Monday's green books series (part 1): Sammy & Sue Go Green Too! (and a giveaway)

This week we divide our Monday's green books series into two (and delay them a little bit..), as we bring you reviews of two new great books we partner with. Our first book is dedicated to our motherlove, planet earth - a place for our children to flourish! And the book itself is no less marvelous than its dedication.

Our book for today is:

Sammy and Sue Go Green Too!

The publisher, Beaufort Books, and the author Suzanne Corso, are collaborating with Eco-Libris to encourage the readers of this wonderful book to green up their reading and take a step to support the environment by planting a tree with us for their copy. Thanks to the support of Beaufort Books and Suzanne Corso, readers will be able to do so at a special discount on our website!

Author: Suzanne Corso

Suzanne is the author of two feature film screenplays, which are based on her novels. Brooklyn Story, a young woman’s coming of age tale and RoughCuts; The Trilogy. A fast-paced, romantic suspense story set against the backdrop of the diamond business. She has also penned other screenplays, such as A Simple Road and Gary Granite. Suzanne has also developed a television show called Empire, based upon Wall Street and has also produced for the New York and London stages the critically acclaimed Roman Nights, about screen legend Anna Magnani and playwright Tennessee Williams.

Along with her other accomplishments Suzanne has produced two documentaries; Indonesia, A Personal Journey and HEAR THEM ROAR, shot entirely at the Endangered Animal Rescue Sanctuary in Citra, Florida. Narrated by Lorraine Bracco. This documentary was the foundation that inspired her children’s series.

Publisher: Beaufort Books

Published on: April 22, 2009

Reading ages: 5-9

What it is about (from the author's website):
The Sammy & Sue Series, based on Sammy and Sue Corso, a mother/daughter team that seeks to educate children about the environment, the planet, nutrition, and to lead to an eco-friendly (”green”) life. The Sammy & Sue books have one goal in mind; to educate our children, to protect our environment and keep our animals safe.

“Go Green Too!” is the first book in the series and will lead your children on thrilling adventures while teaching them to value the planet and all of its resources. Sammy & Sue are helping to help you spread and start saving the planet. Their mission is to teach their New York City neighbors and American families to conserve energy, drive hybrid cars, and make peace with nature by using eco-friendly products, recycling, and eating organically grown foods. Sammy & Sue set out to visit various eco-friendly companies and organic farms across America.

Why you should get it:
1. The joint mother-daughter journey into the green world is a great way to introduce readers, both parents and children, with environmental ideas and concepts. I think that the 'team' idea makes the characters as well as their messages much more easy to identify with.

2. It's a fun story! I think one of the problems of the green movement, especially with kids, is the serious image it has and the notion that going green is a complexed mission. Well, the future of the planet is a serious issue, no doubt about that, but it doesn't mean that you can't engage children into it in a fun and original way that will help them to get connected to green ideas, and that's exactly what this book does.

3. And it's also educational. I liked the fact that by the end of the book kids can find a glossary (or as they call it "Hard words made easy") with simple explanations to big words like atmosphere, pesticides, biodegradable and so on.

4. Beautiful illustrations - they make the story so alive!

What others say about the book:
“These wonderful stories instill a sense of not only understanding but, empowerment ot our childern about the earth and how to take care of it. I look forward to reading them with my daugthers.” Marcia Cross, Actress "Desperate Housewives" ABC

"A hip testament to being kind to the world around us." Dr. Mehmet Oz, Columbia University, Vice Chairman, Cardiovascular Services, Oprah Show / XM Radio

"To bring about positive environmental change requires an understanding of our impact on the natural world, and a sense of adventure with endless possibility; Sammy & Sue have both" Philip Charles Gamett, President EarthPositive Apparel

You can read more about the book and the series at www.sammyandsue.com

GIVEAWAY ALERT!!!

The publisher, Beaufort Books are giving away one copy of the book, and of course a tree will be planted for the copy!

How you can win? please add a comment below with an answer the following question: how do you go green too with your kid? Submissions are accepted until Wednesday, April 8, 12PM EST. The winner will be announced the following day.

If you're looking for other interesting green-themed books, you are invited to check out our green books page on our website's green resources section.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

The Chicago Bulls are promoting Green Reading and Eco-Libris is taking part in it!

We have great news today: As part of the 'NBA Green Week 2009' the Chicago Bulls are promoting green reading in one of Chicago's schools and Eco-Libris is part of it!

Yes, President Obama's favorite basketball team will celebrate this Friday (April 3) the grand opening of The Green Reading & Technology Corner at Pope John Paul School in Chicago.

During the opening, Bulls players will participate in a Reading Time-Out where they will read an excerpt of “Planet Earth Gets Well” by Madeline Kaplan, a children’s book that addresses environmental concerns in a child-friendly format. In addition to having a green theme, the author and the Chicago Bulls are collaborating with Eco-Libris to green up the book by planting trees.

The Bulls are donating a total of 100 copies of this book to the school's library, thus planting 100 trees as a result of the project. In addition, every book comes with Eco-Libris sticker made of recycled paper that reads “One tree planted for this book”.

