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Eco-Reading: Selected Books for Children and Teens about Our Earth and the Environment

This bibliography highlights books for children and teens that enhance appreciation for nature and the earth, increase understanding of environmental challenges, and inspire action for change.

Most of the books have been chosen from various editions of CCBC Choices, the annual best-of-the-year list of the Cooperative Children's Book Center. The books have been divided into three categories:

• In My World: Loving the Earth: Books that foster deeper appreciation for the natural world, including several that imagine a brighter environmental landscape for the future.

• What Happened Here? Environmental Challenges and Change: Books that highlight past or current threats to the environment, including several science fiction and fantasy titles in which the future has paid a heavy price for transgressions of the past.

• Taking Action: Planet Pioneers: Books that showcase activists and others who have worked for specific or sweeping environmental change.

In My World: Loving the Earth

Fiction

Argueta, Jorge Tetl. Agua, Aguita / Water, Little Water. Illustrated by Felipe Ugalde Alcantara. Translated by Gabriela Baeza Ventura. Arte Publico/Pinata, 2017. 32 pages. Ages 3-6

Atinuke, . Beti and the Little Round House. Illustrated by Emily Hughes. Candlewick, 2024. 119 pages. Ages 4-8

Bogan, Carmen. Where's Rodney?. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. Yosemite Conservancy, 2017. 32 pages. Ages 4-8

Davies, Nicola. Hummingbird. Illustrated by Jane Ray. Candlewick, 2019. 29 pages. Ages 4-8

Goade, Michaela. Berry Song. Illustrated by Michaela Goade. Little, Brown, 2022. 32 pages. Ages 3-7

Henkes, Kevin. The World and Everything In It. Illustrated by Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 2023. 32 pages. Ages 2-5

Kyi, Tanya Lloyd. Our Green City. Illustrated by Colleen Larmour. Kids Can, 2022. 32 pages. Ages 2-5

Leshem-Pelly, Miri. A Feather, a Pebble, a Shell. Illustrated by Miri Leshem-Pelly. Kar-Ben/Lerner, 2024. 32 pages. Ages 5-8

Manley, Curtis. Climbing the Volcano: A Journey in Haiku. Illustrated by Jennifer K. Mann. Holiday House/Neal Porter Books, 2024. 48 pages. Ages 6-9

Percival, Kari. How to Say Hello to a Worm: A First Guide to Outside. Illustrated by Kari Percival. Penguin Random House/Rise x Penguin Workshop, 2022. 32 pages. Ages 1-4

Scott, Jordan. Angela's Glacier. Illustrated by Diana Sudyka. Holiday House/Neal Porter Books, 2024. 40 pages. Ages 6-10

Turk, Evan. You Are Home: An Ode to the National Parks. Illustrated by Evan Turk. Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, 2019. 40 pages. Ages 4-9

Yuly, Toni. Thank You, Bees. Illustrated by Toni Yuly. Candlewick, 2017. 32 pages. Ages 2-5

Non-Fiction

Cate, Annette LeBlanc. Look Up! Bird-Watching in Your Own Backyard. Illustrated by Annette LeBlanc Cate. Candlewick, 2013. 51 pages. Ages 7-10

Coy, John. My Mighty Journey: A Waterfall's Story. Illustrated by Gaylord Schanilec. Minnesota Historical Society, 2019. 40 pages. Ages 5-11

Hirsch, Rebecca E.. Rise to the Sky: How the World's Tallest Trees Grow Up. Illustrated by Mia Posada. Lerner/Millbrook, 2023. 32 pages. Ages 5–10

Judge, Lita. The Wisdom of Trees: How Trees Work Together to Form a Natural Kingdom. Illustrated by Lita Judge. Roaring Brook, 2021. 47 pages. Ages 7-10

Martin, Jacqueline Briggs. Farmer Will Allen and the Growing Table. Illustrated by Shabazz Larkin. Readers to Eaters, 2013. 32 pages. Ages 5-14

Paul, Miranda. Water Is Water: A Book about the Water Cycle. Illustrated by Jason Chin. Neal Porter Books/Roaring Brook, 2015. Ages 4-8

Sidman, Joyce. Ubiquitous: Celebrating Nature’s Survivors. Illustrated by Beckie Prange. Houghton Mifflin /Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010. 32 pages. Ages 9-13

Tuttle, Sarah Grace. Hidden City: Poems of Urban Wildlife. Illustrated by Amy Schimler-Safford. Eerdmans, 2018. 44 pages. Ages 3-8

What Happened Here? Environmental Challenges and Change

Fiction

Bacigalupi, Paolo. Ship Breaker. Little, Brown, 2010. 326 pages. Age 13 and older

Baitie, Elizabeth-Irene. Flying Up the Mountain. Norton, 2023. 233 pages. Ages 8-11

Chin, Jason. Grand Canyon. Illustrated by Jason Chin. Neal Porter Books/Roaring Brook, 2017. 42 pages. Ages 6-10

Dasnes, Nora. Save Our Forest! (Cross My Heart, #2). Illustrated by Nora Dasnes. Translated by Bryn Laerdal Lise. Astra/Hippo Park, 2024. 219 pages. Ages 8-12

Little Badger, Darcie. A Snake Falls to Earth. Arthur A. Levine Books/Levine Querido, 2021. 372 pages. Age 12 and older

Mathieu, Jennifer. Down Came the Rain. Roaring Brook, 2023. 269 pages. Age 13 and older

Rhodes, Jewell Parker. Bayou Magic. Little, Brown, 2015. 239 pages. Ages 8-11

Rogers, Andrea L.. The Art Thieves. Levine Querido, 2024. 384 pages. Age 13 and older

Sayre, April Pulley. Turtle, Turtle, Watch Out!. Illustrated by Annie Patterson. Charlesbridge, 2010. 32 pages. Ages 4-9

