The Big Book for Peace

Full disclosure: I bought this book simply because it had one of Maurice Sendak's Wild Things on the cover, and completely unaware of the contents, so this review may be a little scattered. Obviously Sendak was involved in the production of this book, contributing a lovely illustration of a simpler world full of fun and adventure, but most of the authors and illustrators were unfamiliar to me. Published in 1990, as the world was coming down from the highs of the Cold War, but still seeing an increase in violence and strige worldwide, the collection is a manifesto promoting cooperation, understanding, and of course peace among humankind. We see examples of cultures coming together ("There is an Island"), people peaefully protesting for show more their rights ("The Bus for Deadhorse"), and an example of peaceful coexistence from the animal world ("The Birds' Peace") to name a few of my favourite examples. For what is on the surface a simple children's book of tales, I was surprised at how deeply many of the stories tackle a historical narrative. Engaging with themes of American nationalism, racism, and isolationis a tricky thing to do for publishers, but this risk has paid off to make the book highly engaging. Since its publication it doesn't seem like humanity has come very far in becoming more peaceful, so may it is time to revisit this publishing concept and do another BIGGER book for peace! show less

I agree with those who said this book was uneven. It also seems to me that it lacked a coherent direction or tone. Some of the stories seemed too simple for older kids and some were too frightening for younger ones so I was confused about what age group this was aimed at. Thematically it wandered; some authors seemed to be writing about how people might behave peacefully, others about how war is frightening and bad, some about how to agitate or demonstrate for political change, others retold native american stories, some gave episodes from US history. I do get that there is a common thread to all of this but it wasn't a strong enough thread to pull the book together. It felt like a bunch of very loosely related parts just thrown show more together. Some of the loosely related parts were charming, some were less so. All in all I felt like it needed a much stronger editor and in the end I wanted to like this book much more than I did like it. show less

Peace is very important in the world in which we live. Anyone who has been hurt in a quarrel or a fight or watched TV news or read a newspaper knows that. This profound book looks at the idea of peace in many multifaceted ways. In fantasy tales and present-day stories, some funny and some serious. In true incidents, some that happened in the past and some that are happening right now. In poems, pictures, and even song. The pictures in this book fit really nicely with the text.

An oldie but goodie collection of stories and poems about peace. It's a children's book with works from different authors, but this is also something a lot of grown-ups would benefit from nowadays, especially in 2026 with what's going on in the world. Some of the illustrations are really nice too, also from various artists.

Peace--the issue of our times--affects everyone, but especially children, who deserve and wish for a peaceful future. This book contains 17 stories about peace from some of the best-loved authors and illustrators for children.

The wisdom of peace and the absurdity of fighting are demonstrated in seventeen stories and poems by authors such as Jean Fritz, Milton Meltzer, and Nancy Willard, illustrated by such as Paul Zelinsky, the Dillons, and Maurice Sendak.

This very special volume was created by more than thirty of the best known and loved authors and illustrators of children's books.
Summary: The wisdom of peace and the absurdity of fighting are demonstrated in seventeen stories and poems by outstanding authors of today such as Jean Fritz, Milton Meltzer, and Nancy Willard, illustrated by famous illustrators such as Paul Zelinsky, the Dillons, and Maurice Sendak.