The best books that demonstrate that children are people too

Why am I passionate about this?

I have a deep-set interest in and passion for human and civil rights, particularly children’s rights. I see the law, with which I have had a fascination since the age of 14, as the primary vehicle for advancing those rights. My research on the law has always been on my own, and apart from several legally themed high school and university courses, I am a layman in this field. Nonetheless, I have extensively studied law privately for many years, with a particular focus on how it affects relations among people, including those between children and adults. Activism for social change is one of my primary motivators in life, my main purpose and direction, and my reason for being. 


I wrote...

The Law is (Not) for Kids: A Legal Rights Guide for Canadian Children and Teens

By Marvin Zuker, Ned Lecic,

Book cover of The Law is (Not) for Kids: A Legal Rights Guide for Canadian Children and Teens

What is my book about?

This work is a comprehensive overview of the law as it pertains to children and youth, giving specific information on different topics, such as rights at school, at work or in the family, or youth criminal justice. Its goal is to educate young readers on the subject and to inform them about the means that are available to them for getting their rights enforced. 

This work is not written neutrally. We specify that we believe that the law does not give enough regard to children’s rights and that it denies competent youth many opportunities to make decisions. We also encourage lobbying for an increase in youth's legal rights. 

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Constitutional Parent: Rights, Responsibilities, and the Enfranchisement of the Child

Ned Lecic Why did I love this book?

I loved the bravery of the author in tackling a controversial question.

This book deals with the US Supreme Court’s “parental rights doctrine.” Through a complete overview of jurisprudence from the earliest days of the country’s existence, Shulman challenges the commonly-held modern idea that parental rights have long held an exalted position in American jurisprudence. He demonstrates that, on the contrary, the American state originally entrusted parents with custody of the child for the purpose of meeting the child's needs and that the notion of the custody of one’s child as an entitlement is a relatively modern one.

I think this is a message that is vital to be brought out into the public sphere, and I am happy that the author was willing to devote an entire book to it.

By Jeffrey Shulman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Constitutional Parent as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In this bold and timely work, law professor Jeffrey Shulman argues that the United States Constitution does not protect a fundamental right to parent. Based on a rigorous reconsideration of the historical record, Shulman challenges the notion, held by academics and the general public alike, that parental rights have a long-standing legal pedigree. What is deeply rooted in our legal tradition and social conscience, Shulman demonstrates, is the idea that the state entrusts parents with custody of the child, and it does so only as long as parents meet their fiduciary duty to serve the developmental needs of the child.…


Book cover of The Challenge of Children's Rights for Canada

Ned Lecic Why did I love this book?

I liked that this book was specifically aimed at the Canadian market. It shows compassion for children, framing their rights as an important value and their advancement as a valid goal for Canadian society.

I am pleased that, unlike many others, the authors show some agreement with the premise that children should be able to have choices and participate in the decisions that affect their lives. I think this is a perspective that is lacking in many publications on the subject of children’s rights, which often focus more on the protectionist aspect of the issue than on the autonomy aspects.

By Katherine Covell, R. Brian Howe, J.C. Blokhuis

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Challenge of Children's Rights for Canada as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

More than a quarter of a century has passed since Canada promised to recognize and respect the rights of children under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Ratification of the Convention cannot, however, guarantee that everyone will abandon proprietary notions about children, or that all children will be free to enjoy the substance of their rights in every social and institutional context in which they find themselves, including - and perhaps especially - within families. This disconnect remains one of the most important challenges to the recognition of children's rights in Canada.

The authors argue that…


Book cover of Bruno and Boots: The War with Mr. Wizzle

Ned Lecic Why did I love this book?

This is a young adult literature novel from Canada. I found this book very inspiring when reading it as a kid. I enjoyed its subversive nature as it portrays a group of boys and girls, from two private schools, who conspire to overthrow the tyrannical assistant headmaster and headmistress that their respective schools have appointed.

