Rating: 
Summary: Excellent!
Review: "Free the Children" is an excellent book on the issue of child labor. Craig Kielburger, a 12 years old Canadian became an activist after reading from the newspaper that Iqbal Masih, also another 12 years old from Pakistan was killed because of his support for the abolition of child labor. Soon, Craig started the "Free the Children" foundation, consists of only school children and their goal is to bring awareness to the issue of child labor. In order to learn more about this issue, Craig travelled to South Asian countries like Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal and to Thailand, hoping to meet the children himself.His detailed explanation of his trip was quite horrifying. Craig saw that the children were working as much as 10-12 hours a day for a mere US $1-2. Some of the children worked at firework factories where injuries were common and no safety measures were taken. Other times, children were beaten if they do not work. The most disturbing part of the book was his investigations in Bangkok where sex trade was rampant. Children were used as sex tools to lure tourists. The emotional, mental and physical scars that these children bore were immeasurable. "Free the Children" for me personally, is quite an inspiring book as it shows how one person can make a difference. In addition, it is quite an eye-opener as Craig argues, with examples, why child labor should be abolished and how each and everyone of us can assist in that. I highly recommend this book to anyone as it is extremely educational and motivational. I would caution parents on the part of Bangkok to young children as it can be quite disturbing and graphic.
Rating:
Summary: Great and touching book....
Review: ....I saw this kid on Oprah and so i got this book, it was amazingly powerful. I recommend this book to anyone who cares about kids in anyway. It will totally touch you.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant & Inspiring
Review: After reading Free The Children I feel as though my eyes have been opened to another world. Craig Kielburger managed to keep me interested while successfully telling his story. At times I laughed while I read the book. However at times I was horrified by what I was reading. Free The Children has shown me that one person or a small group of people can make a difference, it has also given me the inspiration that I needed to get on with my life. My problems are nothing compared to what others in the world go through. All over, Free The Children is well worth the read and I would strongly recomment this book to adults as well as children.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastico, nice story, very inspiring.
Review: Every teenage child in the western world should read this book. I always believed that every child in the occident ought to travel, once in their young age, to a third world country, carrying back all the memories of that trip in their home land. I believe that they would certainly have a different perspective on their lives and most likely revise their priorities. Nice Christmas gift for all the kids you know.
Rating:
Summary: More of a Reflection of Us than of the Wretched of the Earth
Review: How we live in many cases determines how others all around the world live. Those fortunate to be living in the industrialized, rich nations of the world directly benefit from the suffering and injustice inflicted upon the heads of many unfortunate people in the Third World. Craig Kielburger learned early on that the problems in the Third World are inter-connected. Child labor is often a symptom of the larger problem of poverty. Poverty in turn is directly linked to domestic governments that are not activist, not committed to providing basic infrastructure, and are thoroughly anti-democratic. However, it is not wholly a problem of politically corrupt or economically and morally bankrupt government. It is in too many cases a problem of rich country institutions, government and corporate, financial and social, tacitly abetting and passively condoning objectionable behavior. We can not conveniently lay the blame on the people of the Third World; nor can we easily point the finger at Third World governments. We too share plenty of the blame. When academics argue about solutions, it is always with what they have read or heard; not what they have directly experienced. Craig Kielburger has achieved something with this book that all the other books written by academics and filled with depressing numbers and statistics have consistently failed to do. He has put a face to the problems of child labor and poverty in the third world, and has gone even further to provide a voice to its weakest and most defenseless victims, the children. Craig Kielburger, much like Paul Harrison, author of Inside the Third World, has done much to restore the humanity that has fallen by the wayside in ehumanitarianf causes. This book has taught me many important lessons. Among them are to share your experiences, and provide moral support. It is not enough to just simply fork over cash in order to assuage your guilt. In the book, one of the Thai activists for labor rights said that change will not come overnight, because it is not simply a question of economics; it is a change in attitude as well. Money alone will not solve this and other problems confronting us all. The thing that will truly make the difference is whether or not we as Americans have the courage to confront the problems facing everyone and change the way we behave. Just as how we live determines how others live, our behavior in the world determines how others act, and interact, with one another.
