The Story of More (Adapted for Young Adults): How We Got to Climate Change and Where to Go from Here by Hope Jahren

The Story of More (Adapted for Young Adults): How We Got to Climate Change and Where to Go from Here Reviews

• 
  Kasey Giard

  One of the cool things about this book is that it doesn’t strictly talk about climate change in terms of the effects we see today and the industrial causes. I like that the author kind of zooms out and gives a chapter by chapter overview of things. She discusses things like the way human population has changed over thousands of years or the ways in which farming has evolved. Each topic is discussed in only a few pages but paints a much more complete picture of how we got to where we are with carbon levels, food waste, and pollution.
  
  I also like that the book takes time to focus on what individuals can do to make a difference. The issue of Climate Change can be really overwhelming because it feels like the most significant changes have to be made at an industry or government level in order to make a real impact. This doesn’t address how to make those changes specifically. It does look at what meaningful things individuals can do and how making those changes can cause ripple effects across our lives and the lives of others.
  
  One of the most shocking things that the book discussed that I hadn’t heard before actually had to do with the Winter Olympics. The games need a specific environment to be played– snow slopes for instance. The number of places which have the ability to host the games has shrunk considerably since the games began. That was something I hadn’t really specifically thought about before.
  
  I think readers who enjoy books about environmental issues will definitely want to check this one out. If you liked TRASHING THE PLANET or GIRL WARRIORS, then be sure add THE STORY OF MORE to your reading list!
  
  Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
• 
  Janet

  I am not going to review this book because I am not the audience. I read it to find material for my secondary education students to use to think about teaching adolescents to be savvy and successful nonfiction readers. It is really useful to think about which arguments fall flat and those that really work for a reader, and she is very aware of the fact that not every argument will affect each reader in the same way. Also, what is the role of information in her argument? When does she use humor, narrative, and emotion? Does it work? How does she give us hope while giving us the facts we need?
  
  I love her logical approach to understanding we are within the climate emergency while her emotional appeals don't get to me as much. If you are a teacher thinking about reading excerpts with students, don't start with the appendix but do include something from it to finish up. If I had to guess I would say that "Part Two: Food" and "Part Four: Earth" will have the chapters students relate to the most. The chapters in the food section all go together, but it ends up being long. I think you can read chapters 5, 6, and 9 to understand the power of her argument here. The ethical appeal in chapter 9 is the most effective for me because she is able to question the absurdity of the American approach to food based on the shocking statistics on waste. Students will probably really get into "Chapter 18: The Big Goodbye" about mass extinction. "Chapter 19: Another Page" will be a hopeful if sobering antidote to chapter 18.
  
  I would definitely recommend this book for any classroom library. I would not read the whole book with the class. It seems to be quite readable for adolescent readers.
• 
  fred

  an absolute essential read for beginner learners of the climate crisis and how various man-made things is causing such massive destruction of our environment and driving us into a sixth mass extinction
  
  i first read blue sanford's challenge everything which i liked as it covered concisely the various factors which altogether result to the current climate emergency. this one is the same but even more data driven without being too convoluted or dense that it's hard or boring to read. it's perfectly written for it's target audience which is the young adult population.
  
  as hinted in the title, the primary theme of this book is how human consumption and waste gets bigger and bigger as time passes. we consume more, we produce more, we throw away more. and all these increasing numbers of human activities and their by-products (especially luxury stuff that only a fraction of the population enjoys while the poorest among us suffer from the consequences) bring us closer to massive species and ecosystem loss and a bleak future filled with sorrow.
  
  it's inevitable to feel almost hopeless when reading books like this one, and yet it is crucial to learn about what's happening so that we may know how we can help. whether by individual choices (which helps but unfortunately not enough) or collective action (which brings more impact and helps spread awareness of the problem and what could be done to solve them).
  
  after discussing the almost endless contributors to the climate change, jahren also shares some possible solutions found by scientists and researches. but ultimately, in spite of all these solutions available, we cannot save humanity unless the most powerful and influential figures and corporations decide that life is more precious ng profitㅡand they probably won't, i have zero hope that they'll come into that realization bec you cannot be a billionaire without first severing yourself from compassion and principle that life matters over any material wealth.... so what then? collective action along with playing our individual parts in consuming less and sharing more. collective outrage. let's makes our voices heard and pressure our politicians and world leaders. i highly suggest you read blue sanford/extinction rebellion's challenge everything for more suggested actions we could do as individuals and as a group fighting for climate justice.
  
