I am so excited to share this review and giveaway with all of you! It’s the set of Tuttle Twins books. These are books about liberty for kids by Connor Boyack, author, speaker, and political activist. These books are the best books out there to help your kids, and, yes, you, even you learn what principles form the best basis for government and economics. These are principles of liberty. If you have already heard about these books and are ready to buy them, I have a great deal for you. You can save 30% with my coupon code. Scroll to the bottom of the post to get it.
Connor is also the author of the book below, Latter-day Liberty.
He is president of the Libertas Institute, a nonprofit org. dedicated to being a watchdog for liberty in the form of legislation passed in the state of Utah. He spoke to my group of Zion Women at our retreat here and to my group of homeschooled teens here. He is an amazing young man who speaks boldly for liberty. I am so pleased that he has tackled the project of making classics of freedom accessible to young children, and the young of us at heart who want these classics in more digestible formats. I would love to plow through hundreds of pages by Mises and Rothbard, but I just don’t have the time. Thank goodness for Connor, who makes these books! I have pasted images and quick reviews of the books below, along with the interviews that Connor did with Tom Woods about each book on the Tom Woods show. Each book is based on a classic work on liberty.
First, we have The Tuttle Twins and the Law, which is based on The Law by Frederic Bastiat. The Law is a classic work about what true law is. This essay inspired Pres. Ezra Taft Benson to write his essay/speech, The Proper Role of Government.
The Tuttle Twins and the Miraculous Pencil is about the wonder and miracle of the free market. Leonard Reed’s classic essay, I, Pencil, inspired this work. Reading this book will help you and your kids appreciate just how amazing the free market is. Appreciation then helps us feel more gratitude and then more willingness to work hard in the free market, offering the fruits of our labor, buying the fruits of others’ labors, and not act entitled. I mean, if there are so many steps and pieces involved in the making of the humble pencil, think of how many more steps and pieces go into the making of an iPhone! It just makes me appreciate freedom and the free market that much more. Appreciation and a vision of the free market allows us to fight for the free market and against policies that defeat the free market.
The Tuttle Twins and the Creature from Jekyll Island is the most amazing one of them all. When I heard Connor was writing it, I thought, “Wow, how he is going to boil that down in a form kids can understand?” It is based on the classic The Creature from Jekyll Island, which is all about the Federal Reserve, how it was formed, and why it is bad. I was pleased to see that Connor did a great job of explaining the evils of Federal Reserve in an easy to understand format. The interview below involves Connor talking about this book plus the food truck book below. I couldn’t find one with Tom Woods so you will have to enjoy this other one.
The Tuttle Twins and the Food Truck Fiasco explains why city regulations are bad. I loved the storyline. In the story, several food truck owners are being threatened to be put out of business because of regulations passed by a city council due to being persuaded by a big business owner, to favor his business. This book shows in a simple way why that’s wrong and what we, even kids, can do about it. As I read it, a memory floated up to the top of my mind of when my dad was on the city council and a fellow city councilman passed zoning laws to favor his business. Things like this probably happen all the time, I suspect.
F.A. Hayek’s classic The Road to Serfdom is the kernel of idea for Connor’s most recent book, The Tuttle Twins and the Road to Surfdom. This book explains why central planning of government is wrong, in the form of building a new road.
I love all these books! I give them all five stars! The illustrations are colorful and beautifully well done by Elijah Stanfield. The text is easy to understand. The characters are relatable. You can use these books for your homeschool read-alouds or just as simple bedtime stories. These books all cover principles that were out there when I was going to public school, but I had no clue about them. I had a statist education that didn’t question the government. I wish these books had been there when I was young, but Connor was just a wee lad and hadn’t written them yet! By reading these books with your kids and discussing them, you will help your kids and yourself to have a vision that government doesn’t always do things in the interest of liberty. Government can have bad guys in it who use the government for their own selfish purposes. I know, shocking, right?
That’s why I love these books. They give you and your kids a vision of how government can be bad. They give you a vision of what to do to fight back. They give you a vision of what each classic related to the book is about. These books will spark more conversation and further study and action to fight back. I love that each book has a section at the end, after the Tuttle Twins story, about the classic work, questions for discussion, and a link to a PDF workbook online that you can buy full of activities, for each book. If you buy the whole set, you will get the PDF workbooks for free!
You could use these discussion questions for homeschool essays, dinnertime conversation, or even for a group discussion with your homeschool co-op or commonwealth. I am starting a new Teen Statesmanship Club, which will use these books. You can read more about that here. I am wondering what topic is next in line for the books. Connor has said that eventually the series will involve around 10 books. Maybe a book about Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, John Locke’s Treatise on Government, or the Declaration of Independence? I suggest Connor do one about Cesare Beccaria’s Of Crimes and Punishments to explain why gun control laws are bad. Also Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists to explain the true meaning of the First Amendment. Let’s also have one about anti-trust laws!
OK, if you want to enter the random drawing of a giveaway, please comment below with why you are interested in having these books in your home. The winner will receive a set of all five Tuttle Twins books! The winner will be announced on Friday Jan 6, 2017. Only U.S. residents in the continental states enter please. If you just want to buy the books right away, to read to your kids or get them for a teen statesmanship class, go here. Use coupon code EDUCATE to get 30% off. Code expires January 7, 2016.
