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SJPL Picks: Green Reads (~Grades 3-7)

It ain't easy being green. Green like Greta Thunberg, that is, and the kids in these books would certainly agree. From climate change to evil corporations to animals on the brink of extinction, these characters are taking action, no matter how great the task before them. If your inner eco-warrior needs a boost, grab a Green Read and get inspired. This selection of novels are all "Green Reads", meaning that the relationship between humankind and nature plays a starring role, and all are for children in roughly grades 3-7. Genre, grade level/interest approximation, and/or AR level in notes as available. Selected and curated by SJPL Librarians.

San José Public Library

33 items

  • A Cloud Called Bhura

    Climate Champions to the Rescue

    Vachharajani, Bijal,
    Grades 4-6. Realistic fiction. "Amni wakes up one morning to find the sky taken over by a huge brown cloud. Even as she and her friends start to discover more, their city of Mumbai starts reeling from the changes the cloud brings to the…
    BookAshland, OR : Blackstone Publishing, 2024. — J PB FICTION Vachhara
  • Grades 3-5. Realistic fiction. "When her video about protecting their beloved state animal goes viral, 12-year-old anxiety-ridden aspiring filmmaker Olive Blackwood bands together with unexpected new friends to create a documentary that…
    BookNew York : Aladdin, 2024. — J FICTION Thomas
  • Grades 3-6. Realistic fiction. "The one place Sammie feels she belongs, away from school bullies and busy parents, is at the abandoned lot down the road, where she can immerse herself in studying the abundant plants and animals that live…
    BookSomerville : Walker Books USA, 2024. — J FICTION Moreira
  • Grades 4-7. Realistic fiction. "Sent to spend the summer with her uncle, Holly knows better than to get attached to anyone or anything in his small Vermont town until she shocks herself by stepping into a fight to protect the trees — and…
    BookNew York, NY : Quill Tree Books, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, 2024. — J FICTION Griffith
  • Force of Nature

    a Novel of Rachel Carson

    Burg, Ann E.,
    Grades 3-7. Biographical fiction, Novels in verse. "A beautiful and hopeful story of how a young impassioned naturalist grows up to change the world. For everyone who cares about our fragile planet. Rachel was a girl who loved science and…
    BookNew York : Scholastic Press, 2024. — J FICTION Burg
  • Grades 3-7. Adventure stories. "Jake Rizzi is about to spend the summer at his great-aunt's cabin in the mossy, sodden Oregon backwoods. His parents seem to need a break from him and his ADHD. He tries not to take it personally, but isn't…
    BookNew York : BloomsburyChildren's Books, 2023. — J FICTION Bramucci
  • Team Trash

    a Time Traveler's Guide to Sustainability

    Wheeler, Kate,
    Grades 3-6. Graphic novels. "Sent back in time, an unlikely duo -- environmentalist Charlie and artist Oliver -- must work as a team to gather recycling data through the ages if they want to return to the present day, where they can use…
    BookNew York : Holiday House, [2023] — J 363.728 Wheeler
  • Greenwild

    the World Behind the Door

    Thomson, Pari,
    Grades 4-7. Fantasy fiction. "Eleven-year-old Daisy Thistledown is on the run. Her mother has been keeping big, glittering secrets, and now she has vanished. Daisy knows it’s up to her to find Ma―but someone is hunting her across London.…
    BookNew York : Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2023. — J FICTION Thomson
  • Grades 3-5. Adventure stories. "When their scientist mom who works to save endangered species is kidnapped during a research trip to the Amazon rainforest, Ring and Asia Wilde must put their survival skills to good use as they navigate the…
    BookAnn Arbor, MI : Sleeping Bear Press, [2023] — J FICTION Smith
  • Grades 3-8. Realistic fiction. Graphic novel. "Told in alternating voices, twelve-year-old Sami, from a village along the Bay of Bengal, and fourteen-year-old Yuki, from Northern Canada, strive to protect their homes from the encroaching…
    BookNaperville, Illinois : Sourcebooks Young Readers, 2023. — J FICTION Global
  • Grades 5+. Graphic novel. "Using a mix of livestreams, spray paint and bungee cords, the Green Girls--Emma, Lily and Fadila--set out to make a difference and save the planet from environmental hazards, hoping to inspire their followers to…
    BookMinneapolis : Graphic Universe, [2023] — J FICTION GREEN GIRLS
  • Grades 3-6. Mysteries. "Twelve-year-olds Barana and Abby come together to solve a sea turtle egg poaching mystery plaguing Barana's Honduran coastal village, and learn the true meaning of friendship, courage, and community along the way."…
    BookNew York : Alfred A. Knopf, [2023] — J FICTION Fitzgera
  • Grades 3-7/AR 5.9. Fantasy. "To save her father, 12-year-old Henna, a gifted gardener, attends St. Basil's Conservatory, a botanical boarding school rumored to house a legendary, long-extinct plant with miraculous healing powers, and while…
    BookSomerville, Massachusetts : Candlewick Press, 2023. — J FICTION Dairman
  • Grades 4-7/AR 4.5. Adventure stories. "When three children endure separate climate change disasters--a wildfire in the California woods, a close encounter with a hungry polar bear in Canada, and a massive hurricane in Florida--they emerge…
    BookNew York : Scholastic Press, 2022. — J FICTION Gratz
  • Grades 4-7/AR 4.5. Realistic fiction. "When her coastal Louisiana town of Boutin is hit by the worst flood in a century, 13-year-old Jillian Robichaux, determined not to lose the only home she's ever known, searches for a way to keep…
    BookNew York : Roaring Brook Press, 2022. — J FICTION Guillory
  • Grades 4-7. Realistic fiction. "When her eyes are opened to numerous things she never noticed about her small suburban town, Mary Kate Murphy joins a special science pilot program focused on climate change and rallies her friends to bring…
    BookNew York : G. P. Putnam's Sons, 2022. — J FICTION Fireston
  • Grades 4-6. Science fiction. "To prove that she belongs in a place where only the smartest and most useful are welcomed, 12-year-old Yolanda learns that her survival rests on the rediscovery of a long-extinct beehive that could be the…
    BookNew York, NY : Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2022] — J FICTION Cartaya
  • Grades 4-7. Historical fiction, Adventure stories. "Staying at a health resort in the wilds of Gilded Age South Florida due to his asthma, 12-year-old budding naturalist Algie stumbles upon a brand-new species that he must protect from a…
    BookNew York : Union Square Kids, [2022] — J FICTION SanMigue
  • Grades 4-6/AR 4.7. Realistic fiction. "When his relationship with his best friend is jeopardized by an unwelcome surprise, nature-loving Peter realizes he has as much to discover about himself as he does about the world around him." --…
    BookNew York, NY : Quill Tree Books, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, [2022] — J FICTION Griffith
  • Saving Sorya

    Chang and the Sun Bear

    Nguyen, Trang, 1990-
    Grades 3-7. Autobiographical comics, Graphic novel. "After hard work and determination, 12-year-old Chang is finally accepted as a rescue center volunteer and is faced with her toughest challenge yet: returning the sun bear she raised from…
    BookNew York : Dial Books for Young Readers, [2021] — J FICTION Saving