Recently announced were the 2012 Green Earth Book Awards!  The Newton Marasco Foundation and Salisbury University in Maryland created the Green Earth Book Award to honor books that “inspire a child to grow a deeper appreciation, respect and responsibility for his or her natural environment.” The Green Earth Book Award is awarded in five categories, and this year’s winners are as follows (no title was selected for the Young Adult Fiction category):

Picture Book: Arthur Turns Green, written and illustrated by Marc Brown

Children’s Fiction: Wild Wings, written by Gill Lewis and illustrated by Yuta Onoda

Young Adult Non-Fiction: Gaia Warriors written by Nicola Davies with an Afterword by James Lovelock

Children’s Non-Fiction: The Mangrove Tree: Planting Trees to Feed Families, written by Cindy Trumbore and Susan L. Roth and illustrated by Susan L. Roth

Honor Books:

• 101 Ways to Save the Planet, written by Deborah Underwood
• Extraordinary Endangered Animals, written by Sandrine Silhol and Gaëlle Guérive and illustrated by Marie Doucedame
• Global Warming: A Personal Guide to Causes and Solutions, written by Sneed B. Collard III
• Human Footprint: Everything You Will Eat, Use, Wear, Buy, and Throw Out in Your Lifetime, written by Ellen Kirk
• Luz Sees The Light, written and illustrated by Claudia Davila
• Nowhere Else on Earth: Standing Tall for the Great Bear Rainforest, written by Caitlyn Vernon
• Riparia’s River, written by Michael J. Caduto and illustrated by Olga Pastuchiv

An excellent selection of books to share with our younger generation — helping to ensure an appreciation for the Earth for many years to come…..