Coop one day and he is so worried she won’t love him anymore. It is a beautiful scene when Coop learns that Ma loves him no matter what. And, that Jesus loves us no matter what as well. 

Tania Rex’s illustrations are cartoon-like and will appeal to children. They do a great job of going beyond the text. 

Parents will appreciate the closing pages which include discussion questions and tips for parents. I can see Coop Messes Up becoming a favorite read aloud.

Coop Messes Up would be a great addition to the picture book section of a K-12 Christian school library.

I received a complimentary copy of Coop Messes Up.  This is my honest review.

About the Author – Sarah Reju

Sarah Reju, MDiv, is a pastor’s wife and mother living in Washington, DC. She is the author of Coop Messes Up, Jesus Saves, God Is Better Than Trucks, and God Is Better Than Princesses. Sarah and her husband, Deepak, have five children.  

About the Illustrator – Tania Rex

Tania Rex was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania. She’s happiest when she can take an idea and turn it into a picture. Experimenting with styles and drawing is how she spends most of her spare time. Tania draws inspiration from little everyday miracles, aiming to point audience attention to the ever-present magic of real life.

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