A new children's book focuses on Washington's budget and financial fights. | Igor Malov Hey kids, it's the national debt!

Washington’s budget squabbles and financial fights are enough to tangle up anyone’s head — one can only imagine how it might confuse children.

Enter: “Mr. Penny and the Dragon of Domeville.” This children’s book by Lucile McConnell seeks to raise awareness of fiscal irresponsibility and the national debt for those just barely out of diapers.


The book’s hero, Mr. Penny, is introduced as “quite an individual and not a follower.”

“Once upon a penny, in the Land of Us, in the little town of Meville, lived a little penny. In fact, a whole lot of little pennies were scattered all over the Land of Us, but our story is about one particular penny: Mr. Penny. He was a singular fellow, quite an individual and not a follower of the crowd.”

The antagonist, a dragon designed to represent a bloated federal government, won’t stop growing and loves to eat currency.

“In fact, he developed a taste for charred bills … dollar bills. Within no time, the dragon had devoured $15 Trillion and was always looking around for more to consume.”

Eventually, Mr. Penny scores a one-on-one with the dragon and does his level best to convince the dragon just how reckless federal waste can be.

“I don’t think you know what effect you’re having on the whole Land of Us by eating the money that we send to Domeville. … Our schools are closing; our youngsters can’t go to college; our oldsters can’t get medical help; our businesses are failing because there is no money for loans; our roads and bridges are falling down; our towns and cities are not safe; our citizens do not have jobs; and we are running out of money.”

On the book’s website, McConnell describes herself as a “a tax/commercial transactions attorney” practicing in Washington and New York and says all funds from the book will go toward paying down the national debt. In an author’s note in the book, McConnell writes, “Our beloved Country is in trouble … big trouble. This is the kind of trouble that cannot be solved unless we all pitch in and come to the aid of our Country immediately.”

She adds, “My hope is that after reading this book, young people are energized about the possibility of what we can accomplish together through cooperation and teamwork.”