Politics

Eduard Altarriba is a graphic designer and illustrator. He runs Alababalà, a studio producing games, exhibitions, animation, apps and practical and fun workbooks for children. He has illustrated a number of books published by GMC Publications including, Discovering Architecture, Discovering Energy, My First Book of Electromagnetism, My First Book of Microbes, My First Book of Quantum Physics, My First Book of Relativity, My First Book of the Cosmos, What is War?, Migrants and Economics. Eduard lives in Barcelona, Spain.

What is power, and how do communities govern themselves? Who is likely to end up with power in a society, and why? What is the best form of government, what is democracy, and how does a government work? What are all its responsibilities? In this fascinating and visually appealing guide for young readers, Eduard Altarriba takes readers through the potentially confusing world of politics in a step-by-step way, explaining why politics exists and how it operates. This is a very detailed book, covering aspects of politics from the economy to constitutions, the difference between centralised and federal governing systems, propaganda, left and right politics, majorities and coalitions, populism and corruption. Although it’s presented in picture book format, the content of information is definitely suitable for children in Year 6-8 and above – though the ideas are presented well and clearly, even some adults would struggle to understand the difference between, for instance, legislative, judicial and executive power. However, it’s a fascinating book for children interested in how the world works, and would probably benefit from discussion in class or at home.

• Power 4 Social hierarchies 6 Violence! 8 Wars 9 Governing 10 Laws and regulations 11 Political thought 12 What is the best form of government? 14 Legitimacy 16 Peace and order 17 The state 18 The economy 20 Taxes 21 Borders and security 22 Monarchies and republics 24 I’m in charge here! 25 Democracy 26 Separation of powers 28 The constitution 30 Public policies 32 Centralized/federal state 34 Entities above states 35 Vote! 36 From left to right 38 Majorities and coalitions 40 Freedom of the press and freedom of expression 44 Propaganda and communication 44 Populism 47 Corruption 48 What would you do? 50 What if I disagree? The power of the people 53 Glossary 54