Here are more details on the event:

Date: April 3, 3009 at 3:30pm

Location: Pope John Paul School, 4325 South Richmond Chicago, IL

Event: Grand Opening of the Green Reading & Technology Corner. As part of the Read to Achieve Program, the Bulls added a new component to the Reading & Learning Center where we created an environmentally friendly learning space at a local school.

Following the Opening, Bulls players will participate in a Reading Time-Out where they will read an excerpt of “Planet Earth Gets Well” a children’s book addresses environmental concerns in a child-friendly format. Planet Earth Gets Well's partnership with Eco-Libris, a green business that works to balance out the paper used for books by planting trees, plants one tree for every book purchased.

The Bulls are donating a total of 100 copies of this book to the library, thus planting 100 trees as a result of the project. Eco-Libris includes book sleeve stickers made of recycled paper for every book they balance out that reads “One tree planted for this book”.

Featured Book: Planet Earth Gets Well by Madeline Kaplan, illustrated by Taillefer Long, addresses environmental concerns in a child-friendly format, based on the author’s awareness that future generations must be prepared to preserve their planet and its resources.

When Planet Earth gets the sniffles, Mother Nature challenges each of us to retract our gluttonous ways. She instructs the Planet Earth to take better care of himself which means all humans must make big changes about key issues like global warming, the melting of polar ice caps, deforestation and energy depletion. Once Planet Earth sneezes, Mother Nature listens and helps each and every one of us learn how to be good to our dear, old friend. This educational reader is wholly unique in the ways that matter-think globally, think green, and act accordingly. Reading level: Ages 4-8

More on 'Planet Earth Gets Well':

Review of 'Planet Earth Gets Well' on Monday's green books series

'Planet Earth Gets Well' is added to Earth Day Network's recommended reading!

An interview with Madeline Kaplan

'Planet Earth Gets Well' is going green with Eco-Libris!

The book's website: http://www.planetearthgetswell.com

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
http://www.ecolibris.net/

Better Paper Project Webinar: What Makes Better Paper Better?

Are you confused by the variety of paper options? well, if you are, this webinar might be just for you.

I learned on the details from Better Paper Project, which is "a collaborative effort of magazine industry stakeholders to increase the use of environmental paper" with a mission "to foster collaboration between paper manufacturers, merchants, investors, businesses, nonprofits and consumers to achieve our vision and encourage the production of socially and environmentally responsible paper – Better Paper."

So here are the details on this webinar from their website:

Time: April 2, 2009 from 2pm to 3pm

Organized by: The Better Paper Project + EPN

Information: This month's Better Paper Project Webinar builds on January's event, "Building Blocks for Wise Environmental Publishing", with further discussion of both the problem of deforestation and the environmental paper solutions available to magazine publishers. The Environmental Paper Network (EPN) will be co-hosting this Webinar, explaining what makes better paper better and how to use the EPN’s Paper Steps from the What’s In Your Paper Web site. To register, please visit https://cc.readytalk.com/r/lb5nh8vdnh1u

Yours,
Raz @Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

An upcoming novel of author Elizabeth Baines is going green with Eco-Libris

We are happy to announce on a collaboration with author Elizabeth Baines to green up her upcoming book "Too Many Magpie" by planting one tree for every copy printed.

The book, due from Salt Modern Fiction in October, is a novel with an environmental theme. It will be the second book published at Salt Publishing that we're working with after "The White Road and Other Stories" by Tania Hershman.

Here's some more details about the upcoming book:

A young mother's faith in science is undermined as the natural world around her becomes ever more uncertain and when she meets a man who seems to offer a different, more magical kind of power... In this haunting, urgent and timely novel Elizabeth Baines explores the problem of sorting our rational from our irrational fears, the implications of bringing children into a newly precarious world, and the scientific and magical modes of thinking which have got us to where we are now.

About the author:
Elizabeth Baines was born in South Wales and lives in Manchester. She has been a teacher and is an occasional actor as well as the prize-winning author of plays for radio and stage, and of two novels, The Birth Machine and Body Cuts. Her award-winning short stories have been published widely in magazines and anthologies.

Other books of Elizabeth Baines:
Balancing on the Edge of the World (Salt Publishing, 1997) - a collection of short stories about power and powerlessness, and those moments when the balance of power - between a violent father and his daughter, between a doctor and his smug patient, between an unsuspecting teenager and the dangerous world around him - can subtly or dramatically change for ever...

What other people have said about the book:

'Quite swept me off my feet... ' - Dovegreyreader

'A stunning debut collection' - Melissa Lee-Houghton, The Short Review

The Birth Machine (Women's Press 1983; Revised edition, 'The Author's Cut', Starling 1996) - White rats in the lab, a murder deep in the past, Zelda strapped to a bed in a high-tech maternity ward and some mysteries about to unravel. Adapted by Elizabeth Baines and broadcast as a play for Radio 4

What other people have said about the book:
'The birth myth of our age' - IN DUBLIN
'A gripping, pithy book' - Katy Campbell
'An increasingly powerful narrative... Sharp satire - TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT

Body Cuts (Pandora, 1988) -Is Bron being followed? Is her ex-lover a threat? The frightening power of fantasy turned reality

What other people have said about it:
'Strikingly told' - SUNDAY TIMES
'Thought-provoking' - MORE!
Click to read a review by Bob Corbett, Webster University.

