NATURE NINJA SAVES THE NATURAL WORLD

A small green ninja makes nature a little brighter at the backyard level in this action-centered book for nature warriors.

Nature Ninja, a kid ninja shaped vaguely like a human, with a soft round body in the green hue of a cartoon turtle (and no hair) loves nature. Nature Ninja is a kid on a mission: The natural world needs saving! The Amazon Rainforest is being destroyed. There’s a Climate Emergency! The oceans are full of garbage. Nature Ninja wants to solve all of that. “BUT WAIT! I don’t live anywhere near the Amazon Rainforest. I’m actually not even allowed out of my backyard by myself. AND I’m only ONE little ninja,” the child bemoans. Luckily, Nature Ninja’s owl friend, Boobook, has plenty of wisdom, and Nature Ninja launches into several kid-friendly backyard projects that empower kids to change the world one small step at a time. Many books focus too much on the big issues, but Moloney’s three suggestions—planting trees, building a bee hotel, and encouraging parents to let parts of the backyard stay wild—are easy enough to tackle. Sardi’s final illustration, a two-page spread of the whole neighborhood, swarms with details, showing even more possibilities to spark the imagination. While each small project won’t save the world on its own (changes on the national and international level are needed, too), the hope offered here—in the accessible tone, repeated vocabulary, and soft pastel digital illustrations—is a sure-fire inspiration for budding environmentalists.

Nature plus ninjas make a winning combination!