• Age: 4 to 7
• Grade: p to 2
• Reading age: 4 to 7

A charming, child-friendly tour around an ideal sustainable city --- with a uniquely positive environmental message from award-winning author Tanya Lloyd Kyi.

In this green city, neighbors take care of all living things: people, plants and animals, too! Many people choose a bicycle, scooter or their own two feet to get where they need to go. A family collects the rain to water their garden, while solar panels capture the energy from the sun; pipes gather heat from underground, and a windmill turns to power the community. Residents keep hens and hives in their yards, and care for flower beds that feed bees, birds and butterflies. Here, people all work together to make the city green. Can we do the same where we live?

Tanya Lloyd Kyi and Colleen Larmour have conjured a delightfully utopian sustainable community of the future, and they invite readers on an interactive journey to explore it. Unlike many children's books about the environment, this is a hopeful and uplifting book that encourages children to imagine what's possible, with neighbors from diverse backgrounds coming together to care for their surroundings and one another. Green technology and concepts are presented in an accessible way, covering topics from transportation to classrooms to food. Each spread includes a question that asks readers to search for something small in the illustration, and the abundant details in the rich and colorful art make the pages perfect for poring over. Backmatter shares environmentally friendly suggestions to try at home. Strong curriculum links to social studies and to physical, environmental and life sciences.

Tanya Lloyd Kyi claims to be a peaceful and non-threatening person, despite having written three books about fire and one about poison. She has never set a building aflame, handled dynamite, or intentionally poisoned anyone … although a suspicious number of friends did have stomachaches after eating her Christmas party meatballs one year.Tanya writes both fiction and non-fiction, often choosing topics related to science, pop culture, or social history—or a combination of the three. She enjoys combining factual research with intriguing narratives, or the life stories of interesting folks.Tanya began her writing “career” as a poet in high school, producing pages and pages of really bad poems that her mother adored. Her love of writing led to the University of Victoria, where she took creative writing and English. Tanya’s early writing jobs were as a newspaper reporter and brochure writer for the government. She also worked as a dishwasher, busgi

Tanya Lloyd Kyi's profile page

Colleen Larmour is a picture-book maker from Northern Ireland, where she lives with her family. She studied at Liverpool School of Art and Design and on the master's course in Children's Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art. Colleen has illustrated several books including Our Green City (Kids Can Press) and Making Friends (Walker Books).

Colleen Larmour's profile page

• Commended, Green Earth Book Award, The Nature Generation
• Commended, Blueberry Changemakers Book, Evanston Public Library

Exemplifying urban diversity and ecological harmony, this city will garner return visits from green-keen readers.

Kirkus Reviews

A great guide for all shelves, and a recommended purchase.

School Library Journal

... this book may just inspire town planners and architects of the future.

The Irish Independent Newspaper

A great guide for all shelves, and a recommended purchase.—School Library Journal

In a sense ... it is not just a book about sustainable development but also about community-building and communal responsibility.

CM Magazine

In a sense ... it is not just a book about sustainable development but also about community-building and communal responsibility.—CM Magazine

Overall, a light, positive take on urban community and sustainability.

Booklist

... this book may just inspire town planners and architects of the future.—The Irish Independent Newspaper