Young, Brian. Healer of the Water Monster. HarperCollins/Heartdrum, 2021. 362 pages. Ages 8-12

Non-Fiction

Brown, Don. Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina & New Orleans. Illustrated by Don Brown. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015. 96 pages. Age 11 and older

Burleigh, Robert. Trapped! A Whale’s Rescue. Illustrated by Wendell Minor. Charlesbridge, 2015. 32 pages. Ages 5-9

Davies, Nicola. Emperor of the Ice: How a Changing Climate Affects a Penguin Colony. Illustrated by Catherine Rayner. Candlewick, 2023. 24 pages. Ages 4–8

Donnelly, Rebecca. Total Garbage: A Messy Dive into Trash, Waste, and Our World. Illustrated by John Hendrix. Henry Holt/Macmillan, 2023. 138 pages. Ages 9–14

Fleischman, Paul. Eyes Wide Open: Going Behind the Environmental Headlines. Candlewick, 2014. 203 pages. Age 13 and older

Hirsch, Rebecca E.. Where Have All the Birds Gone? Nature in Crisis. Lerner/Twenty-First Century, 2022. 119 pages. Age 11 and older

Levy, Debbie. Change Is in the Air: Carbon, Climate, Earth, and Us. Illustrated by Alex Boersma. Bloomsbury, 2024. 36 pages. Ages 5-10

Newman, Patricia. A River's Gifts: The Mighty Elwha River Reborn. Illustrated by Natasha Donovan. Lerner/Millbrook, 2022. 50 pages. Ages 8-12

Nye, Naomi Shihab. Cast Away: Poems for Our Time. Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 2020. 159 pages. Age 9 and older

Thomas, Isabel. Moth: An Evolution Story. Illustrated by Daniel Egneus. Bloomsbury, 2019. 48 pages. Ages 6-9

Walker, Sally M.. Champion: The Comeback Tale of the American Chestnut Tree. Henry Holt, 2018. 136 pages. Age 11 and older

Taking Action: Planet Pioneers

Fiction

Burg, Ann E.. Force of Nature: A Novel of Rachel Carson. Illustrated by Sophie Blackall. Scholastic/Scholastic Press, 2024. 278 pages. Age 11 and older

Forrester, Anna. Bat Count: A Citizen Science Story. Illustrated by Susan Detwiler. Arbordale, 2017. 32 pages. Ages 4-9

Hillery, Tony. Harlem Grown: How One Big Idea Transformed a Neighborhood. Illustrated by Jessie Hartland. Paula Wiseman Books/Simon & Schuster, 2020. 32 pages. Ages 6-9

Joyner, Andrew. Stand Up! Speak Up! A Story Inspired by the Climate Change Revolution. Illustrated by Andrew Joyner. Random House/Schwartz & Wade, 2020. 32 pages. Ages 5-10

Lindstrom, Carole. We Are Water Protectors. Illustrated by Michaela Goade. Roaring Brook, 2020. 40 pages. Ages 6-10

Murray, Alison. The Little Green Hen. Illustrated by Alison Murray. Candlewick, 2019. 32 pages. Ages 3-7

Sylvester, Natalia. Running. Clarion/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020. 328 pages. Age 12 and older

Tenasco, Sunshine. Nibi's Water Song. Illustrated by Chief Lady Bird. Lee & Low, 2021. 32 pages. Ages 4-8

Tsurumi, Andrea. Crab Cake. Illustrated by Andrea Tsurumi. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2019. Ages 3-7

Non-Fiction

Burns, Loree Griffin. Citizen Scientists: Be a Part of Scientific Discovery from Your Own Backyard. Illustrated by Ellen Harasimowicz. Henry Holt, 2012. 80 pages. Ages 6-10

Castaldo, Nancy F.. Back from the Brink: Saving Animals from Extinction. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018. 168 pages. Ages 10-14

Lindstrom, Carole. Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior. Illustrated by Bridget George. Roaring Brook, 2023. 40 pages. Ages 5-9

Paul, Miranda. One Plastic Bag: Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia. Illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon. Millbrook, 2015. 32 pages. Ages 7-10

Rhuday-Perkovich, Olugbemisola. Saving Earth: Climate Change and the Fight for Our Future. Illustrated by Tim Foley. Farrar Straus Giroux/Macmillan, 2022. 200 pages. Age 12 and older

Romer, Jennie. Can I Recycle This? A Kid's Guide to Better Recycling and How to Reduce Single-Use Plastics. Illustrated by Christie Young. Penguin Random House/Viking, 2023. 40 pages. Ages 7-10

Rosenstock, Barb. The Secret Kingdom: Nek Chand, a Changing India, and a Hidden World of Art. Illustrated by Claire A. Nivola. Candlewick, 2018. 32 pages. Ages 6-10

Rusch, Elizabeth. The 21: The True Story of the Youth Who Sued the U.S. Government over Climate Change. Greenwillow/HarperCollins, 2023. 386 pages. Age 13 and older

Schmalzer, Sigrid. Moth and Wasp, Soil and Ocean: Remembering Chinese Scientist Pu Zhelong's Work for Sustainable Farming. Illustrated by Melanie Linden Chan. Tilbury House, 2018. 40 pages. Ages 6-10

Silverman, Erica. The City Sings Green & Other Poems About Welcoming Wildlife. Illustrated by Ginnie Hsu. Clarion/HarperCollins, 2024. 40 pages. Ages 7-10

Stremer, Jessica. Great Carrier Reef. Illustrated by Gordy Wright. Holiday House, 2023. 40 pages. Ages 7-10

Can’t find what you’re looking for? Our Recommended Book Search includes subject access to CCBC-recommended titles based on subject headings created by our staff.