Tag Archives: Environment

Elem. – Fungi Grow

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Gianferrari, Maria. Fungi Grow. Beach Lane Books, 2023. 978-1-665-90365-3. 40 p. $18.99. Grades 2-5. 

Fungi grow all around us, and this book introduces readers to their mysterious world. Fungi grow from spores which form threads that spread and create a complex network of roots. Mushrooms are the fruit, and they can be found both above and below ground. The lyrical text is supplemented by fact boxes that share additional information about how spores are spread, how some mushrooms can absorb enough water to crack cement, and how fungi are also used to create antibiotics. The gouache watercolor and digital illustrations include a wide variety of labeled fungi. Additionally, many pages also feature word art visualizations of how spores move and grow, detailing how they puff, plop, poof, sprout, branch, poke, splash, swirl, and multiply. Backmatter includes a warning to never eat wild mushrooms until their identity is confirmed by an expert as well as a glossary and a list of blogs and websites for further reading. Information about how fungi help the environment, fun fungi facts, and a diagram of the fungi life cycle are also featured. 

THOUGHTS: There are many books about the life cycles of animals and plants, but this title will fill gaps about how other living things grow, change, and impact the environment. This is a visually interesting title to browse, or share it with science-loving students.  

579.5 Fungi

Elem./MG – Investigating (Series NF)

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Investigating. A Child’s World, 2023. $24.95 ea. 32 p. Grades 3-8. 

Edwards, Sue Bradford. Fossil Fuel Pollution. 978-1-503-85806-0.
Gagliardi, Sue. Household Waste Pollution. 978-1-503-85811-4.
Henzel, Cynthia. Manufacturing Pollution. 978-1-503-85810-7.
—. Noise Pollution. 978-1-503-8581-21.
MacCarald, Clara. Agricultural Waste. 978-1-503-85807-7.
—. Nuclear Pollution. 978-1-503-85809-1.
Perdew, Laura. Light Pollution. 978-1-503-8580-84.
—. Plastic Pollution. 978-1-503-85805-3.

The focus of this nonfiction series is on pollution. It discusses the cause, the harm, and what humans can do to reduce pollution.The book concludes with a table of contents, fast facts, phonetic glossary, additional resources, source notes, and an index. Other books in the series focus on these topics: plastic pollution, nuclear pollution, manufacturing pollution, household waste pollution, fossil fuel pollution, and agricultural waste pollution.

THOUGHTS: This series is a good addition to enhance upper elementary and middle school library collections seeking to update the environment and STEM section.

300s Environmental Protection  

MG – Falling Out of Time

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Haddix, Margaret Peterson. Falling Out of Time. Katherine Tegen Books, 2023. 978-0-063-25161-8. 341 p. $19.99. Grades 3-7.

Zola wakes up to a different scene projected on her Picture Wall each morning: Tahiti one day, Bora Bora the next. Her school friends attend from all over the world through advanced virtual reality technology. One morning, Zola asks her AI assistant, Sirilexagoogle, to change the wall to “normal”…but, what does Zola know about normal? Zola lives in the year 2193, a time with wondrous technology and no more fear. Just like Haddix’s debut novel, Running Out of Time, not everything is as it seems in Zola’s world. Zola discovers the truth after finding a mysterious book, The Jessie Keiser Story, detailing Jessie’s daring escape during the 1990s from a fake frontier town. After she stumbles across a hidden staircase in her house, Zola realizes there is very real danger in her not-so-real world. Zola is really living in the year 2023, and she’s being unknowingly watched by hundreds of people each day. Like Haddix’s original novel, this is the story of a daring escape to the outside world.

THOUGHTS: Falling Out of Time is the long-awaited sequel to Haddix’s first novel, Running Out of Time. It certainly lives up to expectations and offers readers relevant 2023 social and environmental commentary while evoking 90s nostalgia for fans of the original story (that’s me!). Although the first few chapters start with detailed world-building and description, the rest of the novel’s plot builds with nonstop action. Some of the twists are quick and a little outlandish, but all elements in this story contribute to the adventurous tone. Readers who are unfamiliar with Running Out of Time (1995) will still be able to enjoy this fresh story on its own. Haddix builds necessary background and context directly into Falling Out of Time.

