God Made Us Different is a children’s social issues picture book written by Lindsey Coker Luckey and illustrated by Lora Look. Lucy loves the school she goes to. As in any school, she’s expected to work hard and learn, but her school offers her so much more. There’s ample time devoted to playing, singing, and interacting with the other students, who’ve all become good friends. Each of them is different, unique and that makes them special, but they are also all united by those qualities that make them one-of-a-kind. Lucy has friends from all over the world. She also knows kids who use hearing aids to hear and others who roll along in wheelchairs. They all feel accepted at their school, and they are so used to each of them being different that it doesn’t feel strange at all. Together they make the best of teams and the best of friends.

Lindsey Coker Luckey’s God Made Us Different celebrates diversity as it follows Lucy’s experiences in her school where everyone is different -- and the students flourish in part because of that. The ambiance in Lucy’s school is a welcome counter to the fear kids feel that they might be looked at as being different and be ostracized for it. Luckey’s characters include children from different countries and races as well as kids who are differently-abled, and she shows how they are all quite comfortable with each other. They are seen to celebrate their unique skills and interests. Together, they are able to achieve more and are part of a thriving, creative, and happy community. Lora Look’s colorful and cheerful illustrations work perfectly with the story and give it added dimension. God Made Us Different is recommended.

Lucy loves her friends. She sees no difference in the individual characters of her best friend Marcus, an African-American boy with an infectious smile, and Serika from Japan. Joseph was born deaf but shares his cool hearing device with all of his friends. When “new kid” Diego arrives in a wheelchair, Lucy’s classmates do not judge but accept him with open arms and willing smiles. He was only scared for a short amount of time. Everyone was so nice. In this class everyone is different, but that is not a hindrance. “The more different they are, the better. They do new things and they do them together.” Their differences are not broadcasted and do not matter. Each student knows that God made each of them different in order to live as one.

God Made Us Different, written by Lindsey Coker Luckey and illustrated by Lora Look, provides an essential and timely lesson to the human race. Appropriate for read-aloud, classroom storytime, and Sunday school lessons, God Made Us Different provides a no-nonsense, common-sense perspective on tolerance and diversity. This story of Lucy and her diverse collection of friends is a delightfully designed lesson in childhood innocence and the honesty of the unvarnished existence of human nature. God Made Us Different is a wonderful addition to any classroom or library. The obvious lessons in diversity and sentiment of social tolerance are timely and essential in today’s overall education of our world’s children. You will feel better after reading this colorful story.