Thanks And Have Fun Running The Country: Kids' Letters To President Obama (2009) - Plot & Excerpts
So they collected a bunch of amusing letters written to president-elect Obama by children. This is like brain-candy - bite-sized and easy to digest. Pleasant pastime. I like this sort of thing a lot. I only took away one star because the kids are from a handful of cities and they mostly all say how wonderful it is that Obama is bringing hope. I would have been interested to read a few letters that reflected the dejected state of mind of youthful McCain/Palin supporters. Though perhaps the young just bounce back and rally behind the new leader of the free world more quickly than the old.It's hard not to laugh at letters that advise the president-elect to wipe his feet when he arrives at the White House or recommend having a donut on a list of ten things to do as president.Then I started tearing up as I read between the lines "you should lower the gas bills because some people have to borrow money to pay the bills." It's hard out there for a little pimp these days.Then I got all philosophical about how clear things are for children. They believe in their own intelligence and the dignity of their humanity so deeply. They understand what war is, and pollution, and homelessness and they see these as straightforward problems with clear solutions. Don't fight, clean up after yourself, take care of people who need help. What is the hold-up? Why are you adults not fixing these problems?Suddenly I remembered clearly the letter I wrote to President Reagan - I was 12 in 1988 when Bush was elected so this must have been 10 or 11-year-old me writing. I offered that if Reagan and the other adults were having a hard time ending the Cold War, maybe they'd better just step aside and give kids a chance. Actually, I think that might not be a bad idea. I can imagine a panel of 11-to-13-year-olds doing a better job in the middle east than the current leadership. They could hardly do worse.In response, I got a pamphlet from Nancy Reagan, urging me to "Just Say No" to drugs. I was insulted. Not only did they not want my help or my advice, they had the audacity to imply that I might someday sample illegal drugs. On second thought, perhaps I underestimate the Reagans. Clearly they did know a few things about the world that I had yet to learn.Thanks, CC! I'm inspired to create a shelf of books that are just fun to pick up - how great would that be a whole shelf of twitter-wit and children's funny letters and books of interesting quotations? As of today the collection is begun! It's hard to knock on kids and good causes, especially good causes for kids. So I won't. In fact, I'd say support the 826 program by buying this or any of their other books, regardless of my or anyone's start ratings. They do great work. The thing about this book, though, is it becomes monotonously repetitive very quickly. Some of the letters are amusing and funny. Some are heartbreaking. The rest you can sum up with: please stop the war in Iraq, please improve the economy and please help the environment. For the kids, printing so many of them is fine. They get to see their names on a page. For readers, it seems there would have been opportunity to reflect more diverse perspectives. At the same time, it's an interesting reflection of the President's campaign posts and how deeply affective those messages were among families in the urban centers where 826 operates.
What do You think about Thanks And Have Fun Running The Country: Kids' Letters To President Obama (2009)?
My favorite feature is the index. The best entry: PIZZA/as a carpet.
—jess14
A fun quickie - the title pretty much gives it to you, doesn't it?
—ShadowAngel96
