• Age: 8 to 12
• Grade: 3 to 7

Change is in the air. Power outages are increasing, and gas prices are soaring. At first, 12-year-old Luz balks, hardly thrilled by the prospect of actually having to walk to the mall. But Luz doesn't mope for long. After all, her name --- pronounced “loose” --- means “light.” Soon, this intelligent and spirited chica begins to understand that she must change with the times. As food prices rise, Luz decides to help create a more self-sustainable community by transforming a run-down city lot into a garden where she and her neighbors can grow their own fruits and vegetables. But when she solicits help from her friends --- boy-crazy Anika and computer-whiz Robby --- they think she's a little loco. Luz pedals her idea on the street, but the community is equally dismissive. Can Luz pull off her plan and help change her world alone? This graphic novel is a kid-friendly take on sustainable living in a fossil fuel-dependent world. Preteens will love the fearless, fiery and resourceful heroine and will find inspiration in her efforts to steer her society toward self-sustainable living. Hip and energetic illustrations bring Luz and her world to life in a jazzy, appealing fashion, and a bonus chapter teaches kids how to make garden compost.

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

• Commended, Green Earth Book Award , Newton Marasco Foundation
• Short-listed, Joe Shuster Dragon Award

A high-energy consciousness raiser, if not a practical guide to environmental issues and action.

Kirkus Reviews

Davila's black, white, and sepia-washed illustrations, set inside generously sized panels, manage to be friendly and dynamic with just the right amount of seriousness - a fitting complement to this story.

Quill & Quire

... an enjoyable book that should inspire kids to act locally.

Publishers Weekly

This book is a good transitional reader for children interested in activism or the environment.

School Library Journal