• Age: 8 to 12
• Grade: 3 to 7

Residents of the city of Petroville are suffering through the hottest and driest summer on record. Desperate for a way to cool off, Luz and her friends head out to Spring Pond to go swimming. But when they arrive, they're shocked to discover the pond has virtually disappeared! It turns out a multinational company has purchased the nearby land and is using the water from the spring to make their soda. Meanwhile, back in the city, the gardens in Friendship Park are withering and at risk of dying because of the lack of rain. And now the city has imposed water restrictions in order to conserve. Luz and her friends are just kids, but is there anything they can do to help save two of Luz's favorite places?

This graphic novel is part of the Future According to Luz series, about a girl who helps the environment one small step at a time. It's an engaging read that also presents the serious issue of water scarcity at a level and tone children can understand. Luz offers a locally oriented model of how children can make a difference, starting with general awareness of their own water usage and including hands-on ideas for projects that prevent wasting water and protect a community's water supply. This book makes a useful resource for environmental science lessons, with an emphasis on living sustainably. As a bonus, there's a step-by-step plan for creating a water-wise garden with xeriscaping at the back of the book.

CLAUDIA DÁVILA a été directrice artistique des magazines Chirp et ChickaDEE, en plus d’être l’auteure-illustratrice de la série de bandes dessinées primées The Future According to Luz et de l’album Super Red Riding Hood. Elle a également illustré l’ouvrage percutant et multi récompensé Child Soldier: When Boys and Girls Are Used in War de Michel Chikwanine et Jessica Dee Humphreys, ainsi que Viminy Crowe’s Comic Book de Marthe Jocelyn et Richard Scrimger. Claudia est née à Santiago, au Chili, et vit maintenant à Toronto avec sa famille.

Claudia Dávila is the former art director of Chirp and chickaDEE magazines, and is the author-illustrator of the award-winning graphic novel series The Future According to Luz and the picture book Super Red Riding Hood. Claudia illustrated the powerful and multi-award-winning book Child Soldier: When Boys and Girls Are Used in War by Michel Chikwanine and Jessica Dee Humphreys, Viminy Crowe's Comic Book by Marthe Jocelyn and Richard Scrimger and The Canadian Kids Guide to Outdoor Fun by Helaine Becker. Claudia was born in Santiago, Chile, and lives in Toronto, Ontario, with her husband and two children.

Claudia Dávila's profile page

• Winner, Green Prize for Sustainable Literature, Santa Monica Public Library

This is an entertaining and empowering read, and should inspire many children to find out how they can make a difference in their communities.

School Library Journal

... a refreshingly animated exercise in building community and awareness ...

Kirkus Reviews

... colorful and full of action.

Publishers Weekly

... a great introduction to green living. ... This fun, community-building story would be a great addition to environmental science curricula and might even spark a science fair project or two.

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