Seeds of Change

Title: Seeds of Change

Author: Jen Cullerton Johnson

Illustrator: Sonia Lynn Sadler
Coretta Scott King - New Talent (2012)

Seeds of Change is inspired by the real life events of Wangari Maathai who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. The book begins in Kenya when Wangari is a child and follows her as she attends elementary school through college and finally as she becomes a college professor, is married, and has her own children. Throughout the book there is a strong sense of love and appreciation for nature. In fact, I would go as far to argue that the book is making a political statement about growth and development and about the importance of preserving the earth in spite of big business and corporate greed. This may be too complex of a topic for younger students to understand. Nevertheless, the journey Wangari goes on to “replenish” the earth, called the Green Belt Movement, is truly inspiring and has undoubtedly had a substantial impact on our world today.

Though I would consider this book to be a picture book, I believe the content is better suited for older students (3rd-5th). As a teacher, I can definitely see myself using this text during Black History Month or during a unit about women’s rights. One underlying theme in the book deals with the obstacles Wangari must overcome as a woman and the criticism she faces because of it. On a lighter note, the illustrations in the book are absolutely wonderful, colorful, and unique – they add quite a bit to the story, which makes it a perfect choice for a read aloud. One final thing I enjoyed about the text is the factual information contained about Wangari on the last page of the book. This gives the readers a context for the story and opens up the door for further research about her and her life to be conducted.