Science Fiction

Elem. – The Day the River Caught Fire: How the Cuyahoga River Exploded and Ignited the Earth Day Movement

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Wittenstein, Barry. The Day the River Caught Fire: How the Cuyahoga River Exploded and Ignited the Earth Day Movement. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2023.  978-1-534-48083-4. Unpaged. $18.99. Grades 2-3.

This nonfiction picture book explores environmental activism in its historic account of  Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River fire in 1969. In the 19th century, the Industrial Revolution led to the building of many factories along the banks of American rivers, and the waste they produced was dumped into these same rivers. In Ohio, no one seemed to care that the once beautiful pristine Cuyahoga River, which supported wildlife, was now contaminated with oil, chemicals, and other toxic materials. One hot summer day in 1969, a train was traveling on a bridge that crossed the waterway. Sparks from the train fell into the river and instead of  fizzing out, they ignited the slimy surface causing an explosion and fire.  It was quickly put out, but surprisingly this was not the first time the Cuyahoga caught fire. The mayor of Cleveland, Carl Stokes, was determined to clear up the pollution and traveled to Washington, DC to testify before Congress. After listening to him and others, Congress passed the Clean Air and Water Act. One year later, on April 22, 1970, Earth Day was celebrated for the first time. People all over the world began to recognize the importance of taking care of our planet. In the back matter, there is a photo of the 1952 fire and an author’s note on the environment, encouraging young people to get involved. The illustrations by Hartland are done in gouache in a folk art style. They are drawn on a small scale, yet there is a lot of action on each page.

THOUGHTS: Students will enjoy examining the images for the quirky details. This picture book is a great choice for Earth Day storytimes, particularly since the story takes place in a neighboring state. A worthwhile purchase for elementary libraries, especially those needing to refresh their Earth Day collection.

363.7 Environmental Problems         

Elem. – The Dark Was Done

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Stringer, Lauren. The Dark Was Done. Beach Lane, 2022. 978-1-534-46393-3. 48 p. $18.99. Grades PK-3.

The Dark Was Done spins a modern folktale about when the Dark, tired of being pushed away by lights and fears of humanity, decides to leave the earth. Initially, the boy at the center of the story and those around him do not miss the dark and go on with their daily business. But over time, the boy begins to realize what he has lost–the song of crickets, the hoot of owls, the stars–and goes on a journey to find the Dark and persuade it to return. Along the way, the boy is joined by others yearning for that which is missing. As the voice of one boy becomes the voice of many, the Dark is persuaded to return… and embraces the community that, in turn, embraces it.

THOUGHTS: Lauren Stringer’s illustrations are a wonderful compliment to her writing, reflecting the Dark’s personification in the text as a warm, mysterious entity. The people in the community are as diverse as they are foolish and frequently strike a fanciful note with their peaked caps. Small details, like the teddy bear the boy brings on his journey, a burglar portrayed as a racoon, and speech bubbles that illustrate the joys of night that the community is missing make the story both child-friendly and worthy of reading again and again. A beautiful story with beautiful illustrations. Highly recommended.

Picture Book          Hannah J. Thomas, Central Bucks SD

Elem. – How to Make a Mountain in Just 9 Simple Steps and Only 100 Million Years!

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Huntington, Amy. How to Make a Mountain in Just 9 Simple Steps and Only 100 Million Years! Illustrated by Nancy Lemon. Chronicle Books, 2022. 978-1-452-17588-1. $18.99. 68 p. Grades K-3.

Mountains, of course, take millions of years to develop. If you can transcend time and need specific, but simple, directions on how to create a mountain, this is the book for you! The book is also a very easy to understand step-by-step explanation of how mountain ranges form, change and grow, and are populated by vegetation and animal life. All it really takes is a very big rock in the right place at the right time, with the right conditions… and a very long time. This amusing book (with quirky digital pencil and gouache illustrations by Nancy Lemon) makes a potentially boring topic fun and understandable. Giving excellent, age-appropriate explanations of tectonic shift, glacial impact, and changing weather patterns, this title offers a great perspective on the continued evolution of Earth.

