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UNDER THE WEATHER

STORIES ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE

From disappearing coral reefs, beaches and bees to increased incidence of floods and malaria, eight short stories illustrate varied effects of climate change around the world. This timely collection comes from England, but its stories are set around the globe and through time, from the Philippines to Sri Lanka and from today to far in the future. The protagonists are young people whose personal worlds are changing and who want to make a difference. Watching belugas in Manitoba, a girl determines to be a marine biologist; disturbing dreams, perhaps from the future, convince another to start a school compost bin. Further afield, a boy in northern Siberia watches the efforts of foreign scientists studying climate change but ignoring its effects on the local culture. Some stories are hopeful, but others are surprisingly bleak; one main character dies. Experiencing these individual stories may help students imagine an issue that previously seemed abstract. The message is clear, but readers may come away more overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problem than motivated to address it. Author biographies are appended. (Short stories. 10-14)

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2010

ISBN: 978-1-84507-930-7

Page Count: 224

Publisher: Frances Lincoln

Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2010

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PAX, JOURNEY HOME

An impressive sequel.

Boy and fox follow separate paths in postwar rebuilding.

A year after Peter finds refuge with former soldier Vola, he prepares to leave to return to his childhood home. He plans to join the Junior Water Warriors, young people repurposing the machines and structures of war to reclaim reservoirs and rivers poisoned in the conflict, and then to set out on his own to live apart from others. At 13, Peter is competent and self-contained. Vola marvels at the construction of the floor of the cabin he’s built on her land, but the losses he’s sustained have left a mark. He imposes a penance on himself, reimagining the story of rescuing the orphaned kit Pax as one in which he follows his father’s counsel to kill the animal before he could form a connection. He thinks of his heart as having a stone inside it. Pax, meanwhile, has fathered three kits who claim his attention and devotion. Alternating chapters from the fox’s point of view demonstrate Pax’s care for his family—his mate, Bristle; her brother; and the three kits. Pax becomes especially attached to his daughter, who accompanies him on a journey that intersects with Peter’s and allows Peter to not only redeem his past, but imagine a future. This is a deftly nuanced look at the fragility and strength of the human heart. All the human characters read as White. Illustrations not seen.

An impressive sequel. (Fiction. 10-14)

Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-06-293034-7

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021

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MUSIC FOR TIGERS

A beautiful conservation story told in a rich setting and peopled with memorable characters.

Unlike the rest of her nature-obsessed family, Louisa wants to be a musician, not a biologist.

But when Louisa’s mother finds out that the Australian government is about to destroy the Tasmanian rainforest camp their family has managed for decades, she insists that Louisa leave Toronto and spend the summer on the strange, small island with her even stranger uncle Ruff. But when Uncle Ruff gives Louisa a copy of her great-grandmother’s journal, Louisa becomes fascinated with her family’s history of secretly protecting endangered species, including the mysterious Tasmanian tiger, widely regarded as extinct. With the help of her new friend and neighbor Colin—a boy who has autism spectrum disorder—Louisa deepens her connection with her family’s land, with history, and with her love of music. Kadarusman masterfully creates a lush, magical world where issues associated with conservation, neurodiversity, and history intersect in surprising and authentic ways. The book’s small cast of characters (principals seem all White) is well drawn and endearing. Crucially, the author acknowledges the original, Indigenous inhabitants of the land as experts, something rarely seen in books about environmental degradation. Louisa’s narratorial voice strikes the right balance of curiosity, timidity, and growing confidence, and her character’s transformation feels both incredibly natural and incredibly rewarding to behold.

A beautiful conservation story told in a rich setting and peopled with memorable characters. (Fiction. 10-14)

Pub Date: April 28, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-77278-054-3

Page Count: 192

Publisher: Pajama Press

Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020

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