Protecting Forests

Children's Literature

Every time we cut down a tree, we lose a green, clean-air machine. From the biology of photosynthesis and the carbon cycle to the worldwide effect of the forest respiration, Dalgleish examines the science forests and human interaction in this well-written if not quite balanced installment of the "Our World: Our Future" series. The book discusses problems of grazing (and overgrazing) on previously forested lands, soil erosion, mining, reservoirs that drown forests, and acid rain that eats the trees. Depressingly enough, she discusses many of the problems but doesn't go into many of the solutions. Replanting is mentioned but only in a negative context of making plantation farms that are uniform species and not good for wildlife. The hands-on project suggests that young readers make recycled paper, with the help of an adult. Like others in the series, this book has boxed messages on each page, titled "Stop & Think," "Show Me," or 'You Can Do It!" The boxes bring the information to the reader's personal level. The layout is attractive with the boxes, pictures and captions, and the main text all given enough space for easy reading. Included are sections titled Think Globally and Sustaining Our World as well as a glossary and an index. 2002, Chelsea House Publishers, Hansen