The Next Generation's Guide to Protecting the Climate and Saving Our Future
January 1, 2023
What can young people do to protect the climate and safeguard their futures? Swedish scholar Malm's provocative 2021 book, How to Blow Up a Pipeline, is adapted here for a teen audience. Four hefty chapters chart a progressive path for a young would-be environmental activist, with information presented through a global lens. "The Problem With Business-as-Usual" both explains the current sad situation and begins the argument for an activism that goes beyond peaceful protests. "Learning From Past Struggles" looks at previous social movements as possible templates for action. These include Gandhi and anti-colonialism, Iran in the 1970s, and the U.S. civil rights movement. "Breaking the Spell" unpacks the moral implications and effectiveness of tactics like pipeline demolition and other acts of sabotage, such as deflating the tires of SUVs, a strategy espoused by the Tyre Extinguishers, a group founded in the U.K. Finally, "Fighting Despair" makes a strong and cogent case for hope despite the prevalent dire predictions about climate. Sidebars peppered throughout highlight individual components of the movement, like the youth-led group Fridays for Future founded by Greta Thunberg in 2018 and the Standing Rock protests. There are also many compelling black-and-white photographs, and a series of discussion questions concludes each chapter. All these features increase accessibility for a younger readership, though many of the author's views are controversial. A persuasive, if provocative, polemic tackling an important subject. (organizations and resources, writing prompts and discussion questions, image credits) (Nonfiction. 13-18)
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January 1, 2023
Gr 10 Up-A YA adaptation of a controversial missive on climate activism that encourages drastic measures to save the planet's-and this generation's-future. It focuses on why past movements haven't been sufficient to change the tide in environmental justice; nonviolence and civil disobedience are just not enough. The author explains that many movements became successful once they began employing practices like property violence, riots, and self-defense. These include suffragettes Emmeline Pankurst and her daughters, civil rights activists SNCC, and anti-apartheid Spear of the Nation. Recent movements that readers will be familiar with include the Dakota Access Pipeline at Standing Rock and the Arab Spring. Though the structure and information is the same as the original, this edition attempts to give substantial background to make its arguments more accessible to young people. Frequent inserts define core concepts and are set off by gray boxes. Terms include divestment and fossil capital. They sometimes take up more than two pages. However, the definitions are important, because otherwise, young readers will find this difficult to digest. The work is most engaging when presenting past activist movements that centered around the work of young people and marginalized communities. Black-and-white photos, discussion questions, and suggestions for further reading are also featured. VERDICT A general purchase for curricular tie-in as needed.-Shelley M. Diaz
Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
February 1, 2023
Grades 10-12 In a very extreme sense, this is a how-to manual on becoming a climate activist. A young adult adaptation of Malm's adult title How to Blow Up a Pipeline (2021), this passionate offering seemingly urges eco-warriors to forgo established passive aggressive, pacifist tactics in favor of full-on attacks. Neither title actually offers directions on how to build bombs, but the intensity and urgency of the need for meaningful climate action comes through loud and clear. There are discussions concerning the effectiveness of various protest tactics and strategies (including sabotage, violence, and terrorism) and descriptions of massive, global climate-action social movements, including how they started and continue to build momentum. There are comparisons between climate activism and other social struggles: suffrage, civil rights, apartheid, the Arab Spring. Chapters end with discussion questions; back matter includes writing prompts and group-discussion questions, plus suggestions for further research (but no notes or references). This book has two goals: to provoke strong reactions and to create committed activists. Readers will find much to think about.
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