You have what it takes to change the world!
This is the empowering message parenting author and podcaster Cindy Wang Brandt wants every child to hear and embrace. In this inspiring picture book she speaks to every child who sees injustice in the world, revealing that they already have inside themselves everything they need to make big, transformative change in the world–just as they are. Every kid is a revolutionary! You don’t need to wait until you grow up. You don’t even need any special skills. Kids who are loud, kids who are quiet, kids who make art, kids who are good at math, kids with lots of energy, kids who are good listeners–all kids have what it takes to make a difference.
Lynnor Bontigao’s vibrant illustrations feature a diverse group of children taking up a call to action and using their individual gifts to change the world.
Read on for an interview with Cindy Wang Brandt.
Q. What inspired your story?
A. I have “faith shifted,” meaning I’ve left the faith of my childhood. This has caused significant anxiety and trauma in adulthood. As I’ve sought to understand the source of my angst, much of it was having power wielded over me when I was a child. A big part of my own healing is to become an advocate for children today, that they be afforded full autonomy because they are human beings, not any lesser than adults. If kids are to be treated and respected as adults are, then what excludes them from becoming revolutionaries, people who make a change in the world? It is a human right to have a say in the way we live our lives, and yet we exclude kids from this work. I think our world still has a long way to go to extend children the rights they deserve, and I hope my book helps move progress.
Q. Who do you hope will read your book?
A. I work with parents and I want parents to know that their responsibility isn’t just to raise happy and healthy children, but that we have an awesome responsibility to raise conscious citizens that together create a better world for all. The best way to love our kids is to create a world that is kind to all kids. Parenting is a revolution in itself, an act of changing the world. I hope parents who feel this responsibility deeply will pick up my book and read it for their inner child as well as their own kids.
Q. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
A. I entered the blogging scene in the early 2010s and eventually developed a career as a writer, publishing my first book in 2019 and now a children’s book in 2021. I didn’t grow up in a literary family, in fact, English is my second language, so there were no support or resources for my journey to become a writer. The democratization of the internet made it possible for me to share my words with the public and I’m forever grateful for the platform. Now, looking back there were many clues that I was meant to be a writer, I just didn’t know it at the time. Anytime I needed to write in life–for school, writing family newsletters, and eventually on social media, it lit me up inside and I felt the most joy when I found any opportunity to put words together.
Q. How do you deal with writer’s block?
A. By engaging with other people’s ideas. I’m always listening to podcasts and I’m very active on social media. You’ll find me talking to my podcast hosts even though they can’t hear me because I am always either resonating or disagreeing with them. I am endlessly curious in people and engaging in conversations get my brain juices going.
Purchase your copy of You Are Revolutionary here.
Cindy Wang Brandt is the author of Parenting Forward: How to Raise Children with Justice, Mercy, and Kindness. She is the host of Parenting Forward podcast and the Parenting Forward conference. She’s also the founder of the popular Facebook group Raising Children Unfundamentalist. Cindy writes at cindywangbrandt.com. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Cindy lives in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, with her husband and two children.
