Let’s Eat! Sustainable Food for a Hungry Planet

In an engaging addition to the Orca Footprints series, newcomer Veness examines agricultural practices around the world, discussing where food found at grocery stores comes from, environmentally sound methods of farming, and sustainability. She also makes the narrative personal, weaving in memories of growing up on a farm in Saskatchewan, as well as other anecdotes: “Sometimes my brothers and sisters and I would walk around our acreage with our dad, tracking smaller game like wild rabbit and pheasant, and scanning the sky for Canada goose.” Bright photographs of crops, foods, farmers, and global farms, both urban and rural, are included throughout the book’s four chapters. Veness avoids taking an overly dour tone when looking at negative aspects of the meat and agricultural industries (“Water contamination is a real problem, but, thankfully, environmental groups and committed citizens work hard to protect these fragile ecosystems”) and instead urges readers to take stock of how integrally connected this planet is while empowering them to think critically about the food they eat and where it comes from. Ages 9–12. (Feb.)