The novel, while written as a comedy, is suggestive of the idea that adults should not be allowed to micromanage and tyrannize their young charges and that such administrators can be ousted. I like that it conveys this message in an entertaining way while still showing a youth’s eye perspective on unreasonable adult actions toward them.

By Gordon Korman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Bruno and Boots as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

Mr Wizzle's unpopular plans to modernize the school and its teaching methods prompt Bruno Walton and Boots O'Neal to sabotage Mr. Wizzle's computer


Book cover of Can You Sue Your Parents for Malpractice?

Ned Lecic Why did I love this book?

I love this classic novel; it is one of my old favorites.

Nowhere in the genre of young adult literature does there seem to be an author more subversive than Paula Danziger; here (and in the companion novel The Cat Ate My Gymsuit), she directly encourages the young reader to question adult authority and suggests that with protests and education about what rights the law gives (and withholds from) young people, it might be possible to effect change and increase their rights.

I also found it great that the novel shows the protagonist’s parents in raw realism–the father as a hypocritical, cheap, unlikable domestic despot, the mother as a shrinking violet who at first tends to excuse the father and conform to his expectations, but eventually starts questioning her stance when she sees her daughters rebel.

By Paula Danziger,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Can You Sue Your Parents for Malpractice? as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

Lauren's fed up. She's been dumped by her boyfriend and pushed around by her parents. Everyone seems to be making decisions for her - she's even got to share a bedroom with her annoying little sister. Which is why she decides to take a new class at school: Law for Children and Young People. She's determined to find out her rights, and stand up for them. What she isn't expecting to find is a new boyfriend - especially one who's a whole year younger than her...


Book cover of Birthrights

Ned Lecic Why did I love this book?

This is my favorite manifesto monograph for children’s rights. It is very radical for its date of publication (1974) and argues for emancipating kids as much as possible from adult control. His message is laid out in a number of clear, simple, and explicit points and is accompanied by appropriate argumentation.

I love that the book does not shrink from controversy and that it adopts explicit recommendations for diametrically altering the status of young people without beating about the bush. The message is still timely today, and it would be good if more people thought to act upon it. It is a classic that should be rediscovered by today’s generations.

By Richard Farson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Birthrights as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Children are the most helpless of all the oppressed. Misled by worn out myths and stereotyped visions, parents have indoctrinated, patronized, dominated, incarcerated, tyrannized, deprived, and abused their offspring while suffering themselves from the guilt that goes with responsibility. This book, written by a psychologist and father of five, proposes a new bill of rights for the young.


You might also like...

Thorn City

By Pamela Statz,

Book cover of Thorn City

Pamela Statz

New book alert!

What is my book about?

Dressed to kill and ready to make rent, best friends Lisa and Jamie work as “paid to party” girls at the Rose City Ripe for Disruption gala, a gathering of Portland's elite.

Their evening is derailed when Lisa stumbles across Ellen, a ruthless politician and Lisa’s estranged mother. And to make matters worse, Lisa’s boyfriend, Patrick, crashes the party to meet his new boss, Portland's food cart drug kingpin. Lisa makes a fateful choice that traps her, Jamie, and Patrick in Ellen’s web. In this gripping thriller, Lisa must reconcile a painful past and perilous present.

Thorn City

By Pamela Statz,

What is this book about?

Suspected murder, eclectic food trucks, and artisanal cocaine: just another day in Thorn City.

It’s the night of the Rose City Ripe for Disruption gala—a gathering of Portland’s elite. Dressed to kill in sparkling minidresses, best friends Lisa and Jamie attend as “paid to party” girls. They plan an evening of fake flirtations, karaoke playlists, and of course, grazing the catering.

Past and present collide when Lisa stumbles across Ellen, a ruthless politician who also happens to be Lisa’s estranged mother. Awkward . . . When Lisa was sixteen, Ellen had her kidnapped and taken to the Lost Lake Academy—a…


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