Parents' Guide to

The World Needs More Purple People

Book Kristen Bell , Benjamin Hart Picture Book 2020
The World Needs More Purple People Poster Image

Common Sense Media Review

Regan McMahon By Regan McMahon , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 4+

Cheery call to work and play with all kinds of folks.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 4+?

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Parent and Kid Reviews

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age 5+

Based on 3 parent reviews

Tony Brown
Tony Brown Adult
July 25, 2020
age 5+

Give them a Fighting Chance

If we need more Purple People in the world, we should first address the One eye'd, One horned, Flying Purple People eaters - So they'll have a fighting chance!
Ms Oakes
Ms Oakes Adult
June 5, 2020
age 4+

Clever, Charming, and Connected

This book is a must read for all early childhood and elementary school readers. It's fun, humorous, and engaging. Kids will love the speech bubbles within the story and the simple step by step how-to guide. The narrator often speaks directly to the audience and her message is spot on for habits I want to teach my students. It has a great message about diversity and cleverly teaches understanding and helping others, activism, and self confidence through everyday kid situations. I'm reading it aloud to my PreK-2nd graders on our virtual storytime next week.
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In THE WORLD NEEDS MORE PURPLE PEOPLE, a little blond girl named Penny Purple speaks directly to the reader and launches right into a lesson on "How to be a purple person." She explains that "Purple is a magic color made when red and blue work together." Then she goes on to list five steps to becoming a purple person: 1) Ask (really great) questions; 2) Laugh (a lot); 3) Use your voice (and don't lose your voice; 4) Work hard (super-duper hard); and 5) Just be (the real) you. As she lays out the steps, there are scenes of her and her family at home and diverse kids on the playground working and playing together, and even joining together to demand more playgrounds.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (3 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

This cheerful take on looking beyond people's differences to work together has cute cartoon art and an enthusiastic narrator to guide kids along. The upbeat message is a bit high concept and muddled, though. Adults will grasp the metaphor of red people and blue people putting their differences aside to work together and get things done, but it will probably sail over kids' heads, unless a parent or caregiver chooses to explain it. But even if they don't get the political implications, young readers will enjoy the images of kids coming together, having fun, and even trying some kid-size activism on for size. It's inspiring and empowering with a light touch.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the different steps listed in The World Needs More Purple People. Are you already a purple person?

  • Why is it important to be able to get along with different kinds of people?

  • What fun things do you do with your family members? Who makes you laugh the most?

Book Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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