If Polar Bears Disappeared

July 1, 2018

K-Gr 3-In this appealing follow-up to If Sharks Disappeared, a budding scientist travels to the Arctic, using polar bears as a framework for explaining the effects of climate change. Up-to-date information on the subject is presented in a straightforward manner, with scientifically correct vocabulary. Each spread describes how polar bears impact other animals in their ecosystems and the importance of sea ice to the survival of living things. Williams's illustration style is wonderfully adaptive, working as well with boldly drawn Arctic landscapes and oceans as it does with age-appropriate diagrams of the scientific processes behind climate change. Though the subject matter may affect readers of a sensitive nature, Williams tempers the book's unpleasant reality with her final pages, showing her unnamed main character researching polar bears and motivated to find solutions to climate change. The comprehensive back matter includes a glossary, tips for combating climate change at home, and a bibliography, providing a wealth of angles for potential science projects. VERDICT Bright, appealing illustrations and an ultimately empowering message provide a much-needed hopeful side to a complex topic.-Katherine Barr, Cameron Village Regional Library, Raleigh, NC

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2018
Dire consequences attend the unchecked melting of Arctic sea ice.The more the ice melts, the more the Arctic climate changes. The more that air and ground temperatures rise, the more the frozen ecosystem's inhabitants, including plants and insects, suffer from dwindling habitats; threats to food sources; and imbalances in feeding, breeding, and migration patterns. Solid information is packed into this brief work that lucidly raises the alarm for young readers, with each spread capturing the thrilling, chilling north in rich, dramatic blue swathes of seawater set off by icy glaciers and snowdrifts. Child-friendly, occasionally cluttered paintings, some with labels, highlight polar bears and their Arctic neighbors; a spread of vignettes illustrates how changes to plant life affect wildlife. One labeled spread explains all: As seawater warms, it absorbs sunlight, thus heating more water and melting more ice. One poignant spread depicts a bewildered polar bear mom, eyeing readers and flanked by her twin cubs, drifting on a shrinking ice floe. Two human children, one brown-skinned and one pale, occasionally appear in the illustrations as well. The book ends on a hopeful note, reassuring youngsters that "we still have time to save polar bears and slow the loss of Arctic ice." A note in the backmatter offers conservation tips. A solid addition to the climate-change canon for those interested in saving a fragile world. (author's note, bibliography, additional sources) (Informational picture book. 6-9)

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January 1, 2019
Williams explains how climate change threatens polar bears, the Arctic ecosystem, and the entire planet. Cartoonlike illustrations of two girls and an adult tracking polar bears are friendly-looking yet don't detract from the intensity of the book's warning and call to action ("The best way for you to help is to learn everything you can about climate change"). Further information is appended. Websites. Bib., glos.

(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)