*received for free from netgalley for honest review* really important book for kids! would buy for sure!

Sesame Street's 'come together. Change the world' teaches kids about racial inequality. I love how Sesame street is still so relevant and teaches children important lessons. This book is very well done and is needed in our world.

I am in awe of how the author and Sesame Street characters were able to take such a complicated subject and make it easily understandable for young children. This is a tool every parent and teacher needs. Adults could do with reading it, as well. Highly recommended.

Maybe this says something about how much I love and respect Sesame Street, but I really expected more from this book. Something looking at systemic racism, but appropriate for kids? Maybe that's impossible, but this was pretty much "be nice to everyone even if they look different." That's a GREAT message, but I wanted more.

Great introductory book to get a conversation started with a younger child, but there is more to be said. This book centers around being an upstander and making sure that everyone is treated fairly. All the friends of Sesame Street make clear that if you see something that isn’t fair you can tell an adult and comfort/ include that person. It doesn’t do a lot to address what racism is, but again this is definitely for a younger child and can help the parent BEGIN a conversation that should be expanded upon. Great message.

This new title has all your favorite Sesame Street characters. This book is focused on racism. as Elmo and his friends learn how to be upstanders. The characters discuss racial justice and how people are different. The book teaches children to stand up for their friends and anyone else who is being treated unfairly because of their race. This is a very good book for parents & teachers to have conversations with children on racism, prejudice, diversity, multicultural and being socially active. It is the perfect book to start a discussion or answer a child’s question. This title is based on CNN and Sesame Street’s Town Hall, Coming Together: Stand Up To Racism.

This is a cute book with Sesame Street characters to talk about racial inequality and standing up for what matters, all alongside your favorite furry friends.

I received an electronic ARC from Lerner Publishing Group through NetGalley.
Golusky offers information about racism and Racial Justice in simple to follow text for preschool and young elementary level readers. This is a terrific read aloud for families as they answer questions from their children and/or introduce the topic of being kind and caring. The blend of photographs and drawings of Sesame Street characters works as it offers familiar faces from the show and familiar skin tones from the photos.
Information about further research and a Glossary are provided at the end of the book.

I want to preface by saying that I am a white reviewer/bookseller (but one who has experience and a degree in Early Childhood Education).

That being said, this is a good step for very young children, but for ages 4+ I would find a different book to address racism specifically - this book centers most around being an upstander in general and how to fight for fairness rather than understanding racism as a structure.

I think there needs to be more discussion of what racism is or looks like past focusing on thinking "all skin colors are beautiful" and some explanation of what systemic racism looks like past just saying it leads to unfairness. This would help children bridge the gap from just thinking about the ways people are nice to each other or do or do not like each other to thinking about how racism shapes opportunity and life contexts for people of color. I am reminded of conversations I have had with educators wanting to balance the idea that children should be protected from scary truths and hard conversations with understanding that children of color are actively experiencing racism, and that "protecting" children from addressing it head-on in a developmentally appropriate and yet complex way really serves to shelter white children while leaving children of color more vulnerable to harm and potentially without language to communicate about it, especially to their white peers.

In Come Together, Change the World, live photographs are paired with your favorite Sesame Street puppets to explain the difficult concept of racial injustice in a child-friendly way. Golusky helps children to see that "upstanding is outstanding," and described an upstander as someone who stands up for what's right in the world!

This book seems like it would be a great introduction to learning about racism and discrimination for some of my younger students. I like that it includes a glossary of terms, so even after reading the story (or before we read) we can check for understanding.

I felt the book could have been a little longer, but I also know that for some of my younger students, this might be the perfect length. I'm excited to read this and see how my students respond. I will say, though, when looking at pre-order pricing in order to have a physical copy of the book, it seemed a little more expensive than I was willing to pay for a short children's book (via amazon).

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me early access of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is such a wonderful story full of diverse children. Teaching racial justice is so important right now, and I love that it explains what it is and what to do to combat it (at the educational level of young children and with familiar characters). I love that the author and Sesame Street have taken a stand. I appreciate that it spoke, not just of skin color, but other characteristics such as hair, eyes, etc. It’s a great book to teach such an important lesson.

My niece will be 2 next month and she LOVES Sesame Street! I will be buying this book for her so we can talk about treating people fairly and with kindness. Great book!

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

Sesame street tackles the heavy issues. Racism is running rampant in the world. This book presents the topic in a way that children will understand. I pledge to be an upstander. Racism is a name on this world and we should all do our part to eradicate it.

Sesame Street is always a slam dunk with my 4yo, and this book was no exception. I am absolutely stoked that this book now exists, as the SS special on the topic was not a good match for my kid's attention span.

We read this book before bed tonight, and I was thrilled to answer his questions, like what does "unfair" mean and what is an "upstander." Then we climbed into bed, and after a little bit of quiet time, he had more questions about skin color, and it got a great conversation started about melanin and whether or not people can change the color of their skin. It was great to know that he was thinking about the book after we had finished reading it.

This is a very simple book, and I think that is absolutely perfect- it makes it accessible to.a wider range of ages and leaves a ton of room for good questions and conversations. I look forward to what future readings with my kid will spark.

Thank you for the copy!