City officials and employees in Mankato, Minn., took a unique opportunity last year to help young readers learn more about local government and the democratic process.

Working with Mankato-based Coughlan Companies publishing arm, Capstone Press, Mayor Jeff Kagameier, members of the city council and the city?s fire department assisted with the publication of three books aimed at kindergarten through third-grade readers: ?The City Council,? ?The City Mayor? and ?A Day in the Life of a Firefighter.?

Maureen Gustafson of Coughlan Companies said the idea came about after attending a number of book shows that included school teachers and librarians.

?Topics that frequently came up at these book shows were civics and local government,? said Gustafson. ?The educators helped us identify these needs and our editorial staff found a fun way for us to approach it.?

Kagermeier, who acted as a consultant for ?The City Mayor,? said that using real local officials in the book provides a true depiction of what local officials do and what they look like.

He also said it was a great opportunity for his fellow city officials to demonstrate the principles of local governance and democracy to young readers.

?It?s great that we were able to reach out to kids and adults and put in context what we do everyday,? said Kagermeier. ?The books are very representative of what local officials do and what their role is in local government. All three books are very reflective of that.?

Other books in the set include ?Serving on a Jury,? ?The State Governor,? ?The State Judicial Branch,? ?The State Legislative Branch,? ?The U.S. House of Representatives,? ?The U.S. Presidency,? ?The U.S. Senate,? ?The U.S. Supreme Court,? and ?Voting in Elections.?