SAVE OUR FOREST!

When the impact of climate change hits home, students organize and fight back in this translated title from Norway.

Bao, who first appeared in Dåsnes’ debut, the Stonewall Award–winning Cross My Heart and Never Lie (2023), is back with her own story. The three best friends, Bao, Tuva, and Linnéa, along with other students, often play in the woods adjacent to their school. But increased rainfall is changing the landscape of their bog. As Bao soon learns, these changes are also driving the school leadership to make plans for a larger parking lot, which would eliminate half the forest. As student council president and one of the most passionate advocates for the bog, Bao becomes frustrated with the inaction of the adults around her and the perceived indifference of her friends and classmates. But successful social movements require cooperation and creativity, and before long, she and her friends are building an unlikely coalition to make real change. While this story does stand alone, and Bao’s journey feels effective and true to character, readers will benefit from the context provided in the first book, which will help them better appreciate the characters’ growth. The illustrations effectively incorporate texting, social media, and the friends’ reports to create an appealing, well-paced narrative, and the moody, fluid color palette sets the tone perfectly. Bao is cued Vietnamese Norwegian; the rest of the cast appears racially diverse.

A powerful blueprint for budding activists.