I know. Long time no post. I’ll talk about that later. For now, I want to share with you the BEST thing I’ve found in teaching children about finance, freedom, money management, and entrepreneurship – The Tuttle Twins books! They’re cute stories following the adventures of twins Ethan and Emily Tuttle as they navigate their world, learning about liberty and finance along the way.
We’ve been reading these for about four years now, and my children absolutely love them. We use them as launching points to discuss society, freedom, responsibility, kindness, self-reliance, and finance, and the conversations are rich and rewarding. You’ll love seeing your little ones faces get that ‘mind-blown’ look when they encounter one of the life truths Emily and Ethan discover!
Ethan and Emily are 9 years old at the start of the books, and while showing a bit of rivalry are certainly not mean or rude to each other. In fact, they often act as each others biggest cheerleaders. It’s so nice to see a pleasant sibling relationship in modern books!
Mr. and Mrs. Tuttle are kind and involved, as is their extended family and the many friends and teachers in the kids world.
But all is not always perfect as there are bad guys galore! In facing down these bad guys (which are sometimes situations, not people), the twins learn valuable skills of organization, bravery, public speaking, grassroots activism, kindness, family unity and strength, and community.
In short, I can’t praise these books enough! However, since I can’t resist saying more, please read on for more detail about everything the Tuttle Twins has to offer.
The Books
The Law
The series starts with the book “The Tuttle Twins Learn About the Law”, and introduces the Tuttle Twin characters – and the ideas of Frederic Bastiat, who wrote “The Law”. Each Tuttle Twin book is based on an economic (or liberty-minded) book or principle, and thus introduces the parents to concepts and books even they might not have yet read! Be aware – after reading this book, my kids decided to start questioning the ‘law’ of our home! That insurrection didn’t last long, but I think it still festers in their little hearts.
The Pencil
The second book is “The Tuttle Twins and the Miraculous Pencil” and is based on the classic essay “I, Pencil” by Leonard Read. The twins and their classmates learn everything involved in making a pencil, and how nobody really knows how to do it! My boys were blown away at the idea of everything that is involved in making a pencil. They had no idea creation was such an ordeal!
The Creature
Third is “The Tuttle Twins and the Creature from Jekyll Island”, and it is based on the classic “The Creature from Jekyll Island” by G. Edward Griffin. (If you’ve ever wondered why our country is in such dire financial straights, there’s some excellent insights about that in this book!) BONUS! Right now, this book is on sale! Use the code CREATURE at checkout to buy this at just $2.99!
The Food Trucks
Fourth is “The Tuttle Twins and the Food Truck Fiasco”, using key concepts from the classic “Economics in One Lesson” by Henry Hazlitt. See what the Twins learn about crony capitalism as they help food trucks battle the government!
The Road
Fifth in the series is “The Tuttle Twins and the Road to Surfdom”, based on the ideas in F.A. Hayek’s book “The Road to Serfdom”. The twins discover that sometimes help is a hindrance, and that unintended consequences can be brutal.
The Golden Rule
Sixth is “The Tuttle Twins and the Golden Rule”. The Golden Rule isn’t often considered strictly a freedom and financial principle, but as a guide for how to approach freedom and money it can’t be beat! The Golden Rule makes a lovely life in both relationships and money. This book really revved up bedtime! My kids got upset for the kids in the book, took sides, and became completely stumped by the ending…before acknowledging being kind is the right way to approach people. Talk about total engagement!
The Circus
The twins visit the circus and tackle the ideas of entitlement and consumerism in “The Tuttle Twins and the Search for Atlas”, the seventh book in the series. This incorporates the ideas espoused by Ayn Rand in “Atlas Shrugged”. (I’m seeing a LOT of this playing out in our world right now!) We may need to re-read this book again; my children haven’t seemed to snap out of their feelings of entitlement in our family! Ha!
The Theater
After all this economic and freedom foundation, the twins decide they shouldn’t work for someone else and determine to become entrepreneurs in “The Tuttle Twins and their Spectacular Show Business”! This eighth book in the series is a great story of how the twins learn to become business owners, solving problems and succeeding with a little guidance (and investment) from their elders. After reading this book, my kids haven’t stopped talking about what business they want to start. Over a year later, the boys still brainstorm ‘brother businesses’ they can run. I’m thrilled!
The Future
Next up, the twins explore coercion versus persuasion, and how to work together peacefully, in “The Tuttle Twins and the Fate of the Future”. Murray Rothbard wrote “Anatomy of the State” teaching that the fate of the future relies upon creating a society that works together peacefully, rather than depending upon force.
