Recently, I was very lucky to get a copy of Drawn to Change The World by Emma Reynolds and it didn’t take long for me to realise that this is one of those books that needs to be in every primary and secondary school in the country. The book is a collection of 16 stories that have been drawn by 16 artists, each in their own individual style. In the past, I have found books with changing art styles tricky to read as fluently, some of my favourite collections have issues from guest artists that just make me long for the normal artist, but this collection uses the approach to excellent effect. Having a different style for each story really helps to focus you on that story and creates a more memorable interaction with it.
There has been a big surge over the past few years when it comes to books highlighting issues or causes happening in society. This is vital for educating people, but as always some publishers have clearly forced issues into stories which can limit the impact or cause some work to feel very tokenistic. However, this book is an example of how to convey these themes and messages in a powerful and empowering manner. Much like When Stars Are Scattered, reading Drawn to Change The World will leave people with greater knowledge of issues but also awareness of what is being done to help or support them.
Using a range of techniques, the book educates readers about causes, the inspirational figures involved in supporting them and also provides information on what these key figures are up to now. All of this is done in only a few pages, but you never feel like you are missing out on important information. Each comic focuses on purely the key messages and details required to improve your understanding. This focused storytelling is what will help to inspire readers, it shows how passion and commitment are enough to make a difference instead of causing people to feel like they need a certain skill or background to do so.
Every story is very accessible because they are short, well paced and show how the person/people have made a clear impact. Not only does this mean readers won’t be put off by long text or get lost in dense build up, but it also means that they can understand the outcomes of real life actions. Often, people will say how everyone can make a difference but people struggle to see themselves doing so, this book constantly shows how to make a difference and everyone who reads it will feel empowered to do so themselves. There is a vast range of different topics and causes covered, plus the book does a superb job of representing a vast range of different people performing them. As well as representing different ethnicities and nationalities well, there is excellent representation of the LGBTQ+, disabled and neurodivergent communities. Again, these stories are not included to tick boxes, they are chosen because these people have made a huge difference and it will allow readers to feel seen and represented at some point in the book.
Having a book that enables every member of the school community to feel seen is a very difficult thing to do but this text also does an amazing job of showing everyone how they can make a difference to the world. Empowering, inspiring and thought-provoking, DTCTW is a book that needs to be in every school. It can be used to inform during assemblies, serve as the basis for excellent guided reading or discussion lessons and there is plenty of of opportunity to inspire writing, art work and further study. I honestly cannot recommend this book enough and urge everyone to grab a copy for their library or class.
You can use my bookshop link below to get yours, you should be able to find it at all other book sellers too.
They don't count as reading 