Disclaimer/FTC Disclosure: I was given a set of these books for free but all opinions are my own.
Tree of Life Mothering 
I am interested in reading for myself
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I need to educate myself more so I’m better prepared to teach my children! I would love to win a set! 🙂
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I’ve had these books recommended to me a few times over the last few years, and now that my kids are a little older I’m interested in reading these stories to them.
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I am very interested in teaching my children the principles of liberty.
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As a mother, grandmother and leadership education mentor I am constantly looking for resources to share the message of freedom and responsible citizenship. I would love to share these with all my students.
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What a great way to introduce these concepts of our republic to children. I think they would fit well into any program. Thank you for bringing these books to my attention.
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I feel strongly about freedom and Constitutional principles and I really want my children to understand these principles too. But I’m also teaching my Apprentice Scholars about statesmanship, and I’d love to be able to inspire them better, and have better ways to explain these principles to them. I’d LOVE to get a copy of these books!
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This is the first I heard about these books. I am very interested in reading them myself and to my kids. Thank you for doing this giveaway.
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I have one of these books and would love to get the others! I love how they teach these concepts in simple terms
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I homeschool my children and we love finding good books like this book set. So far most of the books I’ve been able to find for young kids are really old and require looking on eBay or finding them at thrift stores. I’m very excited that there are new books available written with this generation in mind. We would devour these books! What a great find!😍
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I would love to “win” these books. I am mentoring the Key of Liberty project this year at our commonwealth. As such, I try to share what I learn with my kiddos at home. These books would be PERFECT in doing so. Thanks for this opportunity, Celestia.
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Always looking for resources to help teach my children about principles of Freedom & Liberty!
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We have the first book and it works really great at teaching concepts in ways that are easy to understand at all ages. We homeschool so these books are used in our kids’ education.
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My daughter and I just finished reading “What would the Founding Fathers Think”. My 9 year old loved the book and so did I. I would love to further our interest in principles of liberty. Thanks for your newsletter!
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We are taking a family history trip this summer across country and I want to include reading some good books to tie in to the places we are going.
These sound perfect!
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I would love to be able to have a better framework in which to discuss liberty with my kids. Plus, I have 2 sets of twins! Couldn’t add my website below – mysixchicks.weebly.com
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I’ve read some of the original works, but they are not so accessible to kids and teens. I’d love some books that explain the basic principles covered in the original works, but in a more digestible form to use in our homeschool.
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Having grown up in a fully-indoctrinated progressive atmosphere in California, I never got the balanced education my husband and I are striving to give our children. I am learning these principles for the first time as I homeschool. I have read The Law, but would like a more-accessible method of introducing such topics to my younger ones. Please enter me in the drawing.
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Congrats, Anja, you are the winner. Please email me your snail mail address to info (at) treeoflifemothering (dot) com and I will get the books out to you!
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I unfortunately do not know enough about our government and this sounds like a great place to get myself and my kids started together.
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I’d love to use these books to start discussions with my kids about various views on governance and why we have the views we do.
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The recent election has made me realize how off-course America has become. I would love to read and discuss all of these with my children ages range from 2-16, hoping it will help prepare them to discern truth/error, be engaged in their government as U.S. citizens, and possibly lead out when needed.
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What a great giveaway! I am mentoring Key of Liberty right now in my Commonwealth. The books would be great to be able to teach my kids at home. Thanks for the chance to learn more about them. Liberty and freedom principles are so important to teach kids today.
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I fight for liberty. Another tool to help me to do so is a blessing.
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We read one of The Tuttle Twins and loved the way it explained things, would love to use these books to educate my kids some more.
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It is so refreshing to see another fighter for Liberty! I love the subjects he has chosen to write about – important and timely. I would love to study these books and share with my children, grandchildren, friends, and young scholar friends.
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Would love these to help introduce these ideas to my foster children!
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I would love to share these with my children!
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I’d like these books because they teach important principles in simple ways.
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We discuss government a lot in my home with my youth, but I would love a resource to explain things to my younger children too.
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My children and I are new to this country and we wish to know everything we can to be good citizens!
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I would love to own this set of books. I am familiar with the first one, and love it, but had no idea there were others. I am excited to read them all and share them with my family and others’
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These books sound wonderful! I’d like to read them myself, having not yet studied in depth any of the classic works upon which these are based. Thank you for the giveaway opportunity.
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I’m not familiar with these books, but would love to educate myself along with my children on these principles. Thanks for the information!
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Thanks for the give-away, I’d love to use these in my home.
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With nine children in our home, I am always looking for ways to increase understanding of concepts at varying levels. These books look like a great way to create a common language and understanding on the principles of Liberty for our whole family. Thanks for introducing them to me!
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I want to get these books because I have wanted to share the ideas with my children so they can know the truth about “The Law” earlier than I learned it. Love all the visual stuff that will help engage them. Thanks to Connor for taking on this project of creating good books for kids.
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Congratulations to Anja Lowe, winner of the random drawing! Anja, I will be emailing you to ask you for your snail mail address so I can mail you the books!
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