The Vacation
Homeschooling – and recently forced (ha!) into homeschooling – families will appreciate the tenth book in the series: “The Tuttle Twins and the Education Vacation”. John Taylor Gatto wrote “The Underground History of American Education”, a truly excellent book, upon which this story rests. In their Education Vacation, the twins learn all about what a true, quality education entails as they embark on a new learning adventure with their family.
The Market
The latest book in the series, number 11, is “The Tuttle Twins and the Messed Up Market”. This book introduces the ideas of Ludwig von Mises and his book “Human Action” as the twins decide to find a way to use the profits from their business in a way that benefits their community. They quickly discover that different choices can really influence their entrepreneur market for kids!
The Tuttle Twins Workbooks
To hold you over after reading all these books (although there are 11, they’ll go quickly; these are not long, heavy books – they are for kids, after all!) The author, Connor Boyack, has created PDF workbooks to go along with each book containing word searches, bingo games, and other fun activities that reinforce the lessons of the books.
The Combo Pack
You can buy each book individually, and each PDF individually, if you like, OR you can get them all in a combo pack with free bonuses!
Buy the combo pack (currently at a 35% discount) and receive:
- all 11 Tuttle Twin books
- all 11 PDF activity guides
- a recommended reading list
- the first few chapters of “Passion-Driven Education”, an education book for parents
This is certainly the best deal you’ll find!
The Tuttle Twins Teen Books
For those who have older kids, never fear! While the other books are geared towards younger children, your teens won’t be bored listening to you read them aloud. However, you can always just jump straight to the TEEN books Connor Boyack has written. They are a set of three Choose Your Own Consequence books expressly written for teen readers!
The first is “The Tuttle Twins and the Hyperinflation Devastation”, which has Ethan and Emily travel to a fictional South American country, where they encounter natural disasters, greed, kindness, government incompetence, self-reliance, and high-pressure decision making. There are 5 potential endings to this book, but each ending has many paths. It took us over a month of bedtime reading to get through all the potential options! My kids couldn’t get enough of this adventure; every night they asked for more and more ‘choices’ as I read to them.
We haven’t yet read the next two teen books: “The Tuttle Twins and the Little Pink House”, touching on eminent domain, with 10 possible endings, and “The Tuttle Twins and the Case of the Broken Window”, where a game-winning home run causes tons of trouble and 9 possible endings. I’m sure they will be amazing books, though, based on the previous 12 books and workbooks we have read!
Free Market Curriculum
Oh! The fun doesn’t stop there! Many people expressed a desire to go beyond gentle introduction of these principles and delve in to determined study. Consequently, Connor created an additional curriculum for that purpose! Designed for both elementary and older children, the “Free Market Rules” Curriculum teaches economics in a fun and engaging way. I LOVE this curriculum for my kids, and it is very user friendly.
Tuttle Tales Game
Connor didn’t stop there. He recently created a card “game” that is actually more of a conversation starter for a fun family evening. Using cards with characters, settings, and situations, tell a Tuttle Twin story of your own with the Tuttle Tales Family Collaborative Story Game.
My Verdict
To sum up, the Tuttle Twins products are top notch, entertaining, and educational. With the often offered discounts, they’re don’t have to be expensive. Kids love the stories and discover their budding business skills. What’s not to love??
Therefore, I recommend you buy these books immediately. Buy them all! Don’t forget the activity books and the game, too! Additionally, don’t forget the curriculum – you won’t go wrong with that!
Do I sound overly excited? Well, I am! My family has loved these books for many years. I have recommended them to many, many people…long before I knew I could sign up to be an affiliate and make some money for my recommendations!
Since COVID stole my job in March, and I currently don’t have an income, I’m now recommending these books as an affiliate. I hope my recommendation made you excited about these awesome books! If it did, I hope you’ll buy them through the links on this page. It won’t cost you a dime but I get a little financial help that way.
Even if you’re a big ol’ meanie and won’t click on my links, I still hope you buy these books. They’re just that good.
(Because I was trying to make my SEO analysis happy, I wrote that last bit the way I did. I know I sound like a made for TV product salesperson! “But wait…there’s more!” HA! SEO guidelines are tricky, and I ran out of ways to edit the post to turn all the little buttons green. It’s so hokey I cringe. Whatever. My posts need to pop if I’m ever going to start making money here! Thanks for laughing with me and not at me over this.)