Rating:
Summary: More of a Reflection of Us than of the Wretched of the Earth
Review: How we live in many cases determines how others all around the world live. Those fortunate to be living in the industrialized, rich nations of the world directly benefit from the suffering and injustice inflicted upon the heads of many unfortunate people in the Third World. Craig Kielburger learned early on that the problems in the Third World are inter-connected. Child labor is often a symptom of the larger problem of poverty. Poverty in turn is directly linked to domestic governments that are not activist, not committed to providing basic infrastructure, and are thoroughly anti-democratic. However, it is not wholly a problem of politically corrupt or economically and morally bankrupt government. It is in too many cases a problem of rich country institutions, government and corporate, financial and social, tacitly abetting and passively condoning objectionable behavior. We can not conveniently lay the blame on the people of the Third World; nor can we easily point the finger at Third World governments. We too share plenty of the blame. When academics argue about solutions, it is always with what they have read or heard; not what they have directly experienced. Craig Kielburger has achieved something with this book that all the other books written by academics and filled with depressing numbers and statistics have consistently failed to do. He has put a face to the problems of child labor and poverty in the third world, and has gone even further to provide a voice to its weakest and most defenseless victims, the children. Craig Kielburger, much like Paul Harrison, author of Inside the Third World, has done much to restore the humanity that has fallen by the wayside in ÂehumanitarianÂf causes. This book has taught me many important lessons. Among them are to share your experiences, and provide moral support. It is not enough to just simply fork over cash in order to assuage your guilt. In the book, one of the Thai activists for labor rights said that change will not come overnight, because it is not simply a question of economics; it is a change in attitude as well. Money alone will not solve this and other problems confronting us all. The thing that will truly make the difference is whether or not we as Americans have the courage to confront the problems facing everyone and change the way we behave. Just as how we live determines how others live, our behavior in the world determines how others act, and interact, with one another.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book, Inspiring, Craig is a very powerful person
Review: I loved "Free the Children", it's one of the best books i have read in a long, long time. Craig has a way of bringing what he saw and did to life, he makes you feel like you are there with him on his journey across Asia. I have got to see Craig in real life at a NCYC conference in St.Louis, Missouri. From the moment i heard him i had to get his book. This is an inspirational book, i think everybody should read this book to see how big of a problem child labor really is, and how FTC is helping children around the world. I definatly give this book 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Fun and insightful adventure for all ages
Review: I picked this book up on a whim and was pleasently surprised. Craig Kielburger's adventures around S/SE Asia are both entertaining and shocking. The horrible conditions that many children endure in that part of the world (India, Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh) are well documented through the eyes of Craig, the 12 y/o Canadian who (with numerous school-age friends) started the Free the Children foundation. However, there are also moments of humor as Craig shares his tribulations with everything from the local foods to run-ins with border guards and street vendors. Free the Children is an inspiring story that any adult or adolescent would enjoy. One note to parents: while I think a child as young as perhaps 9 or 10 could enjoy this book, I would caution you that topics such as Thailand's underage sex-trade, as well as the extreme abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual) suffered by many child labors, are discussed - but certainly not in any exploitative or inapproriate fashion.
Rating:
Summary: An Inspiration and Call to Action Against Child Labor
Review: It has been my pleasure to recently read "Free the Children," an autobiography/travelogue from Craig Kielburger, the founder of the youth-run Free the Children organization based in Canada. It tells of the morning Craig first heard of and was made incredulous by the realities of child labor around the world. The book follows his strong desire to get together with fellow kids and try to learn more about the state of children and hopefully be able to change it somehow. Through his amazing commitment and dedication, along with his burgeoning public speaking skills, Craig was able to motivate two dozen of his schoolmates immediately to the cause and soon earn several speaking engagements in local schools to spread the word about child labor. With the help of a family friend Craig was able to travel to South Asia to see first hand what working children's lives were like and to speak with the children themselves to hear how they lived, what their working conditions were, if they ever went to school, and if they had any ideas for their own futures. It is a truly inspiring book for adults and children who can always be reminded that one person can absolutely make a serious and badly-needed difference against child exploitation.
Rating:
Summary: amazing
Review: It has been my pleasure to recently read "Free the Children," an autobiography/travelogue from Craig Kielburger, the founder of the youth-run Free the Children organization based in Canada. It tells of the morning Craig first heard of and was made incredulous by the realities of child labor around the world. The book follows his strong desire to get together with fellow kids and try to learn more about the state of children and hopefully be able to change it somehow. Through his amazing commitment and dedication, along with his burgeoning public speaking skills, Craig was able to motivate two dozen of his schoolmates immediately to the cause and soon earn several speaking engagements in local schools to spread the word about child labor. With the help of a family friend Craig was able to travel to South Asia to see first hand what working children's lives were like and to speak with the children themselves to hear how they lived, what their working conditions were, if they ever went to school, and if they had any ideas for their own futures. It is a truly inspiring book for adults and children who can always be reminded that one person can absolutely make a serious and badly-needed difference against child exploitation.
| 
