If America Were a Village: A Book about the People of the United States

Author David J. Smith and illustrator Shelagh Armstrong, who previously collaborated on If the World Were a Village: A Book about the World's People, join forces again in this similar examination of the United States of America. Imagining the population of the USA (around 306 million at the time of publication) as a village of one hundred people, the author explores everything from demographics to wealth distribution, family structure to health situation. This approach gives young readers an idea of the larger picture, when it comes to the population of the United States, simplifying what would otherwise be a very complicated topic...

I enjoyed Smith and Armstrong's first book some years ago, and had always meant to pick up this companion volume, but somehow never managed to get around to it. Having recently been reading other titles in the Citizen Kid collection, I finally managed to track it down, and I'm glad I did. Although probably already a little dated - it was published in 2009 - If America Were a Village: A Book about the People of the United States is still a very valuable book, breaking down statistics in easily understood ways for children. As the author notes in his afterword, 100 is an easily understood number, and will help children to understand the topic. Numbers in the millions begin to feel abstract and unreal, I think, so Smith's approach is definitely helpful, as are the strategies he suggests, for discussing these topics with children. Although I wouldn't say it was a personal favorite, the artwork here, done in acrylic paint, is nevertheless colorful and engaging. All in all, a very worthwhile book, one I would recommend to young readers with an interest in geography and/or statistics. This could be a very useful addition to an upper primary or middle-grade social studies unit. ( )

5.6, 4-8

I really enjoyed looking through this book. It explains in detail how the world would be if it was only populated by 100 people. We see different foods, cultures, and some surprising information about our world as a whole. I like this book because it helps put some things in perspective, and shows kids some world issues they may have not previously known about. ( )

Have you ever received the e-mail that reduces the world to 100 people and describes how many of the 100 speak English, are Muslim, have a college education, etc.? This is the same concept but it uses the United States as its base population. A lot of statistics and percentages are thrown out there, making this book somewhat abstract for younger kids. To get the book's points across, adults should be willing to break down the numbers in graphic representations for their kids or students. Middle and high schoolers with a good grasp of percentages should be fine. The author includes recommended activities for getting the most out of the book and cites the print and online resources he used to compile statistics. A companion title to "If the World were a Village."

I really enjoyed this book and I think it is an awesome way to teach students about America's demographics. I think this can be a hard concept for some students to understand. What this book does is break down the overall population down to a number younger students are able to work with. This way students can grasp the concepts with more ease. I also enjoyed the topics the book chose to cover. The illustrations also do a great job of brightening the book up and making it a great picture book for all ages.