Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Heart, thrills, tragedy, triumph in exciting eco-adventure.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 8+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
IF WE WERE GIANTS opens as 10-year-old Kirra and her storytelling father/mentor -- the only people allowed to leave their well-hidden town inside a dormant volcano -- are returning home from a tour of neighboring villages and storytelling festivals. They're worried, because word has started to spread about brutal invaders called the Takers who pillage everything in their path, strip the landscape and kill the inhabitants. All is well for a while when they get home, but then Kirra, eager to find her own stories to tell, goes outside the walls again -- and leads the Takers straight back to her home and loved ones. In shock and grief, she falls into a river and nearly drowns before a family of tree-dwellers takes her in. Years pass, and then comes word that the Takers are headed for her new home. She's determined to save her adopted family and their neighbors -- but how?
Is It Any Good?
Inspired by ants, Dave Matthews and Clete Barrett Smith spin an exciting, harrowing,uplifting story of banding together to use cooperation -- and clever technology -- against predatory invaders. "If We Were Giants," muses a little kid, we could win against these ruthless foes. Fourteen-year-old tree-dweller Kirra, whose home has already been destroyed, has to rise above her survivor's (and other) guilt to help the people who've taken her in -- and maybe help them become giants for real.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about storytelling, and why it's a good way to help make people understand your message, as Kirra does in If We Were Giants. If you were trying to make someone understand something that was really important to you, could telling a story help?
Do you think you'd like it better to live with the volcano people, who work together and share a lot, or the tree people, who tend to stick together within their own families and take care of their own?
This whole story came about because Dave Matthews observed the behavior of ants in the wild, and was inspired to see how it might apply elsewhere. Have you ever seen something in nature that made you look at something in your own life in a different way?
Book Details
- Authors :
- Illustrator : Antonio Javier Caparo
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Activism , Adventures , Friendship , STEM
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Disney-Hyperion
- Publication date : March 3, 2020
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 304
- Available on : Nook, Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate