Sunday Service

By Janelle Harper

A girl and her family begin getting ready for church before sunrise. Breakfast, carefully prepared clothes, and gospel music on the car radio lead into a gathering where familiar faces arrive in their Sunday best. This week, the girl has an especially important part to play.

Waiting for her drum solo brings a flutter of nerves. When her moment arrives, she adds her rhythm to a service filled with movement, praise, and collective joy, while her family watches with pride.

Janelle Harper and illustrator Steffi Walthall celebrate a weekly ritual in Black community life through a child's perspective. The picture book connects preparation at home with the energy of worship, showing how a young person's contribution becomes part of a tradition shared across generations.