Book Review: Spend It!

Cinder McLeod's Spend It! is a charming book that introduces the subject of money and making choices.

In the story, we're introduced to Sonny who receives an allowance of three carrots each week.  Sonny can't wait to buy EVERYTHING until he learns from his mother that he doesn't have enough to get everything he wants.  Instead, Sonny has to make a choice by learning what he can afford and how to best spend his savings of carrots.  After a little math and some thinking, Sonny makes his decision and learns the worth of what's important to him.

Spend It! is ideal for children 3-5 thanks to its simplified story and introductory subject matter.

Value of Money

One of the more difficult lessons to teach a young child is the value of money.  Spend It! is an excellent book to help with that conversation because of its simplicity.  During the story, Sonny has three main items he wants, but can only afford two.  Although the item he wants the most is the one he cannot afford, Sonny is faced with the decision of spending on a lesser valued item or saving his money for the bigger one.

While you won't find that the book serves as an in-depth math lesson, it does cover different costs of products and what is/isn't affordable.  As a parent of a preschooler, I really enjoyed reading this book with my daughter because it prompted numerous questions that were easy to translate into real life.  We still use this book as a reference point for spending discussions with her.

Making Difficult Decisions

Another underlying theme of Spend It! is the notion of making difficult choices.

In the beginning of the book, Sonny believe he can buy anything and everything.  Upon understanding more about the value of the things he wants, he is forced to make a smart decision by weighing the pros and cons of his options.  He has to balance the disappointment of not being able to afford some of the things he wants, while also deciding which affordable item will bring him the most happiness.  Cinders McLeod does a great job of breaking down this decision-making process to a level that preschoolers can comprehend.

Author Cinders McLeod's Spend It! is one of four books in her "Moneybunny Book" series.  All three of the others are also centered around teaching younger audiences lessons on spending, saving and earning.  Each book uses a simplified message targeted towards children under the age of 5.

We recommend giving all of the books in her series a try if your a parent or teacher of a preschooler.

Other books in Cinders McLeod's "Moneybunny Book" series

• Earn It!
• Save It!
• Give It!