by Candace Fleming
This companion book to the authors’ Sibert award-winning Honeybee explores the life and habitat of a majestic endangered species through dramatic text and sumptuous illustration.
We all celebrate!
A collection of celebrations from around the world by by Chitra Soundar and Jenny Bloomfield.
Everyone in the world has something to celebrate. But we don’t all celebrate in the same way everywhere. “We All Celebrate!” introduces us to less familiar celebrations from around the world, in amongst those well-known festivals, anniversaries and parties that bring feel-good memories.
“Waste Tide”
by Qiufan Chen
A LOCUS AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL
Award-winning author Chen Qiufan’s Waste Tide is a thought-provoking vision of the future.
Translated by Ken Liu, who brought Cixin Liu’s Hugo Award-winning The Three Body Problem to English-speaking readers.
Mimi is drowning in the world’s trash.
She’s a waste worker on Silicon Isle, where electronics – from cell phones and laptops to bots and bionic limbs – are sent to be recycled. These amass in towering heaps, polluting every spare inch of land. On this island off the coast of China, the fruits of capitalism and consumer culture come to a toxic end.
Mimi, and thousands of migrant waste workers like her, are lured to Silicon Isle with the promise of steady work and a better life. They’re the lifeblood of the island’s economy, but are at the mercy of those in power.
A storm is brewing: Between ruthless local gangs warring for control; Ecoterrorists set on toppling the status quo; American investors hungry for profit; And a Chinese-American interpreter searching for his roots.
As these forces collide, a war erupts—between the rich and the poor, between tradition and modern ambition, between humanity’s past and its future.
Mimi, and others like her, must decide if they will remain pawns in this war or change the rules of the game altogether.
“An accomplished eco-techno-thriller with heart and soul as well as brain. Chen Qiufan is an astute observer, both of the present world and of the future that the next generation is in danger of inheriting.” – David Mitchell, New York Times bestselling author of Cloud Atlas
“The Rime of the Modern Mariner”
by Nick Hayes
An extraordinary, timely update on the classic Coleridge poem
Is it possible to update a masterpiece? Only, perhaps, with a brand-new masterpiece. Written in 1797, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” was the original eco-fable; drawn in 2010, The Rime of the Modern Mariner is a graphic novel, now set in the cesspool of the North Atlantic Garbage Patch–thus adding a timely and resonant message about the destruction of our seas.
Hayes’s visually striking debut is drawn with complex, iconic images reminiscent of old woodcuts. Emerging from every exquisite page are the poem’s enduring themes: compassion for nature, a sense of connection among all living things, and rightful outrage at man’s thoughtless destruction of the environment. Powerful and evocative, lush and stark, The Rime of the Modern Mariner will appeal to fans of Habibi and Persepolis.
“How to Repair Everything : A Green Guide to Fixing Stuff”
by Nick Harper
With advice on tools, materials and methods and written in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step format, this is a book that makes it easier to say ‘No’ to our disposable society and make a real difference. Not everything has built-in obsolescence – as this fantastically handy guide to fixing everyday objects proves! Whether you need to repair a strap on a favourite handbag or mend a leak in a washing machine, How to Repair Everything is packed full of tips and tricks of the trade for the person who likes to do-it-yourself.
From quick fixes that will get you out of a jam to permanent solutions that make the item good as new, this is perfect for anyone who hates the throwaway society and would much rather refurb and recycle. With advice on tools, materials and methods and written in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step format, this is a book that makes it easier to say ‘No’ to our disposable society and make a real difference. Whether it’s a sweater that’s shrunk in the wash, a broken umbrella spoke or fixing a microwave oven, you’ll be amazed just how many things can be mended with a few tools and a bit of patience.
Book Review: Joyful Noise
Children’s and Young Adult Library Director, Deann Campbell, recommends Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman.
Before reading Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman, I had enjoyed poetry—loved it even. But I had mostly read poetry. This is not a collection to be read, it is a collection to be performed… with someone else. After all, these are poems for two voices.
The first poem of the collection may have given me goosebumps. Mostly, I remember how clever it was: Grasshoppers hopping, hatching out, into spring, hopping, leapfrogging, longjumping grasshoppers. Plus, there was the back and forth of the readers voices and rhythm and cadence that I’d never heard with poetry. These poems have a sing-songy element melded with the characteristics of insects and the rhythm of words, and hopping, striding, flying insects. The poems all focus on insects: Moths, Mayflies, Cicadas, Water Striders, Fireflies, Bumblebees.
There is a click clackety and a back and forth-ness to the poems. A joy in reading and reciting. Together, these poems for two voices make a joyful noise.
The poems are clever, funny, spry, and sometimes somber. The illustrations, too, are wonderful. In them Eric Beddows gives life, whimsey and accuracy to the starring characters. On the cover is a beautiful and accurately drawn butterfly who, upon closer inspection, taps a tambourine.
The true joy, however, is in reading the poem with a partner or friend. While not difficult, it may take a little practice before the poems are performance worthy. There is a knack to time the lines that you say alone and the lines that are spoken in chorus. There is a click clackety and a back and forth-ness to the poems. A joy in reading and reciting. Together, these poems for two voices make a joyful noise.
Note: This book was the recipient of the 1989 Newbery Medal. The Newbery Medal recognizes “The most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.” The Newbery Award and Caldecott, the two most prestigious awards in Children’s Literature each year, will be announced in January.
