No World Too Big - by Lindsay H Metcalf & Jeanette Bradley & Keila V Dawson (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

It features 14 poems by bestselling authors that will encourage kids aged 5 to 9 to make a positive impact in their own lives!

Climate change impacts everyone, but the future belongs to young people. No World Too Big celebrates twelve young activists and three activist groups on front lines of the climate crisis who have planted trees in Uganda, protected water in Canada, reduced school-bus climate footprint in Indonesia, invented alternate power sources in Ohio, and more. Fourteen poems by Vanessa Brantley-Newton, David Bowles, Rajani LaRocca, Renée LaTulippe, Heidi E. Y. Stemple, and others honor activists from all over the world and the United States. Additional text goes into detail about each activist's life and how readers can get involved.

Review Quotes

--Kirkus Reviews

Introducing climate change-combating young people and related actions readers can take, thisunusual, quietly forceful book will be a great addition to classroom and public library shelves. Itstarts with a macro view, with the editors briefly explaining to readers what "nearly all of theworld's countries" agreed to in the Paris Agreement: "to reach climate neutrality--no increase inthe greenhouse effect--by 2050." The book then zooms in on individuals and groups of youngpeople who aren't waiting for that change. Short prose explanations of their actions areaccompanied by poems in various forms that memorably address the same topics. GretaThunberg is here, but the book also introduces lesser-known activists such as teens from theMarshall Islands who teach their peers to advocate for island-saving progress and LeahNamugerwa, a Ugandan who planted 200 trees on her fifteenth birthday and whose BirthdayTrees project helps others follow suit. Digital images portray each person in an artful but realisticstyle, giving the serious topic a welcome, hopeful air. Closing the work is a helpful guide to thepoetry forms used.

--Booklist

A timely and relevant book highlighting youth activists and youth-led organizations fighting climate change around the world.

Using poetry and art, the authors write about some of the most prominent, but also the lesser known, young people opening the door wider on global activism. The book highlights a variety of activists with a wide range of inventive solutions to climate change issues. Each activist is introduced via poem, and then a short summary about the activist and a practical suggestion for reader involvement follows. The poetry includes many popular forms such as found poetry and free verse, but also lesser-known forms such as sea chantey and dokugin renga, a Japanese form of linked verse. The many poetry types reinforce the belief that ­different peoples and ideas can work together to effect change. The seeming pencil-and-ink illustrations are digitally produced, but well designed; the activists depicted are easily recognizable. Color elements, such as the constant brown paper-style background, supplement the environmental message. There is a glossary of terms and poetry forms, as well as biographical information for each poet. The publisher pledges to offset the climate footprint of the book's publication by purchasing United Nations certified emission reduction credits for each copy purchased.

VERDICT A great title to introduce curious readers and budding environmentalists to what youth are doing around the world right now to fight global climate change.

--School Library Journal

About the Author

• Lindsay H. Metcalf grew up on a Kansas farm and is the author of Farmers Unite! Planting a Protest for Fair Prices. An experienced journalist, Lindsay has covered a variety of change-makers as a reporter, editor, and columnist for the Kansas City Star and other news outlets. www.lindsayhmetcalf.com

• Keila V. Dawson was born and raised in New Orleans. She has been a community organizer and an early childhood special education teacher. She has lived in the Phillipines, Japan, and Egypt. She is the author of Opening The Road. www.keiladawson.com

• Jeanette Bradley has been an urban planner, an apprentice pastry chef, and the artist-in-residence for a traveling art museum on a train. She is the author and illustrator of Love, Mama. Jeanette lives in Rhode Island with her wife and kids. www.jeanettebradley.com

Jeanette Bradley has been an urban planner, an apprentice pastry chef, and the artist-in-residence for a traveling art museum on a train. She is the author and illustrator of Love, Mama. Jeanette lives in Rhode Island with her wife and kids.