Growing up in our present day world is full of challenges. The non-stop “Breaking News” cycle leaves tweens and teens with only one conclusion: The world is a violent place. Conflicts escalate to a point where people are physically hurt or killed.

But is there another way?

This new title covers six individuals who chose nonviolent activism to challenge the wrongs in their time. It’s a compelling look into the lives of these brave heroes:

• Gandhi and Indian Independence
• Alice Paul and Votes for Women
• Martin Luther King Jr. and Project C
• Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers Movement
• Vaclav Havel and the Velvet Revolution
• Greta Thunberg and the Climate Change Movement

Accompanied by black and white pictures, the narrative digs deep. I came away with many new insights. You may know these stories on the surface, but the richly researched text places readers in the middle of each effort with depth and compassion. The chapters on Martin Luther King Jr. and Alice Paul brought me to a new appreciation for what they did with their unique brand of non-violent activism.

There is also a constant thread tying all the efforts together, how they were different and alike. Each person learned from the past to bring forth change in their time.

WE ARE POWER would be perfect for sixth grade on up in a social studies class or for personal reading. Most important, exposure to this book will surely develop our next group of leaders to a better way to handle conflict.

Here more about Todd Hasak-Lowy

I started writing fiction for adults, but now I write for younger readers, too. I’ve published two books for adults: a short story collection, THE TASK OF THIS TRANSLATOR (2005), and the novel CAPTIVES (2008). My first book for your younger readers, a middle grade novel called 33 MINUTES, was published in 2013. In 2015 I published a young adult novel, ME BEING ME IS EXACTLY AS INSANE AS YOU BEING YOU. That same year, a narrative memoir for ages 10 and up that I co-wrote with and about Holocaust survivor Michael Gruenbaum called SOMEWHERE THERE IS STILL A SUN came out. In early 2018 a young person’s history of the women’s suffrage movement, ROSES & RADICALS, which I co-wrote with Susan Zimet, was published. My latest book, WE ARE POWER: HOW NONVIOLENT ACTIVISM CHANGES THE WORLD, is coming out in April, 2020. In addition to writing, I teach literature at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and translate Hebrew literature into English. I live in Evanston, Illinois (just outside Chicago), with my wife, two daughters, a dog, and two cats.

For more visit Todd’s website and catch my review of his middle grade fiction title, 33 Minutes…

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The excitement is building…only three days until the biggest giveaway in the 8 year history of ALWAYS in the MIDDLE takes off. Come back Monday for all the details!

Blogging about middle grade books or authors next week? Join the celebration:

All you have to do is blog about a middle grade book on a Monday (contests, author interviews, or anything middle grade related also count). Email me the title of the book or feature and a link to your blog at gpcolo[at]gmail[dot]com

Make sure you put MMGM or Marvelous Middle Grade Monday in the subject line so it gets sorted accurately–and please don’t forget to say what book or author you’re featuring) You MUST email me your link by Sunday evening (11 PM Eastern Time) in order to be included in the list of links for the coming Monday.

Thanks for spreading the middle grade love and for being a part of this awesome tradition begun by Shannon Messenger and carried on here at ALWAYS in the MIDDLE! (CLICK HERE FOR PAST MMGM POSTS)

*Please note: these posts are not a reflection of my own opinions on the books featured. Each blogger is responsible for their own MMGM content and I do not pre-screen reviews ahead of time, nor do I control what books they choose. I simply assemble the list based on the links that are emailed to me.