The Tale of a Toothbrush by M.G. Leonard
Children use their toothbrush each morning and evening, and get new ones every few months. That’s billions of toothbrushes! What happens to them all when they’re no longer needed? And if toothbrushes take thousands of years to break down, what does that mean for our planet?
With a fun cast of plastic characters, from pirate-ship bottles to dancing shampoos, and even an inquisitive albatross, The Tale of a Toothbrush is a positive and heart-warming story to help children explore the impact their choices have on our planet.
Categories: picture books, plastic waste, oceans
Published by Walker Books (out now)
Amara and the Bats by Emma Reynolds
Environmental activism gets a nocturnal twist in this utterly charming picture book about a young girl and her mission to save the bats!
Amara loves bats! Her favorite thing to do is to collect bat facts and watch the amazing mammals fly at night by her house. But when Amara moves to a new town, she learns that her beloved bats no longer roost nearby because so many trees are being cut down.
Amara is upset. What can she do to help? She’s just one person, and the problem feels so much bigger than her. But after doing some research, she discovers that there are many young people making big changes all around the world. Inspired to take action, Amara gathers her new friends to help save the bats. Together, she knows they can make a difference!
Emma Reynolds crafts an inspiring story about community action, perseverance, and what to do in the face of climate anxiety. At its heart, this is a story about hope and finding a place to call home.
Categories: picture books, animals, conservation
Published by Atheneum Books (out now)
P.S. What’s up with the climate? by Bijal Vachharajani
It’s too hot. It’s too cold. There’s no rain. There’s too much rain. There’s less snow. There’s too much carbon in the atmosphere. Grizzly bears don’t know whether to sleep, penguins don’t know what to eat. Kangaroos are escaping forest fires, bees are groggy from all the pesticide. In a world overrun by the climate crisis, is it time to panic yet?
Categories: picture books, Epistolary, Satire, Humour, Narrative non-fiction
Published by Pratham Books (out now)
The Case of the Missing Water by Shalini Srinivasan
When the tank in Ranj’s village dries up, she puts on her detective hat and sets out on a mission to find the missing water.
Categories: picture books, realism, water crisis
Published by Pratham Books (out now)
The Big Field: A Child’s Year Under the Southern Cross by Anne Morddel
Beautifully illustrated, this is the charming story of a girl who spends a year with her grandmother on a farm at the edge of the South American Atlantic Rainforest. The child is from the city, but the time she spends with her grandmother teaches her about the seasons of the Southern Hemisphere and the beauty and transience of the rainforest from the plant, animal, and insect life to the cycles of nature. Following them as they spend their days walking through the forest, lying on their backs under the trees, eating dinner outside, collecting seeds, and learning about the wildlife, this entertaining narrative is also environmentally sensitive in its approach. An illustrated, child-friendly glossary with sections dedicated to butterflies and moths, birds, bugs, and trees and plants concludes the book.
Categories: picture books, animals, friendship, forest
Published by KWS Publishers (out now)
The Lonely Polar Bear by Khoa Le
This sweet children’s picture book presents a moving story, set in a fragile Arctic world threatened by global warming. A little polar bear wakes up alone after a furious storm. With his mother nowhere in sight, he makes friends with a mysterious little girl and various animal companions. All of the friends come together in the magnificent polar sky. In the end the little bear sits peacefully, enjoying a winter day lit up by beautiful northern lights. Featuring exceptional illustrations from talented Vietnamese illustrator Khoa Le, The Lonely Polar Bear offers an accessible way to introduce children to climate change issues.
Categories: picture books, animals, friendship
Published by Happy Fox Books (out now)
Setsuko & The Song of the Sea by Fiona Barker & Howard Gray
Setsuko loves the sea. She swims its shallows, she dives its depths. But her friends have forgotten the cold excitement of the sea. Can a chance meeting help her reawaken their love for the ocean?
Categories: Picture Book, Fable, Ocean
Published by Tiny Tree Children’s Books (out now)
Moth by Isabel Thomas & Daniel Egneus
Powerful and visually spectacular, Moth is the remarkable evolution story that captures the struggle of animal survival against the background of an evolving human world in a unique and atmospheric introduction to Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection.
“This is a story of light and dark…”
Against a lush backdrop of lichen-covered trees, the peppered moth lies hidden. Until the world begins to change…
Along come people with their magnificent machines which stain the land with soot. In a beautiful landscape changed by humans how will one little moth survive?
A clever picture book text about the extraordinary way in which animals have evolved, intertwined with the complication of human intervention. This remarkable retelling of the story of the peppered moth is the perfect introduction to natural selection and evolution for children.
Categories: Picture Book, Science, evolution
Published by Bloomsbury (out now)
You’re Snug with Me by Chitra Soundar & Poonam Mistry
At the start of winter, two bear cubs are born, deep in their den in the frozen north. “Mama, what lies beyond here?” they ask. “Above us is a land of ice and snow.” “What lies beyond the ice and snow?” they ask. “The ocean, full of ice from long ago.” And as they learn the secrets of the earth and their place in it, Mama Bear whispers, “You’re snug with me.”
Categories: Picture Book, Polar bears, Nature, Fairy tale
Published by Lantana Publishing (out now)
Climate Fiction Writers League 