The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics by Christiane Engel, Susan Hood
Published by HarperCollins on February 16, 2021
ISBN: 9780062981394
Pages: 48
Genres: Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
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This is a timely and factually augmented poetry collection to help kids (and adults) understand the dangers of plastic. I felt that the book tried to do too much and would have been stronger as an informational book as I found the poetry in different formats uninspiring. However the factual tidbits included on each spread were fascinating. (When I reviewed the book I said that the sources were not given however upon closer examination, I did find that were provided.) This is part of the problem with the book in that it is too busy with 13 pages of additional information provided as end pages. The bright, colorful illustrations are appealing and compliment the ideas presented. This could be combined with other books about the topic, such as Taming Plastic: Stop the Pollution by Albert Bates (2020) and Join the No-Plastic Challenge!: A First Book of Reducing Waste by Scot Ritchie (2019) for a theme study about this timely environmental issue. (I also think it was a missed an opportunity when choosing not to title the book “Are Plastics Fantastic?”)

Reviewed by Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library