The International Day of the Girl: Celebrating Girls Around the World

Since 2012, October 11th has been designated as International Day of the Girl, focusing on the unique challenges that face girls all over the world. This book, part of the inspirational “CitizenKid” series which is designed to help children become better global citizens, examines the many ways in which females are disenfranchised and what some enterprising girls and young women are doing to affect positive change. The book begins with a garden analogy: imagine a garden where half of the plants are tended, watered and nurtured, and the other half of the plants are neglected, deprived of water and left to wither in the hot sun. In many countries, the treatment of girls is likened to the neglected part of the garden.

Based on interviews and research into girls’ experiences all around the globe, The International Day of the Girl: Celebrating Girls Around the World features the stories of nine girls from different countries. Each of their stories highlights an important issue, such as gender-based violence, denial of a basic education, malnutrition, lack of washroom facilities at school, wage inequality, mistreatment in refugee camps and being forced into an early marriage at age 10 or 11. Following each story, text boxes provide supporting details and statistics from the girl’s country of origin.

A timeline of how the International Day of the Girl came to fruition along with further information about the various issues covered in the text are provided. For example, 75% of the world’s refugees and displaced persons are female; worldwide, over 130 million girls do not attend school; and half the schools in rural areas of Africa, South America and South Asia do not have basic toilet facilities. The book ends with the garden analogy once more: as the world’s “gardeners”, people have an obligation to nurture and cultivate an atmosphere of fairness, equality and justice for all.

The colourful illustrations, consisting of both acrylics and digital artwork, suit the target audience and their vibrancy echoes the hopefulness of the text.

Eye-opening, thought-provoking and inspiring, The International Day of the Girl: Celebrating Girls Around the World is sure to spark some classroom discussion and might spur some readers on to social action.