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New Zealand children curious to know curious about how their government works will find all their questions answered in a recently updated book, Running the Country, by prolific Point Wells writer Maria Gill.
Maria was spurred to write the original book, which came out in 2013, after her publisher pointed out that a decent book about New Zealand government for children had not been written for 30 years.
The updated version includes a full overview of the 2017 General Election and the way MMP impacted the way the current government was formed.
Also new is a section on children’s rights, contrasting New Zealand children’s’ rights with those of other children around the world.
The book contains brief biographies of major political figures from the beginning of European settlement to the current prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, and is profusely illustrated by famed newspaper cartoonist Malcolm Evans.
Maria Gill
Maria says children who like reading non-fiction often like to dip into a book for brief snippets here and there. To cater for this, there are lots of boxes with small amounts of text. “Sometimes kids can get put off if they see a whole lot of text,” Maria says.
Book Giveaway
Mahurangi Matters has a copy of the book Running the Country to give away. To win the book send an email to editor@localmatters.co.nz with Running the Country in the subject line. Competition closes on May 28.
