Earth Day may have been last week, but this book reminds us that Every Day is Earth Day – and that we can, by taking small actions, make the world a better place.
Be the Change
by Rob Greenfield and Antonia Banyard
96 pages; ages 8-12
Greystone Kids, 2022
When Rob Greenfield was 25, he wanted to change his life so that he could live in a more environmentally-friendly way. Step one: he wrote a list of positive changes he could make, and then set out to do one action every week. He started with small steps – eating fresh food instead of packaged foods, and even gave up his car.
In this book he hopes to inspire kids to take positive actions that will help heal the world. In fact, it’s even subtitled Rob Greenfield’s Call to Kids: Making a Difference in a Messed-Up World. It’s divided into nine chapters that focus on stuff, waste, food waste, water, energy, money, transportation, and more.
The first few pages of each chapter give information about that aspect in our daily lives. Take “stuff” for example. We’ve got so much, but how much is necessary? Really, how many toys does a kid need? And all that stuff is not making us happier.
Then Rob talks about his own adventures in becoming more ecologically activist: letting go of possessions, trading in his car for a bike, dumpster-diving to show how much good food is wasted.
What I like about this book: At the end of each chapter, Rob shares some ideas about things kids can do, and what others are doing to help make the environment healthier. Things like planting community fruit trees, and observing Buy Nothing Day. Instead of a luxury vacation, he proposes exploring local parks and museums – and, if you can, bike or take public transportation to get there. There are lists of small things kids can do to make a difference, such as help fix leaks and turning part of a grassy yard into a garden.
Thanks for dropping by today. On Monday we'll be hanging out at Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with other bloggers. It's over at Greg Pattridge's blog, Always in the Middle, so hop over to see what other people are reading. Review copy provided by the publisher.
This sounds like such a terrific book. I like the idea of suggesting small changes that can make a big difference. Kids should be able to relate to that. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
ReplyDeleteThis would go well with another title I recently read, EARTH WILL SURVIVE *but we may not. Books about the damage we have done to the environment with ways to reverse the trend should be high on every reader's list. Thanks for featuring this title on MMGM.
ReplyDeleteForgot to sign in but that was me commenting above!
DeleteThis sounds like a fantastic book for adults as well as kids. You've got me wanting to read it.
ReplyDeleteso cool that Rob is encouraging kids in this direction! I hope teachers include this in their curriculum.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a book that will inspire kids to take action!
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