Sofia Valdez, Future Prez By Andrea Beaty, Illustrated by David Roberts (2019) – Hardcover
“A dreamer. A doer. A real-life go-getter. Most people like good, but Sofia liked better.” This is the perfect description of second-grader Sofia Valdez. Sofia is saddened and angered when her abuelo is injured in an accident caused by the local landfill. She then sees an opportunity to make things right by organizing a call-to-action to get the landfill replaced with a community park. She soon learns that this is easier said than done when she encounters pushback at the Mayor’s office. But Sofia’s tenacity and hard work lead to an empowering community movement. Such an inspirational read for any young child! Sofia is such a powerful role model, it’s too bad that she wasn’t more prominently featured on the cover art.
Take-away message: There are so many great lessons to be learned from this book. 1) When someone tells you that you can’t do something, especially when that “something” is for the betterment of the world, find a way to prove them wrong. 2) “Being brave means doing the thing you must do, though your heart cracks with fear.” 3) True change starts with one person having a vision and inspiring others to help them make that vision a reality.
TAGS: female lead, Mexican, Latinx, grandparents, Spanish edition, hardcover
Also available in Spanish!
Sofía Valdez, presidenta tal vez
