Emily, 10 Year Old Champion: Nonfiction Series

Author/photographer Cathleen Burnham is back with Book Four in the WAKA series of nonfiction picture books featuring young environmental activists. EMILY, 10 Year Old Champion of Rainforest Animals in Need is another story of young people making a difference.

Crickhollow Books, 2018

There is no doubt that young readers (or readers of any age) will be drawn to the cover image. Sloths are currently the IT animals of social media, and this baby sloth, hugging a stuffed animal and nestled in the arms of a young girl, is downright irresistible.

This is the fourth book in the WAKA series (World Association of Kids and Animals). All are authored by and feature photographs by Cathleen Burnham. Emily, a ten year old girl living in Costa Rica, volunteers for a local agency, Kids Saving the Rainforest. In this case Emily has written and presented a play for the public and joined a group saving titi monkeys (squirrel monkeys) by building overhead rope routes for the troops of monkeys who travel freely throughout the village and the surrounding forest. Without those passages and adaptations, the monkeys would be killed crossing streets with heavy auto traffic or crossing on electric wiring overhead. 
Photos of Emily include the cover above, collecting suitable leaves for animals in the sanctuary, and taking an abandoned baby sloth for a "walk" through the forest to sample edible leaves and develop survival skills for later release. 
The author and publisher (Crickhollow Books) have developed a format and narrative non-fiction style that is informative and inspiring, inviting readers to return again and again. The narrative and back page make it clear, by example and without preaching, that kids have the capacity to positively impact their environments and improve the lives of animals who share those spaces with humans. The photo captions, sidebars, specific events, and irresistible animals make the books prime examples of nonfiction content, offering ideal material for framing questions, summarizing, doing further research, and exploring local possibilities for kid-activist engagement.

You can read about the story-behind-the-story of how these books came about from the documentary photographer/author HERE.

I've shared my thoughts about the previous titles in prior posts.
Book One- DOYLI to the RESCUE (Here), 
Book Two- TORTUGA SQUAD (HERE), and 
Book Three- TONY and His ELEPHANTS (HERE)

This is a series that merits everyone's attention and should be on library and classroom shelves. Each title, including this latest, offers entertainment and information across many ages and will quickly become reader-favorites. 

Check out the books and related projects at WAKABooks.org. 
You can also explore the Costa Rican nonprofit organization that helps Emily and other kids become empowered to help the environment and animals: Kids Saving the Rainforest.  

I reviewed a publisher's copy and would like to share it. You can enter a giveaway by adding a comment about this or earlier WAKA/Burnham books in the series. Also,  in a separate comment, share some ways you might use this book with kids.  Each person commenting (from USA or Canada) will be entered in a random giveaway of a copy of the latest book, EMILY. Deadline for comments is Friday, October 5 at midnight, CDT. If your name is chose I'll contact you via email, and the winner's name will be  added to this post after the drawing. 

And the winner of the giveaway is ANNETTE! Thanks for reading and sharing the news about this great new book for kid-activists!

Earth Day Activists: Tony and his Elephants- a WAKA Picture Book

Crick hollow Books, 2017

TONY AND HIS ELEPHANTS is the third in a series of photo-documentary releases from journalist/author Cathleen Burnham. Her award-winning series features young people taking actions to rescue and protect endangered wild animals.

In this latest recent release, Tony's story unfolds in Thailand near the Mekong River. In this case young Tony's family actively rescues and protects elephants from inappropriate captivity, raising them and training them in a natural, protected jungle settling, free of chains. Humane techniques and sharing intimate daily life with the elephants (including sleeping quarters!)  lead to genuine partnerships and mutual respect.
Eight-year-old Tony is assigned the responsibility for two young elephants, launching him on his first steps to becoming a mahout, as his father and grandfather before him. He has been given two recently rescued elephants young Nam Cho and Baby Pumpuii, who still requires milk and is bottle-fed. The book details his responsibilities; include training, and reveals the habits, needs, temperament, and threats in lives of elephants. When fire presents an immediate danger to Tony’s and the other elephants, he must take charge while his parents are away fighting the fires. He handles the challenge bravely and successfully. 

The astonishing aspect of these books is that photographer-author Burnham has communicated her personal encounters and interactions with the young people and their animals so effectively and compellingly.

This book would pair well with 2013 Newbery-Winner, The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate. In it, a baby elephant arrives in a "strip mall zoo" in the United States, and the inner lives of the animals are explored through fiction. In Tony's story readers will find outlets for their deep empathy and concern, recognizing ways that young people and their families are working to prevent such abuse.

Beyond the excitement of  Tony’s story, there’s the appeal of colorful photography, world travels, empowered young people, and authentic adventures. Burnham’s deft use of photo captions, labeled maps with keys, relevant cultural practices, and back matter make this and the other series books ideal content for STEM resources. Readers are invited to explore the author's nonprofit organization, www.WAKABooks.org,where they can discover ways of working together for the animals of the Earth, green living, and suggestions for stewardship of the land that can be carried out in their own communities.

Saving the Planet: One Kid at a Time

So, EARTH DAY has come and gone. Did you participate in some way? Don't think of this message as "too late" or overdue.  If for any reason you feel you missed out, take a minute to consider this from their website, earthday.org:

"The first Earth Day on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans 

from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching 

the modern environmental movement."

Crickhollow Books, 2015

The point is, designating a particular day to serve in some way or just to think about the importance of protecting and preserving every aspect of this remarkable planet that we all call home misses the mission. The actual point of EARTH DAY is to raise awareness, activate change, and encourage every resident of our planet to "wake up and save the roses", so to speak.
Every day.
Day after day.
Year after year. 

