Fire and Flood - plus One Green Thing

Alarmed by the recent spate of wildfires in the West and massive floods throughout Kentucky? We have FIRE AND FLOOD by Eugene Linden on our shelves. This non-fiction work deals with the impact of our failure to confront the ongoing climate crisis. Linden is an award-winning journalist and writer of numerous books on science, nature, and the environment. He subtitles his latest “a people's history of climate change, from 1979 to the present.” In it, he divides the text so as to recount events and missed opportunities from the 1980s, 1990s, and first two decades of this century. The final chapter (“A Narrow Path to a Livable Future”) argues that “stronger measures than far-off dates for carbon neutrality are needed to avert calamity” and advocates for the use of universal climate tariffs that would be imposed if a nation did not meet its emission targets. Linden comments extensively on economic incentives (“business as usual has enormously powerful momentum in our society”) and disincentives for corporate action. Imagine his reaction to a recent – and shocking – New York Times investigation by David Gelles (who reviewed more than 10,000 pages of documents and emails in preparing the article, “How Republicans Are ‘Weaponizing’ Public Office Against Climate Action”). FIRE AND FLOOD received starred reviews from Library Journal (“should be on every person’s bookshelf”) and Publishers Weekly (an “urgent look at the causes and progression of climate change”). An important quote is one from F. Sherwood Rowland (from his speech accepting the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1995) with which Linden opens his book: “What is the use of having developed a science well enough to make predictions, if, in the end, all we’re willing to do is stand around and wait for them to come true?”

If you are seeking to “Discover Your Hidden Power to Help Save the Planet,” Heather White has written ONE GREEN THING as a guide. White is a lawyer who has been involved for decades in the energy and environmental sectors and founded the nonprofit OneGreenThing.org. The website, like her new book, encourages readers to take the Service Superpower Assessment, thereby identifying the particular skill(s) which each individual can contribute. Examples include the adventurer, the influencer, the spark, and the wonk. White talks about follow-up actions (e.g., promoting inter-generational conversations or menu planning to reduce food waste or limiting fast fashion purchases) and offers inspiring cameos on climate activists. Each chapter features a series of takeaways, checklists, and “green touchpoints;” plus, there is a section of notes, an index, and links for more resources provided in an appendix. White’s user-friendly text will likely appeal to students and its many journal prompts could offer an opportunity for introspection in advisories as well as Science, Business, or even Health classes.

NOTE: added links about heat increase from Axios and a Risk Factor Analysis from First Street Foundation