America's Promise.

by Alma Powell Illustrated by Marsha Winborn HarperCollins Children's Books, April 2003 $15.99, ISBN 0-060-52172-4

Alma Powell, wife of Secretary of Defense Colin Powell, is cochair of America's Promise: The Alliance for Youth, a national nonprofit organization of 500 corporations, not-for-profits, as well as faith-based and arts and cultural groups devoted to uplifting and improving he lives of children and teens. All have made a commitment to expand or create programs for youth based on five promises: caring adults in every child's life; a safe place after school; a healthy start; marketable skills; and opportunities to give back. Ms. Powell's book is a forum for these principles.

Momma Bear and her cubs, Honey and Benji, have just moved into town where Momma has started a new job. At Mrs. Mayberry's Play and Learn House, a nearby day-care center, the children play and are read to before their healthy lunch is served. After their meal, they exercise by dancing to a jazz tune and playing Ping-Pong. Mrs. Mayberry's is a safe, caring environment that promotes learning. Honey and Benji encounter Melvin, a teenager who works part-time in his unde's store, learning to become an accountant. The Mayor of Mayberry pays a surprise visit to tell the children about a new park that he hopes to open in an empty lot, and all the animals pitch in to dear the lot for the park that will benefit the whole community.

The book brings to life for children the five basic principles of America's Promise, and though it tends toward the pedantic, Powell's heart and message are in the right place, and the spirited illustrations of little animals by Marsha Winborn are charming. Mrs. Powell is donating all of her royalties for the book to America's Promise: The Alliance for Youth.

--Suzanne Rust is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in Variety, Italian Elle and various Websites. She has also worked in radio and is currently working on a series of books for children.