Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. I am working with The Children's Book Review and Herald Press to bring you this post.
Has your community or family suffered from gun violence? I feel like all the school shootings and random shootings are make us apathetic unless it is in our circle. I remember when the Columbine school shooting happened. Do you? It was one of the more significant school shootings that really changed how school shootings were covered. I was teaching in public school in Massachusetts then, but it was a school vacation week. I remember watching it on television and yelling at the reporters and cameramen to stop and help the kids running out of the school instead of sharing the story. As a teacher I couldn't imagine adults not caring for the kids who just went through this awful experience. When we got back to school, we had to address it. Kids were telling me their parents helped them plan out escape routes from any class they had. Now I feel like we hear about a shooting at a school, a mall, etc. and we may say a prayer for the victims, but it is not as big of a deal. Even the media doesn't cover it like they covered Columbine. Hazel has brought up what it is like to be growing up in this time of school shootings. We tried to hide it from her when she was young, but as grew older and the shootings became more commonplace, she heard about them. Today we are sharing a powerful book about a community finding a way to spark peace after some gun violence. The book is Sparking Peace by Teresa Kim Pecinovsky and Hannah Rose Martin and illustrated by Gabhor Utomo. At the end of this post there is a giveaway as well!
