Stories for Kids Who Want to Save the World

by Carola Benedetto, Luciana Ciliento, Roberta Maddalena Bireau (Illustrator)

Overview

Sixteen biographies of extraordinary people--ranging from Sebastião Salgado to Björk and Greta Thunberg--who came of age fighting climate change

Every person has a path in life, one that is intertwined with the fate of the earth. The life stories in this collection begin and end with that realization. First, as children, in different countries and eras, they witness how humans provoke environmental degradation. Each leads a life that not only minimizes their individual contribution to climate change at a local scale, but also that of their generation on a global scale. Then, as adults, they recognize the maturity and agency acquired at that moment which defined their lives. The biographies depict concrete initiatives that contribute to climate preservation, from a physicist who promotes organic farming techniques in India to a designer that only uses ecological fabrics and dyes in Italy. Rock climber Yvon Chouinard, biologist Rachel Carson, and designer Adriana Santanocito are included in this diverse cast of environmental activists. Together they show us that regardless of culture, class, or profession it is never too early or late to find your way to improve the world our children will inhabit. The stakes couldn't be higher: "Our house is on fire," as Greta Thunberg rightly said.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781644210871
Publisher:	Seven Stories Press
Publication date:	03/22/2022
Sold by:	Penguin Random House Publisher Services
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	26 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

CAROLA BENEDETTO is a Hindologist, author, and playwright. She codirected Pierre Rabhi: Il mio corpo è la terra (2013), the first Italian documentary about Rabhi, one of the leading figures in the field of agroecology. She wrote the afterword to Pierre Rabhi's La sobrietà felice (2013, Add Editore). She was the co-director of the festival, Per sentieri e remiganti, Il Festival dei viaggiatori extra ordinari (2007-2014 Turin). With Luciana Ciliento, she wrote La terra non è mai sporca (2018, Add Editore) and has been a regular guest on the television shows TV Overland '19 (RAI 1) and Overland '20 (RAI 1). LUCIANA CILIENTO is a translator and interpreter, as well as the co-director of the festival, Per sentieri e remiganti, Il Festival dei viaggiatori extra ordinari (2007-2014 Turin). She translated the DVD Pierre Rabhi: Il miocorpo è la terra, as well as surprising its editorial production and presenting it all over Italy. With Carola Benedetto, she wrote La terra non è mai sporca (2018, Add Editore) and has been a regular guest on the television shows TV Overland '19 (RAI 1) and Overland '20 (RAI 1).
ANTONY SHUGAAR is a writer and a translator from the Italian and the French. He has translated close to forty novels for Europa Editions, including his translation of Hollow Heart by Viola Di Grado, shortlisted for both the PEN and the ALTA Italian translation awards. He has received two National Endowment of the Arts fellowships.

Table of Contents

Introduction v

Vandana Shiva: We're all seeds 1

Rachel Carson: Spring won't be silent anymore 19

Dian Fossey: Gorillas are my family 35

Al Gore: The truth is inconvenient 51

Adriana Santanocito: The garden with the golden fruit 67

Tiziano Guardini: Long live the caterpillar! 83

Wangari Maathai: You can't stop a river 97

Rigoberta Menchu Tum: The highlands are my home 113

Pierre Rabhi: Like a hummingbird 129

Jadav Payeno: My karma bhumi for the earth! 145

Greta Thumberg: Give us back our future! 159

Sebastiao Salgoado: The earth saved my life 175

Björk: I am Birch 191

Ma Jun: For a swim in the yellow river 207

Yvon Chouinard: A rebellious entrepreneur 221

Bob Brown and Nicole Anderson: There's room for dreamers and for wallabies 235

About the author and illustrator 250

Editorial Reviews

"There’s nothing more inspiring than reading about others’ personal successes, especially when it comes to those who stand by causes close to their hearts. Exploring the ever-present reality of climate change and how human activity affects the earth, this book features 16 biographies of noteworthy individuals involved in the fight against global warming and for environmental preservation. Each profile begins with a colorful portrait of its subject and shares their words of wisdom in pull quotes that punctuate the main text. Featured persons include Pierre Rabhi (a leader in agroecology), Jun Ma (a journalist in China committed to issues of pollution), and well-known figures, like Rachel Carson and Greta Thunberg.The easy-to-read narratives highlight how individual experiences have shaped each person’s unique approach to protecting the environment. This collection will work well in a classroom or with kids interested in learning more about environmental issues, though unfortunately no source notes are provided. Nevertheless, readers will find role models in its pages and realize that it’s never too late to take care of our world."
— Aurora Dominguez, Booklist

From the Publisher

2021-08-16
A collection of 16 biographical stories about environmental advocates from around the world.

Utilizing a dozen or so pages for each profile, this title introduces readers to influential people from a broad range of fields, each shown doing their part to protect the fragile, interconnected planet we call home. These subjects include former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, Kenyan Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, and Yvon Chouinard, the rebellious founder of Patagonia. Within this collection there is great variety in individuals’ motivations and approaches to environmental crises. Each person is introduced with a colorful, painterly portrait incorporating signature elements of their story that begin in childhood and progress in a linear fashion. Written in the present tense, the translated text toggles between straightforward narrative nonfiction and moralistic storytelling, emphasizing the virtues of each protagonist. Non-English vocabulary is clearly defined or easily understood in context. The layout is occasionally broken up with spotlighted sentences from the text that are often disruptive in their placement. More concerning than the absence of sources for information and quoted dialogue are the dated language and approach that include a story presenting the stereotype of the inspirational disabled person, the framing of Greta Thunberg as suffering from and afflicted with Asperger syndrome, and a casual mention that musician Björk was nicknamed “China Girl” at school because of her eyes.

Admirable environmental furor is overshadowed by a preachy tone and out-of-touch language. (Nonfiction. 9-13)

Kirkus Reviews