Looking for some green summer reading? Back in April the Green Book Festival was held in Los Angeles, California. Winners were picked from 19 different categories, with the overall grand prize winner being Saci Lloyd’s “The Carbon Diaries: 2015”. Below are the winners from each category, with links to amazon.com and other sites, where relevant. You can see the full list of winners, runners-up and honorable mentions at the Green Book Festival website. Happy green summer reading 
Green Non-fiction Book winner: You are Here by Thomas Kostigen – this is the only book in the list I’ve personally read. You can take a look inside it at amazon.com and see what you think. It is revealing. Really, we all should read this book. I already know the Earth is getting messed up, even so, I learned some new things.
Green Children’s Book winner: The Tree by Dana Lyons – the illustrations in this book are fabulous, captivating, and it has some excellent reviews. Take a look and decide for yourself. I can see why this book is a winner.
Green Wild Card Book winner: Diet for a Poisoned Planet by David Steinman – contains lists and lots of details to enable you to choose safe food for your family.
Green Biography Book winner: Me and the Biospheres by John Allen – I’m intrigued by the idea of reading about Biosphere 2 from the inside out. Before investing in this one I suggest you take a look inside to check the writing style. This one goes on my list to check out from the library because it’s a bit pricey.
Green Cookbook winner: Cooking Green by Kate Heyhoe – if this book is as interesting at the author’s name, I’d give it a read. Kate explores not only recipes in this book, but also the green impact of the whole food process including storage, cooking and clean-up.
Green How-to Book winner: 50 Ways to Save the Ocean by David Helvarg – with its fun little cartoon illustrations and interesting suggestions for enjoying the ocean, this one is now on my reading list. What’s not to love about the ocean? The author even suggests growing a natural garden.
Green Poetry Book winner: Where the Redwing Sings by Ed Kostro – there is little information to read about this book online, so I can’t really comment. The 3 current reviews at amazon.com give it 5 stars. Given that it also won a prize, if you’re looking for nature poetry it sounds a good choice.
Green Teenage Book winner: The Carbon Diaries: 2015 by Saci Lloyd – the overall winner at the Green Book Festival. There’s not much to read about this one at amazon.com but I found a couple of fairly detailed reviews at The Book Bag and Vulpes Libris. I’m not a teen, by a long shot, but this one is going on my summer reading list. I like that, at least in the UK, it is printed on recycled paper too.
Green Scientific Book winner: Food Fray: Inside the Controversy of Genetically Modified Food by Lisa Weasel. Once upon at time GM food seemed to me like a good thing, but the more I’ve read, the more concerned I’ve become. How concerned should we be about GM food? Reviews of this winner at amazon.com seem rather mixed. Take a look inside and decide for yourself.
Green Photography Book winner: Sacred Earth: Planet of Light by Ernest King is unavailable at both amazon.com and borders.com. If you want to a look though there is a dedicated website at Silver Bear Press with inside views, excerpts and the opportunity to order online.
Green Comic/Graphic Novel Book winner: See Into the Sea by Molly Peckels – there is little in the way of information or review available on this book at amazon.com. What I do know is that it a coloring book which explores tide pool life and explains how to examine tide pools while respecting the life there. You can read a review at The Laguna Beach Independent.
Green Spiritual Book winner: The Garden of Earth – Living Remedies and Earth-Honoring Practices by Laura Lamun – amazon.com appears to be unaware of this book. It is available from the author at Little Moon Essentials.
Green Science Fiction Book winner: The Girl Who Rode Dolphins by Michael Ganas – with a list price of over $28 for the paperback version, I imagine the take-up on this book will be small. You can look inside at amazon.com though, see what you think, and request it from your library if you like the look.
Green Business Book winner: Greening Your Business by Daniel Sitarz – the editorial reviews at amazon.com describe this book as practical and comprehensive, with information for different magnitudes of green changes, from small to large, checklists, and a step-by-step hands-on approach. It sounds like a good investment for those interested in greening their business, which, really, we all should be.
Green Animals Book winner: Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents by Marty Essen – a travel diary of sorts which takes the author to various parts of the globe to interact not only with interesting and endangered animals, but also with some global and personal threats. Readers at amazon.com rate this book highly and it is the recipient of several travel essay awards. Take a look inside, it’s worth adding to your reading list.
Green Compilations/Anthologies Book winner: Healing Natures: Repairing Relationships edited by Robert France – if you are seriously interested in our relationship with nature and ecological restoration consider this book. The price tag is hefty and there are currently no reader reviews at amazon.com. The essays are by leading environmental scholars and the editor is a professor at the Harvard University Design School. The editorial at amazon.com describes it as a series of “hands-on exercises for engaging urban communities to develop supportive relationships with their surrounding environment.”
Green Fiction Book winner: Under Erciyes by Janet Ritz. Janet Ritz is a hard lady to track down. Amazon.com has no mention of her book. Even her own personal website has no working links and no mention of Under Erciyes. I did however find a short bio about her at The Huffington Post where I discovered that she is the editor of The Environmentalist. When I find out more about her book I’ll make an update.
Green E-book winner: Green Traveler Guides Hawai’i by Gary and Peggy Deidrichs – again there is no sign of this one at amazon.com, but it does have it’s own page at Green Traveler Guides. If you’re lucky enough to be planning a trip to Hawai’i this looks like a great book – full of details like which Honolulu chefs buy from local organic farmers. You can order your copy through the Green Traveler Guides website.
Green Mystery Book winner: Outer Darkness by Bart Brevik. With it’s inclusion of satanic occult themes I’m sure this book is an acquired taste. Still, you can look inside and get a taste of it at amazon.com and it’s also available for the Kindle. If you like this kind of theme, do take a look.
These 19 different books cover a very wide range of genres. I’ve certainly found several to add to my summer reading list. What do you say?
Links to amazon.com are provided under the amazon affiliate agreement.
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Ooh, lovely, lots of new books to read. Thank you!