Reviewed by Keesha Ceran
Review Source: Teaching for Change
Book Author: Terence Lester, Zion Lester
Zion Learns to See is a new children’s book by father-daughter duo, Terence and Zion Lester. The book follows Zion as she spends a day with her father, Terence, in the community work he is doing around houselessness and economic justice. Through the storytelling and imagery, you understand Zion’s curiosity and emotions as she rides through the neighborhood with her father seeing the differences from her own lived experience.
The book doesn’t shy away from noting causes of economic disparities. In one scene, Zion asks, “Daddy, why don’t these people have homes?” Her father replies, “Well, there are different reasons for different people. Some folks lost their job, maybe because they were too sick to work. Whatever the reason, they don’t have enough money to pay for a home.” The relatability in this conversation between a child and an adult is impactful, especially as we witness the young person making links to the world she is witnessing.
We appreciate this book’s exploration of a topic that is rare in children’s books — naming economic disparities. The diversity of faces and ages in the illustrations are powerful and important. Yet, we recommend this book with a caveat. It is a great introduction to intergenerational and socioeconomic community engagement, and while we appreciate the book’s positive depictions of charity work, we ask the reader and publishing community to consider expanding actions that can be taken by others beyond charity.
The picture book chooses to feature Zion and her school actively engaged in the “Let’s Give Back” project, a worthwhile activity that many young people and families partake in — but it does not challenge the status quo. Young people have the capacity to understand that while band-aids are necessary, they do not address the source of the harm. They could be encouraged to question a society built on inequality and learn ways to advocate for social and economic justice for all. Could the young people in Zion’s school not only deliver items to the community shelter, but also write letters to their local government to address fair housing?
In his Rethinking Schools’ article, “Planting Seeds of Solidarity,” Bob Peterson writes, “Using simple stories to raise profound questions is among the oldest and best of teaching techniques.” Peterson’s approach is to move students from empathy and caring to solidarity by encouraging his students to find commonalities with children here in the U.S. and all over the world — ALL kids want to play and ALL kids need to eat, his students discover. In these commonalities, the students don’t see these other children as being inferior and are able to look for insights and answers to address core issues, at home and abroad. As Peterson’s writes about his students, “They can begin to see that the problem is not so much a division of wealth and power between countries as it is a division of wealth and power between social classes.”
We hope that this can be addressed in a subsequent printing of Zion Learns to See. The result would be young people learning lessons from Zion and her classmates that they can apply to their own activism about systemic poverty, economic fairness, and how to organize for justice.
Keesha Ceran is the deputy director at Teaching for Change.
Find recommended books about this topic on our Economic Class and Neighborhoods booklists.
Zion Learns to See by Terence Lester, Zion Lester
Published by InterVarsity Press on March 12, 2024
Genres: Economic Class, Neighborhoods
Pages: 32
Reading Level: Early Childhood, Grade K
ISBN: 9781514006702
Review Source: Teaching for Change
Publisher's Synopsis:
Zion has no idea what she's getting into when she decides to join her dad at his work on Saturday. But she quickly discovers that a day at the community center brings new and wonderful people into her life. Join Zion as she learns about people experiencing homelessness, and see how she is moved to respond as she recognizes that all people matter to God.
Inspired by real-life events, this story written by Terence Lester and Zion Lester, and illustrated by Subi Bosa, will be enjoyed by children and the adults who read with them. Also included is a note from the author to encourage further conversation about the content.
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