Old Enough to Make a Difference

March 1, 2023
Grades K-3 Part of the Changemakers series, this approachable and inspiring collective biography shines a light on 12 kids making positive impacts on the world. A foreword is provided by Jonah Larson, a young social entrepreneur and the founder of Jonah's Hands, an organization that uses Larson's talent for crocheting to raise funds for social causes in Ethiopia. In it he writes, "The children in this book teach us that when each of us takes action, we can help resolve social problems or work to save the planet." The 12 innovators profiled here represent a wonderfully diverse mix of kids from around the world who are committed to a variety of causes. Each identified a problem (fast fashion, period poverty, food waste, plastic straws, a lack of disability access, etc.) and found a clever way to combat the issue. The brief text is full of factoids and accompanied by full-page illustrations in gouache and colored pencil that showcase young people making a difference. The book ends with recommended websites and tips for sustainability and being a responsible consumer.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 15, 2023
Informative and inspiring accounts of ambitious world-improving projects initiated by children. Devoting two spreads to each child, Hui describes the organizations founded by 12 young social entrepreneurs of varying ethnicities and from all over the world; one child is a wheelchair user. They tackle fast fashion, period poverty, paper waste, and single-use straws and work toward green energy, cleaner oceans, sustainable farming, disability access, and accessible health care. "Supporting women and girls through art and education," "redistributing food destined for landfills," and "promoting ocean education" are others' aims. Tidbits about the impacts of harmful practices and situations are seeded across the bright, detailed illustrations, which are na�ve and engaging. In the background, racially diverse, cheerful kids keep busy; several use wheelchairs, and some wear hijab. As in Old Enough To Save the Planet (2021), the projects have a positive though naturally limited impact. Ten brief hints on how to be a social entrepreneur and 10 more on being a responsible consumer provide goals perhaps more accessible to ordinary readers. A map showing the young people's countries of origin and acknowledgment that it isn't all on individuals to make a difference would have been welcome, but a dozen websites for further exploration are a useful addition. Younger readers might need help with vocabulary (and small print). (This book was reviewed digitally.) Driven, resourceful kids could be galvanized by these stories. (Informational picture book. 6-10)

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