Everyone Gets a Say
By Regan McMahon,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Forest pals show how democracy works in cute story.
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What's the Story?
When EVERYONE GETS A SAY starts, the members of the forest community introduced in The Someone New can't agree about what to plant in a sunny patch of land: flowers or trees. Others want to have it be a muddy patch to slide on. Then Toast the butterfly says, "Did you now that bees have Queens? A Queen Bee is a Someone who leads the bees!" "Whoa," says Jitterbug the chipmunk. "Do we need a Someone to bring us together?" But how could someone be their voice when they all have different voices? Should the Someone who's in charge be the tallest, the fastest, the oldest, the fluffiest, or the loudest? Finally, quiet little Pudding the snail spells out how it works in a snail trail on a boulder: "Everyone Gets a Say." "And after everyone gets their Say, we count," says Pudding. "And whichever Someone most of us want to be in charge is in charge." At the end of the book, readers find out who wins the vote.
Is It Any Good?
This delightful lesson in democracy shows even the youngest readers how voting and elections work. The art and the characters in Everyone Gets a Say are adorable, the story and voting concept are easy to grasp, and the squabbling among the forest neighbors is utterly relatable. It's an appealing, kid-friendly way to introduce the process of elections.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the process of picking a leader shown in Everyone Gets a Say. What did you learn about how voting works? Does it seem like a fair way to go about picking a leader?
Why do the forest friends need a leader? What are they trying to decide about?
How can a leader help members of a community settle disagreements and pick a way forward?
Book Details
- Author: Jill Twiss
- Illustrator: EG Keller
- Genre: Picture Book
- Topics: Activism , Bugs , Wild Animals
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
- Publication date: September 14, 2020
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 4 - 8
- Number of pages: 32
- Available on: Hardback
- Last updated: September 25, 2020
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