by Rebecca Prince-Ruiz & Joanna Atherfold Finn ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 8, 2020
Despite some quotidian impracticalities, this is sage advice for reducing plastic consumption, a necessity for our survival.
A comprehensive guidebook to anti-plastic activism.
Haunted by the deluge of plastic waste clogging up our ecosystems and killing wildlife, Australian activist Prince-Ruiz took action to stem the rising tide of plastic threatening the health of the planet. As she writes in a book co-authored by Finn, her formative, “penny-drop moment” came in 2011 when she toured a recycling facility and was struck by the sheer amount of waste that overwhelmed the workers. “The heart of the problem is how much we consume,” writes Prince-Ruiz, “and we can’t recycle our way out of it.” Since then, her personal journey through waste and recycling has become a global effort called the Plastic Free July movement, which involves more than 250 million people in 177 countries. The first third of the book is about the author’s unsurprisingly difficult personal task of eradicating all use of plastics for a month and how this gradually snowballed into a worldwide conservationist phenomenon. But Prince-Ruiz also delves into broader issues of eco-sustainability and unpacks our “throwaway society,” epitomized by single-use plastics. As in many books focused on environmental issues, the statistics are staggering, and this one is no different: “Since mass plastic production began just 60 years ago,” writes the author, “8.3 billion metric tonnes of plastic has been produced….As of 2015 around 9 per cent had been recycled, 12 per cent incinerated, and 79 per cent accumulated in landfills or the natural environment.” Of course, the author’s highly organized and meticulous campaign against plastics isn’t for everyone. For example, not all readers can commit to making their own soda crackers from scratch (to avoid using plastic wrap)—though it’s not that difficult to switch to a bamboo toothbrush or pick up your dog’s waste with toilet paper. To her credit, Prince-Ruiz never gets preachy or shrill in this passionate call to action.
Despite some quotidian impracticalities, this is sage advice for reducing plastic consumption, a necessity for our survival.Pub Date: Dec. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-231-19862-2
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Columbia Univ.
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
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by Amy Tan ; illustrated by Amy Tan ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 23, 2024
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.
A charming bird journey with the bestselling author.
In his introduction to Tan’s “nature journal,” David Allen Sibley, the acclaimed ornithologist, nails the spirit of this book: a “collection of delightfully quirky, thoughtful, and personal observations of birds in sketches and words.” For years, Tan has looked out on her California backyard “paradise”—oaks, periwinkle vines, birch, Japanese maple, fuchsia shrubs—observing more than 60 species of birds, and she fashions her findings into delightful and approachable journal excerpts, accompanied by her gorgeous color sketches. As the entries—“a record of my life”—move along, the author becomes more adept at identifying and capturing them with words and pencils. Her first entry is September 16, 2017: Shortly after putting up hummingbird feeders, one of the tiny, delicate creatures landed on her hand and fed. “We have a relationship,” she writes. “I am in love.” By August 2018, her backyard “has become a menagerie of fledglings…all learning to fly.” Day by day, she has continued to learn more about the birds, their activities, and how she should relate to them; she also admits mistakes when they occur. In December 2018, she was excited to observe a Townsend’s Warbler—“Omigod! It’s looking at me. Displeased expression.” Battling pesky squirrels, Tan deployed Hot Pepper Suet to keep them away, and she deterred crows by hanging a fake one upside down. The author also declared war on outdoor cats when she learned they kill more than 1 billion birds per year. In May 2019, she notes that she spends $250 per month on beetle larvae. In June 2019, she confesses “spending more hours a day staring at birds than writing. How can I not?” Her last entry, on December 15, 2022, celebrates when an eating bird pauses, “looks and acknowledges I am there.”
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.Pub Date: April 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780593536131
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2024
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SEEN & HEARD
by Françoise Malby-Anthony with Kate Sidley ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 25, 2023
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.
The third volume in the Elephant Whisperer series.
In this follow-up to An Elephant in My Kitchen, Malby-Anthony continues her loving portrait of the Thula Thula wildlife reserve, which she co-founded in 1998 with her late husband, South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony, who published the first book in the series, The Elephant Whisperer, in 2009. Following his death in 2012, Malby-Anthony sought to honor his legacy by continuing his vision “to create a massive conservancy in Zululand, incorporating our land and other small farms and community land into one great big game park.” At the same time, the elephants gave her “a sense of purpose and direction.” In the Zulu language, thula means quiet, and though the author consistently seeks to provide that calm to her charges, peace and tranquility are not always easy to come by at Thula Thula. In this installment, Malby-Anthony discusses many of the challenges faced by her and her staff, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. These included an aggressive, 2-ton rhino named Thabo; the profound loss felt by all upon the death of their elephant matriarch, Frankie; difficulty obtaining permits and the related risk of having to relocate or cull some of their animals; the fear of looting and fire due to civil unrest in the region; and the ongoing and potentially deadly struggles with poachers. Throughout, the author also shares many warm, lighthearted moments, demonstrating the deep bond felt among the humans and animals at the reserve and the powerful effects of the kindness of strangers. “We are all working in unity for the greater good, for the betterment of Thula Thula and all our wildlife….We are humbled by the generosity and love, both from our guests and friends, and from strangers all around the world,” writes the author. “People’s open-hearted support kept us alive in the darkest times.”
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781250284259
Page Count: 320
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
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