What Can a Citizen Do?

by Dave Eggers, Shawn Harris

Overview

“[This] charming book provides examples and sends the message that citizens aren’t born but are made.” —The Washington Post
 
This is a book about what citizenship—good citizenship—means: Across the course of several seemingly unrelated but ultimately connected actions by different children, we watch how kids turn a lonely island into a community—and watch a journey to what the world could be.
 
With beautiful illustrations and rhyming text, What Can a Citizen Do? is the latest collaboration from the team behind Her Right Foot: New York Times–bestselling author Dave Eggers and acclaimed artist Shawn Harris. It’s a delightfully engaging way for young readers to be inspired about the meaning of citizenship and the positive role they can play in our country and our world.
 
“Obligatory reading for future informed citizens.” —The New York Times
 
“An absolute delight.” —Maile Meloy, New York Times–bestselling author of Do Not Become Alarmed
 
“[A] must-have book.” —School Library Journal

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452175720
Publisher:	Chronicle Books
Publication date:	03/22/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
File size:	9 MB
Age Range:	1 - 12 Years

About the Author

Dave Eggers is the author of many books, including Heroes of the Frontier, The Circle, and A Hologram for the King. He is the cofounder of: Voice of Witness, an oral-history series focused on human rights; 826 National, a network of writing and tutoring centers; and ScholarMatch, which connects donors and under-resourced students to make college possible. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Shawn Harris is an artist and musician who lives and works in Morongo Valley, California.

Editorial Reviews

06/25/2018
In manifesto-style language, Eggers (The Lifters) exhorts readers to get together and get involved (“Do something for another. Don’t you dare doubt that you can!”), while elaborate cut-paper illustrations by Harris (Her Right Foot) follow a group of children who slowly transform a little island with a single tree into a lively tree house society. When a posted “No trumpets” sign excludes a trumpet player, the founders amend the sign to “OK trumpets,” showing that building community, literally and figuratively, demands a willingness to compromise. Eggers’s narration is sometimes literal, sometimes oblique (“Yes! A citizen can be a bear,” he writes, as the kids welcome a huge bear to their group), but it’s never less than stirring. The dimensionality and complexity of Harris’s illustrations, meanwhile, beautifully embody the messy realities and exciting potential of the civic enterprise. The cast of characters is forthrightly diverse, including a girl wearing a hijab and a child of indeterminate gender wearing a baseball cap, big boots, and a tutu. As Eggers writes, “Who can a citizen be?/ A citizen is just like you.” Ages 5–8. Author’s and illustrator’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"This is such a beautiful book." —Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, City of Atlanta

“This book is about more than being a good citizen; it’s about being a good person. And that’s why Eggers and Harris have created the exact book we all need on our kids’ shelves right now.” —Cool Mom Picks

“Eggers displays how citizens, even young ones (and even a bear!), can contribute to society. Harris' inclusive collages vibrantly depict a world of different types of citizens. This is also a book that adults will take something away from, especially in the midst of our current divisive politics.” —Booklist

“This must-have book distills the fundamentals of citizenship into easy-to-digest concepts and emphasizes the importance of caring for others, accepting differences, and taking action to initiate positive change.” -School Library Journal, starred review

"Spark a mind with Dave Eggers’s heartening and galvanizing storybook. (The answer to the title? A whole lot, in fact.)" —Martha Stewart Living

"A primer for kids and a reminder for adults that citizenship is an active state, not passive one." —Book Riot

"Invites active participation in society and politics, but it is also just a beautifully illustrated book. Illustrator Shawn Harris brings so much life and emotion and diversity to Egger’s message, which tells children to care and to not be silent. I think we could all use these reminders" —Romper

“Obligatory reading for future informed citizens.” —The New York Times

“A rhythmic, rhyming call for kids to be good citizens.” -Common Sense Media

"Clearly and joyfully informs young children that, as citizens, they can get involved and make a difference." —Literacy Daily

“Dave Eggers has delivered another thought-provoking book to prime the consciousness of even the youngest readers.” —School Library Connection

“A playful, joyful 52-page rallying cry.” -Mac Barnett, author of New York Times-bestselling picture books Sam Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn

“An elegant and affecting book about civic engagement for a world that really needs it.” -Carson Ellis, Caldecott Honor-winning creator of Du Iz Tak? and Home

"Examines what it means to be a citizen, that is, a responsible and caring resident of whatever place in which one happens to live, and how we can all work to transform our world from what it is to what it could be." —The Buffalo News

"Teaches young readers that being engaged and informed can turn anyone into an activist, no matter their age." —Time Magazine

Publishers Weeky's Most Anticipated Children's Books of Fall 2018

"In an era of burgeoning student activism, Dave Eggers’ new picture book What Can a Citizen Do? is arriving at the perfect time." —Entertainment Weekly

"What Can a Citizen Do? by Dave Eggers raises the urgent question of how to be engaged, compassionate, and empowered, and the cut-paper illustrations by Shawn Harris are so fun and so richly detailed that kids will make new discoveries on every read. It's an absolute delight." -Maile Meloy, New York Times bestselling author of Do Not Become Alarmed and The Apothecary

“Eggers’s narration is… never less than stirring. Harris’s illustrations… beautifully embody the messy realities and exciting potential of the civic enterprise.” —Publishers Weekly

"Eggers and Harris ask what citizenship - good citizenship - means to us all." —Flavorwire

From the Publisher

★ 08/01/2018
PreS-Gr 3—The creators of Her Right Foot offer a kid-accessible picture book primer on civics. Taking a broadly stroked allegorical approach, the duo employs rhyming verses and dynamic artwork to describe how a group of children come together to build their own community. A youngster wearing a head scarf and another sporting a blue baseball cap and flouncy gold skirt leave behind a distant cityscape and travel to a small island with a single tree (or is it really a backyard?). Much of the story line is presented through the detailed cut-paper illustrations. For example, when one child posts a "No trumpets" sign, three newcomers successfully plead their trumpet-supporting viewpoint ("A citizen can join a cause. A citizen can write a letter. A citizen can help change laws"). Everyone is welcome and the kids work together to build something wonderful (a fantastical tree house complete with domes, spires, and roller-coaster). Ultimately, a new-in-town boy who has been watching (and sketching) the action all along is invited to make his contribution (eye-dazzling strings of lights). Throughout, the visuals sparkle with wit and whimsy, celebrating imagination while also creating a foundation for the empowering text: "So forget yourself a second. Grab a shovel or a pen. Do something for another. Don't you dare doubt that you can!" VERDICT Blending an appreciation for a child's perspective with a powerful message, this must-have book distills the fundamentals of citizenship into easy-to-digest concepts and emphasizes the importance of caring for others, accepting differences, and taking action to initiate positive change.—Joy Fleishhacker, Pikes Peak Library District, Colorado Springs

School Library Journal