You can read more about the author on these links:

www.elizabethbaines.com

http://elizabethbaines.blogspot.com

http://fictionbitch.blogspot.com

We will keep you posted as soon as Too Many Magpies will be released.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

* Enclosed photo of author Elizabeth Baines is by Tom Wright

When economic constraints meet Planet Earth: HarperCollins' catalogs are going digital

One more time savings are meeting the environment: The HarperCollins Fall catalog is going paperless or in other words: no more printing and mailing physical catalogs. From now on, it's all digital.

And it actually has many advantages as Publishers Weekly reports (thanks to GalleyCat for the link!): "HC's digital catalogues, housed at www.harpercollinscatalogs.com, will, in addition to featuring the standard information in print catalogues, include reviews, interviews and promotional videos. The publisher is also promising that the online catalogues will be updated frequently, reflecting any evolving changes with the publication details or marketing efforts surrounding titles."

Again it's another win-win solution: interested parties get better and improved information, hence making the catalogs more effective, money is saved as there's no printing and mailing and of course the environment is benefiting from it. It's maybe even win-win-win :-)

Wonders how a digital catalog looks? check out www.harpercollinscatalogs.com (where you can also find the book, which you see it's cover above - The Road to Woodstock by Michael Lang)

And what about the rest of the publishers? Josh Marwell, president of sales at HC, is quoted on PW saying the new online catalogues mark the "next step in the evolution of how we bring our books to market." I believe he's right and it also applies to other publishers. Hence, my guestimation is that HarperCollins won't be alone for too long - such a move makes too much sense especially in these times. We'll follow it up and let you know if we were right or wrong here.

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

A new children's book "Where the Buttercups Grow" is going green with Eco-Libris

Our partner Aaspirations Publishing has a great new children book coming - "Where the Buttercups Grow". This wonderful title, which is the work of a mother-daughter team, is doubly special because a tree is being planted with Eco-Libris for every book!

Here is some more information about the book:

Title: Where the Buttercups Grow

Author: Shelley Meyer

Shelley Meyer is a wife and mother of two children. She graduated with a Bachelor of Education Degree from UBC and an Early Childhood Education Certificate. She enjoyed teaching for 5 years and is now the owner and operator of Li’l Munchkin Preschool. Her preschool program encourages care and respect for each other and for the environment. Shelley's mother works with her, and together they hope to teach young children values they can live up to all their lives.

Illustrator: Tessa Meyer

Tessa Meyer, the book’s illustrator is the author’s 17 year old daughter. She graduated from high school in 2008 and has an undying passion for soccer. She is currently on the Whitecaps Reserve roster and is playing for Trinity Western University where she is currently studying. Illustrating has been her long-time hobby and she has truly enjoyed using her creativity to illustrate this book.

What's the book about: What happens when a mother-daughter team combine the beauty of buttercups, the power of storytelling and a great respect of nature to create a wonderful book with amazing art?

In a beautiful field, the buttercups grow, but when two children have no respect for nature garbage begins to pile up high. Are the days of the buttercups over, or will help come to rescue the buttercups from a fate more deadly than illness? See the difference that children can make when they set their mind to it and decide to take care of Mother Earth. Beautifully written by Shelley Meyer and vividly illustrated by her daughter Tessa Meyer, this inspiring and powerful story will find a spot on every child's list of favourites, especially when they can carry the story forward in their own lives and plant their very own buttercups.

Pre-orders are open at www.aaspirationspublishing.com or click on http://www.aaspirationspublishing.com/where-the-buttercups-grow.html to read more and to buy.

We will soon review the book and give away one copy so stay tuned!

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

Green Options - Turn Envelopes Into Gift Bags

As part of Eco-Libris' ongoing content partnership with Green Options Media, we feature a post that was originally published by Jackie Hernandez on March 24 on Crafting a Green World. Today's post gives some great ideas for a creative ideas what to do with the extra envelopes we have at home.

Whenever you buy a greeting card it comes with an envelope, whether you intend to mail the card or not. If you are not mailing the card, then the envelope is really just a waste of paper. Instead of needlessly stuffing the card into an envelope just give the recipient the card and use the envelope to make a “baglet” for a lovely gift. Rather than buying a new card at all, consider a makeover for a plain notecard and a used or found envelope to make a gift bag.

Jessica Jones, from How About Orange, shares this wonderful tutorial for turning envelopes into gift bags, which she cutely nicknames “baglets”. The tutorial includes a printable template for a To/From label and tips for decorative touches like a scalloped edge or adding a ribbon handle.

For other great eco-gift wrapping ideas try using comic strips or these tips from Danny Seo.

[Images by Jessica Jones for How About Orange]