Why Are the Ice Caps Melting?: The Dangers of Global Warming (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)

The climate is changing, sea levels are rising and the earth may be in trouble. If this sounds scary to you, you're not alone: many scientists are also worried about global warming. This book provides a gentle, but no-nonsense introduction to global warming for elementary school students. Concepts

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like the greenhouse effect and melting ice caps are explained clearly through simple but accurate language and appealing diagrams and illustrations. The argument that global warming may be a natural process is also presented and considered, though the author urges readers to err on the side of reducing carbon emissions regardless. The information is presented in an urgent, but not frightening manner, encouraging kids to do their part by recycling, writing letters and riding bicycles. I would have appreciated more information about larger scale efforts that adults are making to combat the situation, too -- after all, there is only so much one second grader can be expected to do! Also, a few of the solutions suggested seem dubious. On one page, for example, the text reads, "We can buy foods that aren't prepackaged, because all those paper packages are made from trees." The illustration shows a little boy helping his father bag up oranges at the grocery store while a snow storm rages outside. Even without packaging, transporting these fruits from thousands of miles south is hardly environmentally friendly. Nevertheless, this book provides a good, readable introduction to a very important and timely topic. I would recommend it for an elementary school audience.

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