(3) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Rebecca Green. Fictional Bangladeshi boy Iqbal builds an inexpensive solar cooker to win the school science fair; with his prize money he also buys his mother a healthy gas stove to avoid the harmful smoke from an open fire indoors. Information on clean cookstoves and DIY instructions round out this excellent resource for thinking about science and daily life in other countries. Colored-pencil illustrations effectively render monsoon-season Bangladesh. Glos.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(3) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Shane W. Evans. Young Deo flees his village in Burundi and ends up at a refugee camp, malnourished, without his family, and up against bullies and gangs. Through the power of play and banana-leaf soccer balls, Deo finds friendship and a sense of community. Striking mixed-media illustrations enhance this powerful story (inspired by real events) of survival and resurgence. An author's note is included. Websites.

Reviewer: Alia Jones

(3) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Felicita Sala. This historical picture book introduces activist "Mother" Jones, who in 1903 led an over-one-hundred-mile march to President Theodore Roosevelt's summer home to protest child labor. Focusing on fictional eight-year-old Aidan, a cotton mill worker, the long days of walking, camping out, and rallying are portrayed as an adventurous undertaking that shed light on children's rights. Old-timey paintings capture grandmotherly Jones's feistiness. Author's note appended. Websites.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(4) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Dharmali Patel. A mayor tries to create arbitrary laws and then learns lessons when citizens stand up for their rights. The book successfully demonstrates that strong democracies need active citizens to survive. Cartoony monster-like creatures populate the purposeful and wordy framing vignettes, which are broken up by inserts of information about democratic rights and questions for reflection ("Why did Mayor Moe decide to stop the protest parade?").

Reviewer: Lauren Causey

(2) K-3 CitizenKid series. Illustrated by Simone Shin. North American youth Leo donates his bicycle to an organization that provides bikes to Africans. First, young Alisetta uses it to improve her family's life. Eventually, Big Red is repurposed as a bicycle ambulance. Straightforward, specific prose and upbeat illustrations give readers a sense of how bicycles can be life-changing in other parts of the world; back matter offers a detailed list of ways to help.

Reviewer: Monica Edinger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2015