ONE VOTE, TWO VOTES, I VOTE, YOU VOTE Book Review

The librarian zipped straight to a specific shelf when I asked her if she had a favorite children’s book about the election process. She thought the best one was ONE VOTE, TWO VOTES, I VOTE, YOU VOTE, written by Bonnie Worth.

Let’s see if this book will garner your vote as the best children’s book about voting.

The Author

The author is Kate Kilmo using the pen name Bonnie Worth. Kilmo served as Vice President and Publisher of Random House Children’s Books. She’s authored numerous children’s books, including the New York Times Best Seller, Oh, Say Can You Say Di-No-Saur?

About ONE VOTE, TWO VOTES, I VOTE, YOU VOTE

This book of rhyming text is a good introduction to the voting process for children ages 4 -9 years old. Containing sixty-four pages, it may need to be divided into two readings for kids with shorter attention spans.

The illustrations by Aristides Ruiz and Joe Mathieu are bright and colorful. They capture all the favorite characters from the Cat in the Hat series, which keeps the book entertaining for young readers.

The famous Cat in the Hat offers a bit of history about the election process, the political parties, how candidates campaign, and how voters vote. Children learn the importance of researching candidates and voting for the ones that “ring true” with their beliefs.

One Criticism

One criticism I’ve read about this book is its use of the word “democracy.” I don’t think this book intends to agitate children or their parents into debating whether our country is a republic or a democracy.

The entire book is about the significance of individuals having their voices heard—whether it is voting on a classroom pet or electing a president for our country.

Nonetheless, if you want to go more in-depth with older children about the differences between a republic and a democracy, I recommend checking out the info and video on the Colonial Williamsburg website. Or, read more about it at USConstitiution.net.

Recommendation

This picture book does not cover every aspect of U.S. civics and government. That would be overwhelming (and boring) for children of this age!

However, ONE VOTE, TWO VOTES, I VOTE, YOU VOTE fulfills its intent. It offers our youngest citizens a first glimpse of one of America’s most powerful freedoms. I recommend it for students in kindergarten through fourth grade.

Motivated by the power of story, history, and His Story, Sally Matheny’s passion is telling the next generation wondrous things.

Her nonfiction writing appears in worldwide, national, and regional publications including Appleseeds, Clubhouse Jr., Homeschooling Today, and The Old Schoolhouse.

She and her husband live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and are blessed with three children, two sons-in-law, and armfuls of grandbabies. Connect with Sally on several social media sites, but her favorite hangouts are at SallyMatheny.com and Pinterest.