Liberty Library: A List of Pro-Freedom Books for Young Children
Reading with our children is crucial for so many developmental reasons, but two important reasons are the time we get to spend with our children and the connections they make between what they read and what they experience in the real world.
We all want to impart certain values to our children. Some of the most important values I hope to instill in mine are authenticity, kindness, and an appreciation for liberty. Of course, the best way to instill these values is to model with our children these values in our daily lives, but reading books with these underlying messages is another great way to teach them.
I recently asked about book recommendations for children with an underlying message of the importance of freedom and authenticity. I got a lot of great recommendations and set out to read some of these books with my kids. I’m mostly interested in picture books since my kids are 5, 3, and 1. Hopefully, down the road, I can write another post about chapter books. So, for me, I’m looking for books that interest young children and that aren’t obviously pushing an agenda. I also love books that can hold my children’s interest for as long as it takes to get through the book, so something quick and fun. Of course an aesthetically pleasing look for a picture book is important. And bonus points are in order if the book makes me cry.
In case some of you may be thinking, “well this is a kind of indoctrination of your values,” I want to point out that these, of course, are not the only kinds of books my kids read. We have a bookshelf full of books, some of which I don’t particularly like the message (for example, that awful Peppa Pig book I mentioned in my post about sharing, though we were quick to trash it when the cover was torn). As much as I love the values of freedom and individualism, I don’t want to indoctrinate my children into believing these values. I want them to learn to appreciate these values because they find value in them themselves. So, we read books with all kinds of values and messages.
In alphabetical order, here are some of the books we read and what I thought. I hope this helps introduce some of you to some great new literature and can help you impart some wisdom onto your children.
The Big Orange Splot by Daniel Pinkwater
This is a great, quick story about the value of individualism and expressing oneself in an authentic way. The artwork isn’t the most beautiful, but it’s very vibrant so it is intriguing for young children. It also shows that one person can make a big change. I love stories of empowerment for my kids.
Flight for Freedom by Kristen Fulton
Based on a true story of a family who tries to escape East Germany in the 70’s, this is an incredible book about perseverance and a desire for freedom. I have never heard this story before, and I was glad to experience it for the first time with my kids. It’s truly incredible without being a drag for my 5-year-old. The illustrations are great, and at the end of the book, the author adds notes of the true accounts of the story.
Get Dressed, Sasquatch! by Kyle Sullivan
A fun board book about a park ranger trying to enforce a rule onto a sasquatch that he must be clothed, but the sasquatch won’t obey. The rhyming makes it fun to read and the illustrations are funny. My boys think being naked is the funniest thing ever, so they enjoyed that aspect of this book. It’s goofy fun, with a great message of subversion and disobedience.
Moon by Alison Oliver
This is a lovely story about discovering your authentic self and embracing it. Moon, the little girl, is bored with her monotonous daily life and one night meets a new friend who helps her discover her inner-wild. It’s not as in-depth as some of the other books on the list, but the beautiful illustrations and underlying message make it a good, quick read.
The Peaceful Porcupine by Julie Borowski
I found this to be a really sweet story of a misunderstood porcupine named Nappo (a reference to a particular principle, perhaps?). The artwork is great. Nappo is adorable. It is relatable in that most kids desire friendship. This book is a bit different from Borowski’s first book, Nobody Knows How to Make a Pizza (which is based on the liberty-oriented economic essay I, Pencil) in that it’s more of a story than an informational lesson.
The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet by Carmen Agra Deedy
I love this book so much. It’s a great telling of the principle that if you give someone power, they will take even more power, and it’s a compelling message of disobedience and being true to oneself, even in the face of death. The artwork is beautiful (kind of Tim Burton-esque) with bright colors. With some repetition thrown in, I was also able to get my son to read out loud a bit with me.
Wild by Emily Hughes
This is a kind of Jungle Book story about a feral girl. It’s a great message of allowing children to be their wild selves and that taming the spirit out of them will make them unhappy. I also like how the book keeps the perspective that the adults are the ones who are doing things wrong in this situation. I appreciate it when the adults aren’t always “right” in children’s books.
The following books have the same themes throughout, but in a more informational way:
I Own Myself by Rory Margraf
This is a good overview of the ideas of self-ownership and voluntaryism with an overall message of consent. It’s a bit too informational for my kids, so it is probably better suited for kids who are older than mine. I love the simple illustrations and bright colors. I can’t wait to see how my kids react to it again in a few years.
L is for Liberty by Wendy Cheyette Lewison
A quick book explaining the Statue of Liberty and its history along with why we celebrate the Fourth of July. Some bits make the anarchist in me cringe, but I appreciate the overall message of freedom, even if some of it seems a bit naïve from my perspective. It has nice, bright illustrations.
What Does It Mean to Be Free? By Laura Lington
Such a lovely book that explains the idea of freedom and the many ways to take advantage of freedom, as well as the kind of potential we all have to be the kind of person we want to be. My favorite message was that of trusting our children to do great things with their freedom. I love the artwork in this book.
Your Voice is Your Superpower by Jessica & Sandy Bohrer
This book has a great explanation of the power of using your voice and that we all have the freedom to use speech in order to express ourselves in our own way, even when we disagree with each other. There are some aspects to it that I don’t necessarily agree with regarding the connection to free speech and politics, but the overall message outweighs that one downfall for me. And my kids are really into superheroes right now, so they really enjoyed that aspect of this story.
I hope this list helps with finding books you think will help your kids learn about some of values that are important to you as parents. Do you have any recommendations? Leave a comment!