THOUGHTS: This is a very informative book with a fun, whimsical tone. Great resource to support elementary geology, earth sciences, and environmental literacy/sustainability curriculum standards. 

551.8 Geology, Hydrology, Meteorology          Anne McKernan, Council Rock SD

Elem. – One Turtle’s Last Straw: The Real-Life Rescue That Sparked a Sea Change

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Boxer, Elisa. One Turtle’s Last Straw: The Real-Life Rescue That Sparked a Sea Change. Illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns. Crown Books for Young Readers, 2022. 978-0-593-37246-3. $17.99. 40 p. Grades PK-3.

Beautifully illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns, this nonfiction picture book shows the journey of a discarded plastic drinking straw. The straw is thrown away properly in a garbage can, but is blown out of the can by high winds. The straw travels into the sewer system and eventually makes its way to the ocean, where it is consumed by an olive ridley sea turtle. The turtle struggles to breathe and eat with the straw lodged in its nose and throat. Rescued by Dr. Nathan Robinson and Dr. Christine Figgener, the turtle is saved when the straw is carefully removed. The turtle is able to return to the ocean. Based on a true story, and the video-taped documentation of the rescue operation that has been viewed on YouTube over 150 million times, this book introduces young readers to the impact of single-use plastics on our environment. The afterword by marine conservation biologist Christine Figgener, PhD, and the author’s note, include additional details of the rescue and photographs of the real-life turtle. Also included are brief stories of young people who have made significant contributions to the reduction of ocean pollution, bibliography, and resources for further exploration.

THOUGHTS: This story is told very simply in words and pictures to help young children understand the impact a single piece of trash can have on the environment. Never scary or gory, the book ends happily with a young girl ordering a meal in a restaurant. As she remembers the story of the rescued olive ridley sea turtle, she orders her drink without a straw. The message is that very small, simple changes can have a big impact on our environment.  

597.92 Turtles          Anne McKernan, Council Rock SD

MG – Little Monarchs

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Case, Jonathan. Little Monarchs. Margaret Ferguson Books, 2022. 978-0-823-44260-7. $22.99. 255 p. Grades 5-8.

African-American, ten-year-old Elvie cruises around a post-apocalyptic world of 2101 in a dilapidated van with her white, twenty-something caregiver, Flora. The world’s population has decreased to a mere 7,000 due to sun sickness; the sun hovers dangerously close to the Earth, and many of the inhabitants have retreated under the ground, the Deepers. The sole way Elvie and Flora can survive in the daytime is because biologist Flora has created a serum from the scales of monarch butterflies. Shortly after Elvie’s birth, her parents traveled to Michoacan, Mexico, to pursue the migration of the monarchs and further Flora’s discovery. Since the deaths of Elvie’s grandparents, Flora has protected Elvie and schooled her in both survival skills and nature. Since the serum only lasts for a brief time, Flora is determined to find a vaccine. The pair are following the migration route of the monarchs up and down the west coast, searching for sufficient material to do so. As they wind their way to Michoacan, hoping for the survival of Elvie’s parents, they cope with natural disasters and get caught up with sinister Deepers who want to thwart Flora’s pursuit. Though very young, Elvie’s unusual upbringing makes her an environmental expert and fearless explorer who emerges a clever and unflappable hero. Part graphic novel, part naturalist notebook, Little Monarchs boasts of colorful and clear illustrations with a compelling, if unusual, plot. 

THOUGHTS: Given the insatiable thirst for graphic novels, Little Monarchs proves itself to be a worthy contender. The storyline is clear and different and has the bonus of being extremely informative. Through Elvira’s system of writing facts in red, readers can learn about the monarchs’ migration and other habits, edible plants, characteristics of frogs, and types of knots, among other secrets of nature and survival. Different frames contain the geographical coordinates. This title sparks discussion of future results of climate change as well as an interest in survival skills, geography, and map skills. 