I wrote about the first in a series of nonfiction photojournalism picture books by Cathleen Burnham in a previous post. 
DOYLI TO THE RESCUE: SAVING BABY MONKEYS IN THE AMAZON, is the first in the series and documents the preteen island girl who helps rescue, rehabilitate and restore baby monkeys. The efforts of Doyli and her family at home and in the marketplace save baby primates from being sold as food or pets or finding other unknown and illegal fates. 

Crickhollow Books, 2016

In the second book of the series an entire island village of young people comprise the self-named TORTUGA SQUAD: Kids Saving Sea Turtles in Costa Rica. Their tiny island on the Caribbean coast is the instinctive nesting site for endangered sea turtles, leatherbacks. 

During nesting season the massive mother turtles swim ashore, crawl up onto the sand beaches, dig a hole and desposit 80-100 soft-shelled eggs, using their flipper legs to bury the eggs before returning to sea. From that point forward their survival has no protection from nature.
Dogs could dig up and eat the eggs, sea birds and other animals could snatch and eat them on their way to the sea after hatching. Once in the water they need to make it through rough waves and over the shallow reef to reach the deeper waters where they can hide among sea plants before continuing to the open ocean.

Despite the odds nature has stacked against them, the species has survived for millennia. Then the most fearful predators of all created even greater dangers, threatening them with extinction. Humans flip the enormous mothers onto their backs, leaving them helpless and able to be eaten or sold for food in the marketplace. Poachers  gather the eggs to eat or sell. Laws against this are generally ignored, and the species is facing extinction.

Until... kids on the island learned about what was happening and stepped up to help. Photojournalist Burnham's  story and images reveal the details of how these island kids have organized themselves into a rescue and protection squad, offering the tortuga (turtles) their best chance at survival.

Burnham considers her books "seed stories", planting ideas and confidence in young readers that they have the power to make significant and planet-changing differences in their own neighborhoods. Her organization, WAKA!, is the World Association of Kids and Animals. Her website blog posts about her recent and current world travels, study guides for the books, and contact information for those with questions and stories to share. 

This recent series and these engaged, enthusiastic young people are the epitome of the mission of EARTH DAY Organization. Yes, the recent international PARIS CLIMATE ACCORDS and the many laws passed by individual nations are necessary and important changes, too, and we celebrate these accomplishments. The Tortuga Squad's awareness of the protective laws give them standing in the community for their efforts within the community. But without their on-the-ground vigilance makes the difference in the survival of a species. 

With compelling text, remarkable photography, picture captions and scientific diagrams, this nonfiction picture book offers readers an ideal opportunity. Yes, they can read in the content areas of science and social studies and engage with information text. But in this case  the contents reflect lives in many ways similar to their own, but from half a world away.

How cool is that? 
Share this book with a young reader and find out for yourselves.
And pick one habit you can change, starting today. 
That might just be finding and sharing books like these with young readers.

Jane Goodall and Doyli: Making Dreams Come True

Earlier this spring I wrote about a young girl who is devoting herself to a project of the heart. 

Crick hollow Books, 2015

DOYLI TO THE RESCUE: Saving Baby Monkeys in the Amazon by Cathleen Burnham is the first of a series of nonfiction photo profiles of young people who are making a difference in the world through individual actions. 
Hers is an appealing story, and one that could inspire young readers to identify and solve problems in their own neighborhoods or around the world. 

Little, Brown Books for young Readers

Perhaps the best known example of a child-activist-turned-adult-icon is Jane Goodall. There are any number of books about her life and commitment to chimpanzees and other primates. Of the many picture books about her, Patrick McDonnell's 2011 biography, Me...Jane is my personal favorite. 
It allows young readers (and those of us no longer young) to recognize the importance of fostering the interests of a young child. 
The apparent "obsession" of a child with dinosaurs, chimpanzees, frogs, or planets is so much more significant than providing a "wow" moment on a talk-show segment or FaceBook video. It may be the first steps in a lifetime of groundbreaking achievements.

National Geographic Kids, 2015

A recent release by National Geographic Kids has elevated McDonnell's introductory approach to Goodall's biography to new heights. UNTAMED: The Wild Life of Jane Goodall by Anita Silvey is a fascinating and accessible read. Silvey's text reads as compellingly as fiction, taking us inside the experiences of a young girl who was so fascinated by animal observation that she would disappear for hours to observe and report what she had learned from nature. The narrative of her life is well-researched and enriched by quotations, artifacts, and anecdotes.
The simplest experiences (reading Doctor Doolittle, her neighbor-dog Rusty, and a nature club she created as a child) each served as one of those child-like steps toward her eventual life path. 
Goodall writes the forward to this book and urges young people around the world to participate in her Roots and Shoots program, engaging with conservation NOW in whatever region of the world they might live. 

The last third of this remarkable book is titled FIELD NOTES: Resources and More. It includes information about chimpanzees, including the Gombe family of chimps, a timeline of Jane's life and accomplishments, maps, extensive resources, chapter notes, and an index. The author's note describes the extensive resources and documentation that make this a definitive biography.

One of the first quotations to appear in this book is not from Jane but from her mother, Vanne Morris-Goodall:
"If you really want something, and you really work hard, and you take advantage of opportunities, and above all if you never give up, you will find a way."

Let's do what we can to help every child know that about themselves. A good place to start is by sharing books like these that portray real young people pursuing their dreams and making a real difference in the world.