The peace sign is ubiquitous, and yet the story is little known. Michael Long’s book addresses its development in crisp, concise text and the accompanying artwork by Carlos Velez brilliantly illustrates the story. Bright, dramatic artwork depicts people of all types in many situations,
often joyous and always inclusive. The book concludes with hopeful words about catching on, / fighting on, / moving on… / TO / YOU."

British peace activist and graphic designer Gerald Holtom created the peace sign In 1958 for a march to protest nuclear weapons. Its use spread to social change and protest movements around the globe. The call for peace expanded to climate justice and justice for all - women, people of color, poor people, folks with disabilities, and LGBTQ persons.

This is one of those books that can be read on more than one level. Read as a picture book for young children, an adult can use the pictures to help explain and deepen the story at the child’s level. For grade school kids, it is both a good story and an introduction to peace movements and justice initiatives, and for middle grades, it could be included with relevant books for a unit on peace. The endnote features a timeline and explains the story in much more depth, facilitating its use in classrooms.



I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for this honest review ( )

This book is perfect for teaching my children and grandchildren about the history, meaning, and visible use of the peace symbol in countries all over the world. It made it easier to explain to others why my blue t-shirt has a peace symbol overlaid on a field of sunflowers in 2022.
Excellent narrative by the author and memorable illustrations by Carlos Velez. Every public and school library needs a copy!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Flyaway Books via NetGalley. Thank you! ( )

I received this book to review. I was personally very interested in the way that the peace symbol came about and created a movement. I read it to my six year old child, which then made me have to explain concepts she really didn't fully comprehend yet (like an atomic bomb). I would suggest the book for elementary age children or for looking at how art can help a movement. ( )

I wanted more from this. It is a cute little story, but I found the back matter so much more interesting. I was hoping this was a biography on how the symbol came to be. But if you are using this at story time or something, all the relevant information gets lost because it is at the back and not in the story. As said before, this could have been better. ( )