Today is World Water Day, but I did not know about it until I read a Re-Tweet on Twitter. Separatly, I received a visually pleasing book called Saved by the Well. The book is part of the Dream Village project, that uses picture books and a website to help children explore and address global issues. Nothing happens by coincidence and so in celebration of World Water Day I offer a review of A Dream Village Story’s Saved by the Well by Matthew Eisenberg and Suneet Bhatt.
Saved by the Well gently tells the story of a town called Spontania in Mozambique. Spontania grew larger and larger and the one well dried up because of the increased demand for water. Without the well people either walked for miles to get clean water or drank dirty water. The town suffered, until that is, a play pump was built near the towns school.
Told through a combination of photographs and cartoons, the book is well thought out, informative and beautiful. I particularly like the photographs. The story line is easy enough for younger children to grasp but can still spark conversation amongst older readers. My second grader breezed through the book but had questions after. It was a great tool in getting her to think about basic life necessities, to which not everyone has access.
I not only enjoyed the book but am enjoying the website as well. I encourage everyone to check the website out and to support this wonderful start-up by purchasing their products.
Want to know more about Dream Village, contact:
Dream Village
Melissa Corbett
(913) 449-9876
melissa@dream-village.org
• Children’s site: http://www.dream-village.org
You can purchase Dream Village products here.
Disclosure: I did not receive any cash or prizes in exchange for this review. I did receive a copy of the book so that I could review it. The opinion listed above is my own.
