For the concerned young reader eager to understand climate change, this book offers clear explanations and empowering solutions for a sustainable future.
A parent might reach for this book when their older child or pre-teen expresses anxiety or deep curiosity about climate change after hearing about it at school or in the news. This book moves beyond simple explanations, offering a detailed, visual, and ultimately hopeful look at the crisis. It clearly breaks down the science behind global warming and then dedicates the majority of its pages to exploring the large-scale solutions available, from solar and wind power to new technologies. By focusing on human ingenuity and the power of collective action, it reframes the issue from a scary problem to a solvable challenge, empowering young readers to feel like informed and capable agents of change. It's best for a child ready to engage with data, infographics, and complex ideas.
Includes photographs of natural disasters like floods, droughts, and the effects of storms.
Sensitive Topics
The book deals directly with the existential threat of climate change and its consequences, including natural disasters, resource scarcity, and potential human suffering. The approach is scientific and secular. Images of floods, droughts, and storms are included. The resolution presented is deeply hopeful, emphasizing that humanity possesses the knowledge and tools to solve the crisis if we make the choice to act collectively.
Ideal Reader
The ideal reader is a scientifically-minded, curious 10 to 14-year-old who wants to understand the 'why' and 'how' behind climate change. This child is likely feeling concerned about the future and is looking for concrete information and actionable ideas that go beyond 'recycle more.' They are ready for a book that treats them like an intelligent participant in the conversation.
Parent Prep
Parents should preview the opening chapters, which contain images and descriptions of natural disasters that could be unsettling for sensitive children. The book is dense with scientific terminology (e.g., 'parabolic trough,' 'carbon sequestration'), so a parent may want to read alongside their child to help define terms and discuss the concepts presented in the graphs and charts. It benefits from a guided reading experience. A parent might seek this book after their child asks a sophisticated or worried question, such as, "Are the ice caps really melting? What will happen to the polar bears?" or "My teacher said the world is getting warmer, is that true? What can we do?"
Age Experience
A younger reader (10-11) will likely be captivated by the powerful photographs and the 'cool tech' aspect of the solutions, like giant wind turbines and solar panel fields. An older reader (12-14) will be better equipped to engage with the data, understand the policy implications discussed, and appreciate the global economic and political complexities of implementing these solutions.
What Makes It Special
Unlike many children's books on the topic that focus on individual actions, 'Our Choice' stands out by detailing the large-scale technological, political, and economic solutions. Its origin as an adaptation of an adult book gives it a depth and seriousness that respects the intelligence of its young audience. The high-quality visual aids and global perspective make the complex subject matter both engaging and understandable.
Read plot summary
This non-fiction book provides a comprehensive overview of the climate crisis, geared toward a middle-grade audience. The first section establishes the scientific basis for climate change, explaining how human activity, particularly the burning of fossil fuels, has created the problem. The bulk of the book is dedicated to exploring a wide array of potential solutions. It details renewable energy sources like solar, wind, and geothermal, as well as nuclear power, biofuels, and carbon capture technology. The text is heavily supported by high-quality photographs, charts, maps, and infographics to make complex topics accessible.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.
Discussion Prompts
1
The book presents many different ways to create clean energy, like solar, wind, and geothermal. After seeing the examples, which type of energy do you think would work best in our own community, and why?
2
The title of the book is 'Our Choice'. What do you think is the single most important choice the world needs to make to solve this crisis? What is one important choice our family can make?
3
Al Gore uses a lot of photos and graphs to tell the story of climate change. Was there one specific image or chart that surprised you or made you think about the problem in a new way?
4
The author emphasizes that solving the climate crisis will require teamwork between countries. What are some of the biggest challenges you can imagine when trying to get every country in the world to agree on a plan?
