through the eyes of a child

As I pondered what to write for Blog the Vote, I tried to think about connections between voting and children's books--what political issues would be important to someone who loves children's books? A lot of potential issues sprang to mind: book banning, the closing of libraries, literacy, children's safety and welfare.

All very important issues, all worthy of a call to action. But then I started thinking, what is the most important aspect of children's books to me? And the answer was immediate: their moral center. Children's books gave me one at a time when almost nothing else in my environment did. They were a beacon for ideas like honor, integrity, kindness, responsibility, fairness, equality, at a time when I was living amidst ugliness, hatred and corruption.

So what I want to ask of readers who love children's books today is... go out and vote, and vote as if you lived in a children's book. Vote, as much as you can, with your mind and heart reaching for honor, integrity, kindness, responsibility, fairness, equality. Vote, as much as you can, against ugliness, hatred and corruption.

Dream the world you would like to live in and then go try to make it happen. It's what Taran would do, and Amy, and Bilbo, and Lucy, and Freddy, and Dorothy, and Margaret, and Harriet.

(And check out the rest of Blog the Vote.)