Global Warning

Sam Warren is a sixth grader who, together with his friends Catalina, Alistair, Jaesang, and Zoe, has concluded that climate change can no longer be overlooked. In their eyes, the adults around them are failing to meet the moment, yet the kids are the ones who will live with the consequences. If parents, teachers, and officials don't step up, the group has decided to do the job itself.

Their strategy is far from modest. Instead of asking for minor reforms, they aim to rewrite the U.S. Constitution. A retired lawyer who once fought for children's rights and a grandmother who knows how to lead a march help them dream on that scale. The story follows the group on a cross-country trip that eventually reaches Norway, with unconventional schemes and acts of civil disobedience along the way.

The central question is whether a handful of twelve-year-olds can write an amendment that protects the planet, win its passage in Congress, shift opinion across the country, and see it ratified before time runs out. The book also takes up the workings of the Constitution and the urgent problem of global climate change.

Steve Frank writes a comic, fast-moving tale of heightened reality and wish fulfillment, with much of its energy coming from the quick, witty dialogue of clever children. It is aimed at middle-grade readers.