Review of The Water Princess

​The Water Princess
Written by Susan Verde & Georgie Badiel
Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
Age Level: 4 - 8
Grade Level: K - 3

​If you want to travel to Africa and understand what it’s like to live without easy access to clean water, this is the book for  you. I read it aloud to a 4th grade classroom. They were so interested, I didn’t hear a sound, not even a pin drop. It says something wonderful about the text and illustrations.
 
This story was inspired by Georgie Badiel so it’s a work of fiction, but it gives kids a real look at what water scarcity means, especially for women and girls. They walk all day, every day to get water that’s not even clean. Georgie made the walk whenever she visited her grandmother, but that roundtrip took all day. It also shows what they had to do to drink dirty water. Before the princess could take a sip, her mother boiled the water first. In the US, we only boil when there’s a problem at the water treatment plant.
 
This is one of the best books I’ve read to help kids understand the importance of clean sustainable water. Don’t forget to check out the back matter!

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