Graphic Novel          Bernadette Cooke, School District of Philadelphia
Science Fiction

Elem. – Animals We Can’t Live Without (Series NF)

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Animals We Can’t Live Without. The Child’s World. 2022. $19.95 each or $239.40 for set of 12. Grades 1-4.

Huddleston, Emma. Thank You, Ants. 978-1-503-84991-4.

Thank You, Corals. 978-1-503-85007-1.
Thank You, Earthworms. 978-1-503-84997-6.
Thank You, Frogs. 978-1-503-84994-5.
Thank You, Primates. 978-1-503-85010-1.

Erickson, Marty. Thank You, Bats. 978-1-503-84993-8.

Thank You, Bees. 978-1-503-84996-9.
Thank You, Sharks. 978-1-503-85008-8.
Thank You, Termites. 978-1-503-84992-1.
Thank You, Zooplankton. 978-1-503-84998-3.

Pearson, Marie. Thank You, Raptors. 978-1-503-84995-2.

Thank You, Rodents. 978-1-503-85009-5.

The series Animals We Can’t Live Without focuses on animal species that may not be the cutest or cuddliest animals, but rather animals that help our environment in ways we may often forget. Whether the animal flies, swims, lives on land or in the sea, there are important factors these animals have that affect the ecosystem around them. This reviewer read the titles Thank You, Raptors and Thank You, Rodents, both by Marie Pearson. Thank You, Raptors discusses the amazing raptors of our world, also known as birds of prey. With beautiful photographs, helpful charts, and vocabulary words, readers will be able to learn why these birds are so helpful to our world and how we can help keep them safe and protect them from endangerment. Thank You, Rodents, does the same, but focuses on those tiny rodents we all know (and may not always like!). Despite the fact that some people may be squeamish about tiny mice or rats, these rodents are important to their environment and help our world continue to function as a whole.

THOUGHTS: The two books reviewed are very interesting, full of great information for younger elementary students to read and learn about. The photographs are beautifully taken, and the additional information in the back to further your knowledge is a great way for readers to continue to learn about the amazing species the book presents.

590s Animals          Rachel Burkhouse, Otto-Eldred SD

Elem./MG – Mapmakers and the Lost Magic

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Chittock, Cameron. Illustrated by Amanda Castillo. Mapmakers and the Lost Magic. RH Graphics, 2022. 978-0-593-17286-5. Unpaged  $12.99. Grades 3-6.

Mapmakers and the Lost Magic  is a debut graphic novel by Cameron Chittock and Amanda Castillo and is intended to be the first in a series of books that follow the main character, Alidade, and her adventures. Alidade constantly pushes the boundaries of what is expected in her community, Alden–which is ruled by the Night Coats–and inevitably lands herself and her best friend, Lewis, in trouble. In the course of her forbidden explorations of the territory surrounding Alden, Alidade discovers a secret entrance to the Valley Lodge, which belonged to the Mapmakers, once the peacekeepers of the valley that Alidade and Lewis call home. Though the Mapmakers are long gone, Alidade finds a hidden map in the lodge and releases Blue, a Memri brought to life by the Mapmakers for the purpose of supporting all life in the valley in their quest to live peacefully and in harmony with their surroundings. All is not peaceful, however, and Alidade’s curiosity and resentment of the Night Coats’ rule leads to her pursuit of becoming a Mapmaker herself under Blue’s tutelage as well as increased insight into the Night Coat’s control of Alden.

THOUGHTS: The Mapmakers’ use of maps to advance its fantasy storyline is unique and well-developed. The book contains subtle environmental messages and lessons about friendship and teamwork that are nearly seamlessly woven into the story, and Amanda Castillo’s illustrations will be accessible both to readers who love the simplicity of the Babysitters Club graphics and those who are attached to more detailed fantasy in graphics. Back matter includes a nature journal entry from Alidade documenting her world; activities, such as crafts and recipes that connect to the story; information on the creation of the graphic novel; and notes from the author and illustrator. There is much here for the reader who is curious about the creation of a graphic novel and the writing process. I think this book will appeal to many of our readers and fly off the shelves. Highly recommended.

Graphic Novel          Hannah J. Thomas, Central Bucks SD
Fantasy