A review of The Minpins by Roald Dahl.. and we have a winner!

Kimbooktu's contest that is in partnership with Eco-Libris has a first winner!

The reader Sulz wrote a review on the great book The Minpins by Roald Dahl and receives the first prize on the contest - 5 of her books will be balanced out by planting 5 new trees! She will also receive 5 Eco-Libris stickers to put on the sleeves of these books.

So, here's Sulz review:

The book in one sentence: Mollycoddled Little Billy listens to the Devil's whisper and naughtily enters the Forest of Sin against his mother's warnings!

Who would you recommend it to: Little boys and girls with a taste for adventure.

OK bits: The Minpins and their houses.

Boring bits: The ending where Little Billy ventures into mysterious places high up in the sky.

Random review quote: 'Roald Dahl's last picture book is as mind-bogglingly wonderful as all the others. This is classic Dahl: the charming stories with that disquieting edge of fear… Patrick Benson's illustrations are vibrant and so full of life that there is water splashing off the page and leaves swirling among the trees yet there's a harmonious gentleness evident too. A superb book' — Books for Keeps

Verdict: The review quote is right in a way. It is a typical Dahl children story, but not quite as classic as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or The BFG. That said, it still makes a pretty good bedtime story and the illustration is a nice change from the usual Quentin Blake ones. (Not that Quentin Blake's illustrations are boring, they're wonderful!)

Why this book is green: As the book cover above shows, The Minpins is a very 'green' book. The premise of the story is very nature-based, and this is reflected in both the story and illustrations. It's a book based on nature that will interest children and nurture the spirit of environmental friendliness without being boring! thanks!

Thank you Sulz for a great review!

If you are inspired by Sulz and want to send a review of your own, please send it to: k_heijdenrijk [at] hotmail [dot] com. If you win, Eco-Libris will balance out five of your books, you will receive 5 stickers and we'll also post your recommendation right here on our blog.

Yours,

Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

Readers get online access to 1.5 million books

Good news from The Million Book Project - This international academic venture has just has completed the digitization of more than 1.5 million books, which are now available online.

PhysOrg.com reported yesterday that "For the first time since the project was initiated in 2002, all of the books, which range from Mark Twain’s “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” to “The Analects of Confucius,” are available through a single Web portal of the Universal Library (www.ulib.org), said Gloriana St. Clair, Carnegie Mellon’s dean of libraries. "

Prof. Raj Reddy, of the department of computer science and robotics at Carnegie Mellon added that “this project brings us closer to the ideal of the Universal Library: making all published works available to anyone, anytime, in any language. The economic barriers to the distribution of knowledge are falling.”

Most of the books can not be read free of charge yet. Currently about half of the current collection remains under copyright, and until the permission of the copyright holders can be documented, or copyright laws are amended, only 10 percent or less of those books can be accessed at no cost. Still there's something to look for - at least half of its books are out of copyright, or were digitized with the permission of the copyright holders, so the complete texts are or eventually will be available free.

Though Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Amazon and the Internet Archive all have launched major book digitization projects, the Million Book Project represents the world’s largest, university-based digital library of freely accessible books. When asked how the Million Book Project fits in with the other book scanning projects, Dr. Michael Shamos, a Carnegie Mellon computer science professor who is the project's director, called those projects "fellow travelers."

These are great news for book lovers, for people who support the distribution of knowledge to all and of course for the environment. I hope the digitalization and the easy accessibility of so many books will mean eventually that less trees will be cut down.

So, check it out and look for this great source of unique books at http://www.ulib.org/index.html. And if you choose to print a book at home, please don't forget to print it on recycled paper..

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

When Santa Turned Green

I received an email from our reader, Karen Leever who told me about a new green book for kids 'When Santa Turned Green', written by her friend Vickie Perla.

This book looks really great, especially for this time of the year, and I am happy to share with you Karen's review of the book:

When Santa Turned Green is the illustrated story of Santa Claus's quest to turn all the world's children "green"—after he discovers that his home, the North Pole, is melting.

Penned by award-winning copywriter (and mom) Victoria Perla, and illustrated by Mirna Kantarevic, When Santa Turned Green is a perfect melding of fairy-tale and fact. This charmingly written, beautifully rendered tale inspires children at a time when their imaginations and confidence in their ability to change the world are truly boundless.

