Leather Shoe Charlie

Gr 2–4—A sweet story of a child's sacrifice introduces the topic of the Industrial Revolution in England and around the world. This imagined scenario takes place around 1800, when Charlie and his family leave their dying village to find work in the textile mills in Manchester. The hard work and smoky conditions take their toll; the boy's mother becomes ill. Wanting to buy her tea to ease her cough, Charlie sells his most precious possessions: the leather shoes made for him by his cobbler grandfather. Like the products of the emerging global economy illustrated in the back matter, this tale is the result of international cooperation. Originally written and published in Korea as part of an educational series about economy and cultures, it was illustrated by a pair of Italian twins, edited for an English edition by a New Zealand author/editor/publisher, and published in the UK before being brought to a U.S. audience. The mixed-media art and thoughtful design are stunning. Sophisticated images show the grim world of industrial Manchester, all gritty grays and browns. Charlie's red leather shoes stand out. The tale of Charlie's family is left unfinished; readers will have to imagine it for themselves. Teachers using this book to introduce the idea of globalization will want to point out that the concluding map omits references to the slave trade, on which the production of sugar and cotton depended.