Michael Hlinka

Our cellphones, our clothes, our food: All are everyday things we consider essential, but we seldom think of what and who is involved in making them and getting them into our hands. In Follow Your Stuff, award-winning children’s author Kevin Sylvester and business professor Michael Hlinka team up again, this time to tackle the complex dynamics of the global economy, examining the often-complex journey of ordinary goods from production right to our doorsteps. Using familiar examples, easy-to-follow charts and graphs, and a big helping of humor, Hlinka and Sylvester introduce young readers to concepts such as relative value and fair wages and how to think critically about our purchasing decisions. Sylvester’s lively illustrations add even more kid-appeal making this sequel to the critically acclaimed Follow Your Money the perfect introduction to socio-economics and an eye-opening essential read for young people.

Our cellphones, our clothes, our food: All are everyday things we consider essential, but we seldom think of what and who is involved in making them and getting them into our hands. In Follow Your Stuff, award-winning children’s author Kevin Sylvester and business professor Michael Hlinka team up again, this time to tackle the complex dynamics of the global economy, examining the often-complex journey of ordinary goods from production right to our doorsteps. Using familiar examples, easy-to-follow charts and graphs, and a big helping of humor, Hlinka and Sylvester introduce young readers to concepts such as relative value and fair wages and how to think critically about our purchasing decisions. Sylvester’s lively illustrations add even more kid-appeal making this sequel to the critically acclaimed Follow Your Money the perfect introduction to socio-economics and an eye-opening essential read for young people.

For the fifty years following the Second World War, Canada enjoyed a period of spectacular economic growth — the economy quadruple in size and the living standard of most Canadians steadily improved. However, in the years since, Canada has suffered from economic stagnation. Businesses keep closing, and Canadians find it harder to get and keep a good job. Increasingly, Canadians have relied on consumer debt to help mask the underlying problems, but for many even that temporary form of relief is no longer an option. In Stalled, Michael Hlinka explains what drove Canada's five-decade expansion and what has put us in the rut we're currently in. He also shows that there are solutions for Canada as a country and for individual Canadians, and that we can get out of the rut we're in if we start doing the things that once made us great. Stalled shows how.

What happens to your money after you hand it to the cashier? You pay for that cool pair of shoes or a new CD. But what happens to that money once it leaves your hands? Who actually pockets it or puts it into the bank? This lively, kid-friendly book answers these questions and more: * Why are designer jeans so much more expensive than no-name ones? * Why does a burger cost $4.50 when the ingredients only cost $1.38? * How do credit cards work? Discover the trail your money takes as it goes to pay for everything including the raw materials used to make a product, the workers who produce it, and the advertisers who promote it. Humorous illustrations demystify the process by providing a visual breakdown of all the elements involved in monetary transactions. Accessible and fun, Follow Your Money is a vital introduction to the way money flows.

What happens to your money after you hand it to the cashier? You pay for that cool pair of shoes or a new CD. But what happens to that money once it leaves your hands? Who actually pockets it or puts it into the bank? This lively, kid-friendly book answers these questions and more: * Why are designer jeans so much more expensive than no-name ones? * Why does a burger cost $4.50 when the ingredients only cost $1.38? * How do credit cards work? Discover the trail your money takes as it goes to pay for everything including the raw materials used to make a product, the workers who produce it, and the advertisers who promote it. Humorous illustrations demystify the process by providing a visual breakdown of all the elements involved in monetary transactions. Accessible and fun, Follow Your Money is a vital introduction to the way money flows.