It Takes a Village: Picture Book

by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Marla Frazee (Illustrator)

Overview

“It Takes a Village offers a universal, unifying message. It captures perfectly Clinton’s vision of a multicultural America working toward a constructive goal. So hopeful and forward-looking.” —The Washington Post

“Inspired by her 2006 book of the same name, Clinton’s unadorned text celebrates how civic spirit emerges...Most of the storytelling is found in Frazee’s delicately textured images, which exude energy, hope, and emotional authenticity.” —Publishers Weekly

“This work is a welcome reminder that all people ‘are born believers. And citizens, too.’” —Shelf Awareness

“A picture book to share with library audiences, families, and friends. Any audience that champions the abilities and potential of children will appreciate and promote its wise sentiment.” —School Library Journal

“This is a look forward, a clarion call that invites children to make the world—their own world—a better place.” —Booklist

A Washington Post Best Children’s Book of 2017

“What does it take to change the world?”

Former Secretary of State and Democratic Presidential nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton’s first book for young readers, inspired by the themes of her classic New York Times bestselling book It Takes a Village, and illustrated by two-time Caldecott Honor recipient Marla Frazee, asks readers what can they do to make the world a better place?

It Takes a Village tells the heartwarming and universal story of a diverse community coming together to make a difference. All kinds of people working together, playing together, and living together in harmony makes a better village and many villages coming together can make a better world. Together we can build a better life for one another. Together we can change our world.

The book will resonate with children and families and through the generations as it encourages readers to look for a way they can make a difference. It is a book that you will surely want to read again and again, a book you will want to share and a book that will inspire.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781481430876
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Publication date:	09/12/2017
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	82,096
Product dimensions:	10.80(w) x 11.70(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Hillary Rodham Clinton is the first woman in US history to become the presidential nominee of a major political party. She served as the 67th Secretary of State—from January 21, 2009, until February 1, 2013—after nearly four decades in public service advocating on behalf of children and families as an attorney, First Lady, and Senator. She is a wife, mother, and grandmother.

Marla Frazee was awarded a Caldecott Honor for All the World and A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever, and the Boston Globe Horn Book Award for Picture Book for her wordless book The Farmer and the Clown. She is the author-illustrator of many books, including The Boss Baby, the book that inspired the DreamWorks Animation film Boss Baby. She has illustrated many acclaimed picture books, including God Got a Dog by Cynthia Rylant; Stars by Mary Lyn Ray; and Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers. She is also the illustrator of the New York Times bestselling Clementine chapter book series by Sara Pennypacker. The mother of three grown sons, she lives in Pasadena, California. Visit her at MarlaFrazee.com.

Editorial Reviews

09/04/2017
A single, bleak-looking tree stands on a hilltop. But the children gathered around it see something else: the centerpiece for a new park. They rally adults, the community rolls up its collective sleeves, and as the world comes into bloom, so does a new gathering place. Inspired by her 2006 book of the same name, Clinton’s unadorned text celebrates how civic spirit emerges: “We all have a place in the village, a job to do, and a lot to learn.” The narration remains largely in the realm of rhetorical generalities, even when tracking closely to the action. Most of the storytelling is found in Frazee’s delicately textured images, which exude energy, hope, and emotional authenticity. In one early spread, children and adults regard each other warily from opposite pages: it’s a big job—what can someone small do? The pages that follow answer by showing participation of all kinds as citizens young and old dig foundations, haul supplies, and plant flowers, and a colossal playground takes shape. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Robert B. Barnett, Williams & Connolly. Illustrator’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

This picture book with the same title takes the focus of Clinton's original work—children—and, instead of highlighting how adults can make a world for children, depicts instead the individual agency of children and how "sometimes it takes a child to make a village"....As with all of her works, Frazee's illustrations explode with life.

Shelf Awareness

Sure to be every little activist’s favorite story.

Bustle

10/01/2017
PreS-Gr 2— In this warmhearted appeal to our better angels, Clinton reminds us how change comes about. Also that community, a sense of purpose, and kindness toward others begins at home. In spare lyrical text that plays with the proverb "It takes a village to raise a child," and is enhanced by Frazee's lovely pencil-and-watercolor vignettes, the book shows how children and their grown-ups come together to build a playground. The scene opens with a barren hillside and a bare tree; then, the intergenerational villagers come together, roll up their sleeves, and contribute to the project, each in his or her own way. Viewers are told that "Kindness and caring and sharing matter. Playing matters too. And resting. Because the world is in a hurry, but children are not." As the structures grow and their labors bear fruit, the passage of time is reflected in the greening landscape, the colorful plantings, and the pink blossoms of the large majestic tree as the park's centerpiece. In conclusion, Clinton expands the metaphor to state "Children are born believers. And citizens, too. Let us build a village…worthy of all children." The book's stunning endpapers feature American flags, with communities rising from each of the stripes and a rainbow on the horizon. VERDICT A picture book to share with library audiences, families, and friends. Any audience that champions the abilities and potential of children will appreciate and promote its wise sentiment.— Luann Toth, School Library Journal

School Library Journal

2017-09-13
Although it shares a title with Clinton's 1996 work calling for a social commitment to children's welfare, this picture book offers just 16 sentences spread over 40 pages illustrated with Frazee's customarily humanistic detail. The sentences don't begin to attempt a narrative, amounting to little more than a sequence of platitudes: "Sometimes it takes a child // to make a village. // We all have a place in the village, a job to do, / and a lot to learn. // Kids don't come with instructions. / But neither do grown-ups!" The illustrations, however, do provide a visual storyline, starting with three kids—one black, one Asian, and one white—who look up at a bare tree, then talk to their grown-ups, who talk to more people, leading to the community's coming together to build an elaborate play structure beneath what turns out to be a cherry tree. In choosing this particular, child-friendly narrative, the illustrations miss opportunities. The lines "Every family needs help sometimes. Kindness and caring / and sharing matter" are illustrated with pictures of children sharing out snacks for the work crew rather than images of meaningful sharing across class divides, for instance. Frazee's cast shows her characteristically ebullient attention to inclusivity: a diversity of ages, races, and family constellations can be discerned, and one character uses a wheelchair. However, readers looking for ethnic or faith-based attire will find none.The book reaches for inspiring but stalls out at bland. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews