Three Lines in a Circle: The Exciting Life of the Peace Symbol

by Michael G. Long, Carlos Vélez (Illustrator)

Overview

One line straight down. One line to the right. One line to the left, then a circle. That was all—just three lines in a circle.

This bold picture book tells the story of the peace symbol—designed in 1958 by a London activist protesting nuclear weapons—and how it inspired people all over the world. Depicting the symbol's travels from peace marches and liberation movements to the end of apartheid and the fall of the Berlin Wall, Three Lines in a Circle offers a message of inspiration to today's children and adults who are working to create social change. An author’s note provides historical background and a time line of late twentieth-century peace movements.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781646981960
Publisher:	Westminster John Knox Press
Publication date:	08/31/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
File size:	103 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Michael G. Long has written books for all ages on civil rights and peacemaking in mid-century America, including the stories of Martin Luther King Jr., Bayard Rustin, Jackie Robinson, and Mister Rogers. He lives in Pennsylvania.

Carlos Vélez has illustrated more than twenty books for children and has been recognized with illustration awards from the Catalog of Illustrators of Children's and Youth Publications and the National Fund for Culture and the Arts. He lives in Mexico City.

Editorial Reviews

06/14/2021

Long (Troublemaker for Justice) recounts the origins of the peace sign for a new generation of young activists in this brief history of a now-ubiquitous symbol. In 1958, British graphic designer and peace activist Gerald Holtom created the simple design—three lines in a circle—for a 50-mile march to protest nuclear weapons. An endnote explains that the lines represent a combination of semaphore letters for N and D, standing for “nuclear disarmament.” Succinct free verse describes how the humble insignia began populating protest movements around the globe, “standing for/ peace/ for all/ and especially for” marginalized folks, including “Black people/ and/ Brown people/ women/ and/ poor people/ LGTBQ+ people/ and/ people with disabilities.” The soft textures and rich hues of artist Vélez’s illustrations recall 1960s art, for example that of U.S. anti-war protests. Crowds of variously inclusive protestors fill colorful culminating spreads, the peace logo displayed on banners, quilts, and signs. In four stark white circles that pop against this backdrop, the author enumerates current social movements (“Peace and BLACK LIVES MATTER!”), bringing the narrative to the present-day. In an empowering ending, Holtom hands off his symbol to today’s youth. Back matter offers a much more detailed history of the peace symbol plus a recent protest timeline. Ages 3–7. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"Vibrant throngs of all kinds of people fill the pages . . . Grounded in the discussion of a design, the heart of peace beats on." —Kirkus Reviews

"Vibrant, layered protest scenes and moody evening skies seem lifted from the walls of an impressionist gallery in this picture book detailing the origins and enduring influence of the peace sign." Foreword Reviews

"Recounts the origins of the peace sign for a new generation of young activists . . . Empowering." —Publishers Weekly

"The words and illustrations work symbiotically to show the peace symbol's adoption around the world." ⁠—Englewood Review of Books

"Offers a message of inspiration to today's children and adults who are working to create social change. . . . Entertaining, informative, and thoroughly 'kid friendly' in organization and presentation." —Midwest Book Review

"It's a joy to see, page by page, how many places around the world and how many different movements this symbol came to influence, as it took on broader meanings of peace and acceptance. . . . The bright, colorful, detailed illustrations give us a sense of the great swelling of desire to create a livable, loving world." —Spirituality & Practice

From the Publisher

2021-05-19
A simple sketch that holds so much.

Gerald Holtom first designed the peace symbol in 1958. But this celebration begins with Gerry, a tall, thin man with pale skin and a mop of shaggy brown hair, at his drafting table, hoping to “draw his dream.” Without any historical context, Long explains in his free-verse text that this man’s dream is “a world without bombs.” Gerry draws three lines and encloses them in a circle. He shares the design with others, and one person says, “It doesn’t mean a thing, / and it will never catch on.” However, it definitely does. It begins in England but swiftly travels, showing up in rallies and marches across the world. It stands for “peace / for all / and especially for / Black people / and / Brown people / women / and / poor people / LGBTQ+ people / and / people with disabilities.” Long strengthens readers’ connection to the symbol by ending with those three lines in a circle “catching on, / fighting on, / moving on… / TO / YOU.” Vibrant throngs of all kinds of people fill the pages. The inspiration behind the design is buried in the backmatter (though hinted at in the illustrations), and much more of its history is revealed there, but the spare text echoes the spare symbol. It stands powerfully on its own.

Grounded in the discussion of a design, the heart of peace beats on. (timeline) (Informational picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews