Four children from Hawaii's Hongwanji Mission School have had their work selected for

'Dear President Obama: Letters of Hope from Children Across the Nation,' a book of letters and illustrations to President Obama with a Foreward by Linda Ellerbee.

The work of Hongwanji Mission School students: Erina Yamamoto, Jacey Moriguchi, Kyla Yamashita, and Zachary Brunn is among the collection of nearly 200 letters and drawings to the President from children in 29 states, representing every region of the country.

Compiled and edited by author-journalists Bruce Kluger (USA Today, National Public Radio) and David Tabatsky (Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cancer Book), the collection reflects a four-month effort in which the young author-illustrators, ages 4 through 18, collaborated with the editors to present their work.

In her Foreword to the book, journalist and host of Nickelodeon's long-running Nick News, Linda Ellerbee, praises the collection for both its passion and authenticity. "Kids get it, they really get it," writes Ellerbee. "They understand that citizenship

doesn't start when you're 18; it starts the day you're born. They are passionate and want to participate. And that is the kind of honesty you will find in this book."

In bookstores nationwide.