Booklist Focused on Poverty and Hunger
I discuss issues concerning poverty and hunger in the last WOW Currents post and include a request for readers to share titles of picture and chapter books in children's literature that explore these issues. Upon my recent return from Haiti, I further explore books that focus on these critical global problems.
Picture and Chapter Books
- Maddi's Fridge by Lois Brandt and Vin Vogel
- Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen by DyAnn DiSalvo-Ryan
- The Lady in the Box by Ann McGovern and Mami Backer
- Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting and Lauren Castillo One Potato, Two Potato by Cynthia DeFelice and Andrea U'Ren
- Dear Mr. Rosenwald by Carole Boston
- Changing Places: A Kid's View of Shelter Living by Judy Wallace and Glen Finland
- The Good Garden: How One Family Went from Hunger to Having Enough by Katie Smith Milway and Sylvie Daigneault
- Hungry Planet: What the World Eats by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio
- Lives Turned Upside Down: Homeless Children in Their Own Words and Photographs by Jim Hubbard
- Sam and the Lucky Money by Karen Chinn and Cornelius Van Wright
- A Shelter in Our Car by Monica Gunning and Elaine Pedlar
- The Teddy Bear by David McPhail
- Those Shoes by MacBeth Boelts and Noah Z. Jones
- Tight Times by Barbara Shook Hazen and Trina Schart Hyman
- Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson
- Migrant by Maxine Trottier and Isabelle Arsenault
- Mama Panya's Pancakes by Mary and Rich Chamberlin and Julia Cairns
- Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier and Lori Lohstoeter
- One Grain of Rice: A Mathematical Folktale by Demi
- Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya by Donna Jo Napoli and Kadir Nelson
- Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay by Susan Hood and Sally Wern Comport
- The Streets Are Free by Kurusa and Monika Doppert
- Chandra's Magic Light: A Story in Nepal by Theresa Heine and Judith Gueyfier
- The Hard-Times Jar by Ethel Footman Smothers and John Holyfield
- One Hen: How a Small Loan Made a Big Difference by Katie Smith Milway and Eugenie Fernandes
- Mimi's Village and How Basic Health Transformed It by Kate Smith Milway and Eugenie Fernandes
- The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes and Louis Stobodkin
- Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins and Jamie Hogan
- Serafina's Promise by Anne E. Burg Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
Consider engaging children in learning more about the causes of poverty and hunger as well as the kinds of sustainable approaches employed around the world to eradicate hunger. Below is a list of awareness projects that may be of interest:
Activities to Improve Children's Awareness of Poverty and Hunger World Food Day - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Read to Feed - Heifer International Free Rice - World Food Programme Free Game: Food Force! - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 7 Great Lessons to Teach Kids About Hunger and Food Insecurity - Kid World Citizen 20 Service Projects for Kids to Fight Hunger - Lemon Lime Adventures
Journey through Worlds of Words during our open reading hours: Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Check out our two online journals,WOW Review and WOW Stories, and keep up with WOW’s news and events.