"Children have a relationship with Santa unlike any other; they would listen and respond if they knew he was in need," says Perla. When Santa Turned Green is printed in the U.S. with soy-based inks on 100% recycled paper. One dollar from the sale of each book will be donated to charitable organizations dedicated to preserving and protecting the environment. www.mygreensanta.com

We even received a quote from Al Gore: "When Santa Turned Green helps even the youngest child grasp the importance of caring for our planet and solving the climate crisis." -- Al Gore.

Thank you Karen for letting us know on this book. It sounds like a green book kids would love to read, and I hope many children (and parents) will read it and be inspired of its green spirit!

You can find more details on the book on its website, where you can also order the book, and on the author's blog.

Yours,

Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

The forest of Robin Hood needs help

Sherwood Forest has a fascinating history and is the legendary home of Robin Hood. It's also in trouble.

AP reported earlier this month that the core of the forest, once covered about 100,000 acres, is currently about 450 acres.

Sherwood Forest is a Living Landmark and is one of the most famous forests in the world. It’s located at the heart of the UK between the major conurbations of Nottingham and Sheffield. It's association with the legend of Robin Hood, the legendary 13th century bandit who supposedly hid there from his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham, in between stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.

According to the article, park rangers working say the collection of ancient oaks in the forest is one of the greatest in Europe. But they see an increase in the trees' rate of decline. Over the centuries, the forest was carved up for farms, mines, towns and logging. Sherwood timber built medieval ships and even part of London's St. Paul's Cathedral.

Currently 997 ancient oaks stand on the 450 acres known as the "beating heart of the forest." 450 of them are still living, and of those, 250 are good shape, while the other 200 are particularly vulnerable. The remainder are standing deadwood, still valuable to the forest because of the life they support.

Izi Banton, the forest's chief ranger, explains in the article that "the oaks and wildlife will become more vulnerable as long as they remain isolated from the rest of the forest. The rescue plan would focus on planting 250,000 trees to knit the parts of the forest back together."

Hopes are high that Sherwood Forest will win the grant from BIG Lottery, a branch of the National Lottery that gives out money to good causes. The lottery committee has shortlisted Sherwood and four other projects to vie for the $100 million.

The supporters of the forest believes it has enormous potential and Big Lottery Fund investment in this unique national asset could realise the long-standing vision for this project 'Sherwood: The Living Legend' which is:

To transform Sherwood Forest into a world-class sustainable destination and inspirational community resource, within which current and future generations can live, learn, play and prosper.

I hope they will win the grant and will be able to achieve their vision and save this beautiful legendry forest.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

The Armchair Environmentalist - Holiday green gift guide for book lovers: part 6

The holiday season started already (next holiday on my list: Hanukah!), and I hope it's going to be great and green to all of you. I am happy to present you with part 6 of Eco-Libris blog's holiday green gift guide, the guide that will help you find the best green books to give as gifts this holiday season.

Today we bring you a recommendation of Megan Kuhlmann of greenissexy.org on a great green book that you can carry with you everywhere you go.

Megan lives and works in Los Angeles, California. When she’s not unplugging her unused appliances or extolling the virtues of chemical-free cleansers, Megan can often be found handing out recyclable toothbrushes and explaining cold-water washing to fellow folders at the Laundromat. In addition to pollution, Megan also dislikes olives, puns, and sleeping in socks. Alternately, Megan loves tree-huggers, karaoke, and a well-crafted sentence.

Megan Kuhlmann's recommendation for this holiday's gift is:

The Armchair Environmentalist

Author: Karen Christensen

Publisher: M Q Publications

Published in: 2004

What it is about: The Armchair Environmentalist is “a three minute-a-day action plan to save the world.” It focuses on what individuals can do to reduce their use of energy and water and create a healthier environment at home and at work.

The Armchair Environmentalist is an easy read and chocked full of cute pictures and graphics. Printed on 100% recycled paper, this little book can fit easily into a briefcase or handbag, making it that much easier to take the info "to go".

A year or so ago, my friend Rachel loaned me her copy of this sweet little book and I instantly loved it. Discussing The Armchair Environmentalist and armchair environmentalism in general led us to launch greenissexy.org. The idea that in just a few minutes a day one person can make lots of tiny choices that positively impact the environment is what our site this book are all about.

