Chances are, your child has a few questions about global warming and climate in general. Maybe there are things you’re wondering, too. For both of you, “50 Climate Questions” by Peter Christie has answers.
The book teaches children about global warming and climate change, starting with the Earth’s beginning, when it was covered with a blanket of carbon dioxide that kept things awfully warm.
That didn’t last, of course: the weather wobbled a lot, from “big chills” to tropical temperatures. Samples drilled from Chinese rocks prove that when the dinosaurs lived, the atmosphere heated the planet so much that if you’d taken a dip in the ocean, it might have felt like a hot tub.
The dinos had to adapt or die when that happened. Some of them stayed in warm places like all other reptiles, while others escaped to the South Pole or Australia. Some grew bigger, while others changed in other ways. But 65 million years ago, the dinosaurs were wiped out forever, which made way for mammals.
Climate caused forests to turn into grasslands, which made our ancestors start walking upright, which changed their diet and forced them to migrate to other continents. Civilizations were created and destroyed and history was changed by temperatures.
By melting science and history together, Christie helps readers make sense of this important world issue and why climate change has actually been a good thing in the past. Christie also includes plenty of trivia, surprising facts, some experiments, and a quiz or two to get young brains thinking, while illustrations by Ross Kinnaird will keep them laughing.
Meant for kids ages 8 to 13, I think that a good number of adults will learn a thing or two from “50 Climate Questions” (Annick Press). If you’re sweltering, freezing, or watching the skies this summer, this is going to be a hot book for you.
“50 Climate Questions,” by Peter Christie [118 pages, 2012, $14.95].
Terri Schlichenmeyer has been reading since she was 3 years old, and she never goes anywhere without a book. She lives on a hill with two dogs and 12,000 books.
