My Heart Will Not Sit Down

Written by: Mara Rockliff and Ann Tanksley

First line: School day! School day!

Why you should read this book: When Kedi, a young girl in Cameroon in 1931, hears about American children who don't have enough to eat across the ocean because of the Great Depression, her heart "will not sit down," and she feel compelled to ask everyone she knows to donate to the relief effort. Money is scarce in Kedi's society—most people need to save every coin just to pay the head tax demanded by their colonial overlords—but her impassioned pleas convinced everyone to give what they have. This children's picture book is based on a true story in which the city of New York received a check for $3.77 from the people of Cameroon, a seemingly small sum that represented a vast portion of the wealth of the entire village.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You don't share.