As the grandmother of six (4 of whom are in the target age group), I can’t give this book a glowing review. Read on to see why.
Alphabet Rockers’ takes their song of the same name and transforms it into a book, showcasing diverse kids sharing their experiences with exclusion, misunderstanding, and the need to speak up. The narrators, a mix of races, genders, and abilities, tell their stories in a series of vignettes, encouraging readers to listen and amplify voices of protest and support.
The book opens with a Black child expressing fears about safety and inviting readers to understand their perspective. Other stories follow, including a South Asian child frustrated by the mispronunciation of their name, a DJ with a prosthetic arm, and a nonbinary child, among others. The message of woke activism runs throughout.
The illustrations are fabulous, but the text sometimes feels choppy, and the content doesn’t seem age-appropriate for the intended kindergarten-to-grade-2 audience. The characters feel more like adolescents than young children, and concepts like being nonbinary or Black Lives Matter are too complex for this age group to grasp. While I respect the book’s intent to spark conversations about inclusion, I’m not convinced it’s a good fit for early elementary readers—or necessary at this stage of their development.
Rating: 2 stars
* Thanks to the publisher for a review copy. The opinions are my own.