by Charlotte Sharpe (Author), Charles Ettinger (Illustrator)
The story is about a little donkey named Jasper who has unusual blue eyes and comes from a long line of donkeys that were bred for the purpose of carrying kings. They also carried wood for the fires on which sacrifices were laid and for this purpose they had a special distinguishing mark on their backs; a cross. These donkeys were called crosstree donkeys. Jasper was a crosstree donkey so it was only fitting that he should carry Jesus the King of Kings and also the supreme sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Jasper was also special in that he could understand what people said and their feelings. Jaspers' ancestors belonged to the lineage of King David and his son Solomon. Jasper was born to a female donkey that belonged to Joseph, a descendant of King David.