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Big ideas don’t always need a fancy package.
While higher education loves to present complex concepts in equally complex and detailed packages, sometimes getting the point across requires a bit of simplification to get to the heart of the matter.
Think about Green Eggs and Ham, Star-Bellied Sneetches and The Lorax. Dr. Suess never compromised on wonder and whimsy when delivering important messages about expanding your horizons, racism and environmentalism.
That’s the approach Lisa has taken with her new children’s book Only Kids and Play Can Save the World. This fun and charming tale finds twins TJ and Maddie realizing something is wrong with their parents. The glazed eyes, the dull routines. Mom and dad’s spark is missing. It doesn’t take them long to diagnose the issue and the solution. Grown-ups need more play!
With colorful images by Sarah Iverson and Lisa’s bouncing prose, this book works as well as a joyful read for kids as it does as a parable for stressed out, glazed-eye grownups. The story drives to its point as the twin, not content to let evil powers control the world, mastermind a way to win the world back over to play and light the way for the rest of us. A fable and a blueprint.
How do you get people to play more and honor the benefits of play? Let’s add a pointed kids’ book to the list of tools we have to embrace and share the power of play.