  "At the end of a mass extinction, the tree of life has lost several branches—and yet, afterward, life does go on. Plants regreen the earth and animals repopulate the oceans; different species take over and different landscapes result; and time resumes its forward march. There will be life on planet Earth after the sixth mass extinction, but we are not able to imagine it any better than the dinosaurs could have imagined a world dominated by mammals walking on two legs, driving bulldozers, and flying airplanes. All species will go extinct eventually, even our own: it is one of nature’s few unbendable rules. As of today, however, the train has not quite left the station. We still have some control over our species’ demise—namely, how long it will take and how much our children and grandchildren will suffer. If we want to take action, we should get started while it still matters what we do."
• 
  Juli

  The Story of More is a nonfiction book by Hope Jahren adapted for young adults 12 and up from the adult version of the book of the same name.
  
  This nonfiction book is an excellent introduction to climate change, including the consequences if action isn't taken. It is broken up into easy to read sections that include the impact of growing food to the amount of waste we produce.
  
  I've been wanting to read a book from Jahren for a while now, and this felt like the perfect opportunity. I was not disappointed—Jahren has a penchant for distilling lots of information into a way that's easy to understand and giving context to it in a way that matters. I particularly loved the "how we got here" part, especially since it seems like everything has only happened in the last ten or twenty years. Understanding how we got here is a little bleak, but I think it's the perfect way to help us move forward.
  
  Somehow, Jahren manages to take small things that occur in every day life and find the historical point of view to help the reader grasp the concept and the gravity of it all. Jahren doesn't come across as insistent, but passionate, and even though this is geared towards young adults, she doesn't speak down to them.
  
  After reading it, I did feel quite bleak, and even though there's a whole section with tips and ways to self-evaluate, it almost made me feel overwhelmed at the steps. I will say that Jahren's conviction is earnest, and I think, at the very least, it will linger in the back of my mind as I make my daily decisions.
  
  This is a good book for teens to help understand, in more detail, how everything works and how everything is tied together. I think kids are remarkable, and if we give them tools like this, they'll be able to help contribute in a way that makes a difference.
• 
  Kasey Giard

  One of the cool things about this book is that it doesn’t strictly talk about climate change in terms of the effects we see today and the industrial causes. I like that the author kind of zooms out and gives a chapter by chapter overview of things. She discusses things like the way human population has changed over thousands of years or the ways in which farming has evolved. Each topic is discussed in only a few pages but paints a much more complete picture of how we got to where we are with carbon levels, food waste, and pollution.
  
  I also like that the book takes time to focus on what individuals can do to make a difference. The issue of Climate Change can be really overwhelming because it feels like the most significant changes have to be made at an industry or government level in order to make a real impact. This doesn’t address how to make those changes specifically. It does look at what meaningful things individuals can do and how making those changes can cause ripple effects across our lives and the lives of others.
  
  One of the most shocking things that the book discussed that I hadn’t heard before actually had to do with the Winter Olympics. The games need a specific environment to be played– snow slopes for instance. The number of places which have the ability to host the games has shrunk considerably since the games began. That was something I hadn’t really specifically thought about before.
  
  Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
• 
  rosalie

  Reading this book was scary—to face the problems and concerns of the world without being able to close the book, place it back on my shelf, and turn a blind eye. I was forced to read of the horrors concerning our only planet but with that I have learned so much! Not only does this book tell you what is wrong, but it tells you how YOU can help fox it, that it is not too late to start working towards a better, cleaner, healthier planet. Let’s just put it at this, when I started reading, I had no idea what I was getting into. Now, I am looking into vegetarianism and ways to preserve energy and lower carbon dioxide emissions in any way possible. Also, it wasn’t a boring read. The author kept things interesting which was such a big help!
• 
  Lee-ann

  Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. The Story of More adapted for Young Adults by Hope Jahren discusses the dependence of humans on fossil fuels and meat consumption and how even steps that are taken to prevent some of these things aren't necessarily helpful. The consequences of these actions are clearly spelled out in this book and what's even better are the steps that can be take to help on a small and large scale that most people can do.
• 
  Erica Deb

  I really liked this and the information was easy to understand and absorb BUT the author has a very clear opinion about what she discusses. While I agree with her, I worry that since this book is for teens. They need to understand that this book is not an unbiased story, which again is fine, so long as they realize that.
• 
  Heather Jackson

  An essential read for everyone on the planet who wants humanity to survive the 21st century.
• 
  Nicole

  Good overview of climate change and some of things people in OECD or high income countries can start doing to help. Lots of good resources in the back of the book.
  
• 
  Kristina Petrova

  I loved the original book so much that I needed to read the one for young readers too. A must-read for anyone that is interested in environmentalism.
• 
  PottWab Regional Library

  SM
• 
  CPL Teen

  A young adult version of The Story of More by Hope Jahren, acclaimed geochemist and geobiologist, details the science behind key inventions, clarifying how electricity, large-scale farming, and automobiles have both helped and harmed our world.
  
  This is the perfect book for people (teens) who are interested in a factual look at how human consumption habits have altered our physical world and caused very real consequences that we must fix. It relays heavily on science and Jahren's own research but includes enough interesting anecdotes to keep a teen reader interested.