Why it's a great gift: Green is sexy! Being eco-conscious is so popular these days, but a lot of people still think that being green means wearing hemp shoes, driving a hybrid and laying bamboo floors.

The Armchair Environmentalist is an entertaining, colorful way to show friends and family that being green is more about unplugging your cell phone charger and washing your clothes in cold water than installing a wind turbine in your backyard. This cheeky, chubby book makes a great stocking stuffer and is a fabulous intro-to-eco primer.

Thank you Megan for a great recommendation!

And just a reminder, here are the other recommendations we had so far on our guide:

Part 1 - The Man who Planted Trees by Jean Giono
Part 2 - Home Work : Handbuilt Shelter by Lloyd Kahn
Part 3 - The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
Part 4 - The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle
Part 5 - Deep Economy by Bill McKibben

The whole guide can be found here - http://www.ecolibris.net/holiday_guide.asp.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

Now you can find on our website two special offers for the holidays - holiday greeting cards and holiday certificate gifts.

A Convenient Truth

Like many of us, Jack Guest also watched Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth". Unlike many others, he was inspired by the movie to do a film of its own - "A convenient Truth", a film about the world getting better.

In 2006 Jack invested his life savings and took a film crew to Sweden (by boat), a country aiming to break its dependency on oil by 2020. There he met a full range of people, from politicians and scientists, to families and entrepreneurs.

In December of the same year Jack continued his journey, crossing the Atlantic by cargo ship in search of love, a low carbon footprint, and time to enjoy the ride. Things didn’t go exactly according to plan...

Here's how Global Cool described the film:

A Convenient Truth in its entirety is a road movie, made up of three distinct but at the same time inter-related journeys. The first is of discovery, that greener living is not the daydream of a few, but is in fact reality for the people of Sweden; the second is of a hopeless romantic on a cargo ship to Canada, buoyed on by his revived love for an ex and equally heartfelt desire to prove long-haul does not necessarily mean an aisle seat and deep vein thrombosis; and the third is of realisation, that managing life, love and the planet is a big ask, even for a multi-talented 25 year-old.

Jack Guest says in his website that "A Convenient Truth’s positive message is that things can get better and that change does not have to mean sacrifice." Amen!

You can watch now the trailer (see below) and there's also the preview.

Bigger than a trailer, richer than a making of, and better than a long wait, the feature length preview film is just that: it’s a film, it’s feature length (95 minutes), and it’s a preview of the full film. Split into five parts, between 5 and 30 minutes each. A part costs about $0.75 (or £1) and you get 200 credits to watch one part for free.

All proceeds will go towards finishing the full film and releasing in early 2008.

I haven't seen the preview yet, but I'm impressed with Jack Guest's enthusiasm and commitment, and I'm also a big fan of road movies, especially green ones, so I hope "An Convenient Truth" will become a blockbuster and invite all of you to watch it.




Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!

The Cloud, The Clam, The Comet and Jeba, The Hound of Renown

I am very happy to hear from our readers, especially when it's about a book they wrote that is printed on recycled paper.

This is also an opportunity for me to learn on new interesting books, like the one I am happy to present today - 'The Cloud, The Clam, The Comet and Jeba, The Hound of Renown' by Lib Willard.

Following Lib's request, I bring you a review written on the book and published on her blog by Stan Patten, PhD:

With “The Cloud, The Clam, The Comet and Jeba, The Hound of Renown, “ Lib Willard has written and illustrated a wonderful story for children of many ages that combines the earth, the sea, and the sky into a magical land where clouds and clams and comets and dogs not only talk to each other but also care for each other.

Read it aloud and hear the rhythms of poetry bringing the words to life; and take time to savor the illustrations. There is a whimsy to the illustrations (art might be a better term) that mixes a childlike imagination with the richness of many hues. In short, this small book is both a visual and auditory delight.

This First Edition is printed on 100% recycled text paper, and 30% of the proceeds go to helping stray and orphaned dogs. Jeba approves. Make this book a part of your child’s library. How often can you have a great read, do no damage to the environment, and improve the lives of our four-legged creatures?

Stan Patten, PhD
(UNCC English Department, retired)

Thank you Lib Willard for this great book and for going green and printing it on 100% recycled paper. If you are interested in the book, you are welcome to check out Lib Willard's blog, where you can also find where you can buy the book.

Yours,

Raz @ Eco-Libris

Eco-Libris: a great green gift for the holidays!