Rocket Says Speak Up!

by Nathan Bryon

Diverse Characters, Picture Book

At A Glance

Interest Level

4 – 7

Entertainment
Score

Reading Level
3.5

Number of Pages
32

When Rocket finds out that her town’s library is closing, she knows something must be done. Inspired by the activism of Rosa Parks, Rocket rallies support from her peers, and together they lead a peaceful protest that spreads awareness and raises enough money to save their beloved library.

The story begins with Rocket explaining why she loves the library. She also talks about reading a book about Rosa Parks and gives a brief description of Rosa’s famous protest. Because of Rosa, Rocket decides to help the library by having a peaceful protest. However, Rocket doesn’t act alone. Instead, she gathers students, teachers, parents, and the librarian to all “get prepared and spread the word.”

After the protest, Rocket feels discouraged and wonders “What was the point?” But then the mayor shows up and explains that “people around the world were inspired by our protest, and lots of them have given money to save the library.” While the positive outcome of the protest may feel unrealistic, young readers will learn that their voice matters.

Even though Rocket Says Speak Up! is a picture book, the story is intended to be read aloud to a child, rather than for a child to read it for the first time independently. Most pages contain one to four sentences, and some of the sentences are complex. The picture book’s bright illustrations are full of fun details. Readers will enjoy looking for Rocket’s cat, who appears on many of the pages. Another positive aspect is that scenes of the library and school show a diverse group of children, including one who is in a wheelchair.

Rocket Says Speak Up! shows the importance of libraries and encourages readers to spend time at their local library. The book also includes many interesting facts about libraries and encourages children to check out different types of books. To further foster a love of learning at the library, Bunny’s Book Club by Annie Silvestro is the perfect book to read after Rocket Says Speak Up!

Sexual Content 