Review Detail

Now heres a new book series with a serious message. But dont let that turn you off; it isnt a heavy-handed one at all. In fact, the environmental focus of the books is worked in so well that a reader might not even realize that they are learning something along the way. And thats the way I prefer it; too many message books try to ram that message down your throat and dont make what they are trying to tell you part of the story. Gaia Girls message is loud and clear and integral to the plot.

In this first book, we meet Elizabeth, destined to be the Gaia Girl of the Earth (in subsequent books well meet the girls who have power over air, fire and water). Elizabeth lives on a small organic farm with her mother (formerly a NYC girl) and her father. It is an idyllic existence until it is threatened by the takeover of a large corporate factory farm. The description in the book, by the way, is very accurate on how factory farms work. For more info, see books like Chew on This by Schlosser.

Gaia herself, aka the spirit of the earth, contacts Elizabeth and helps to unleash her power: power over earth, or the ability to move land (and travel through land) and to hear the living soil. Elizabeth must use these powers to somehow stop the farm from moving in and harming the land. Can one lone girl stop a huge corporation?

The book also features hidden codes and pictures that work alongside online games and puzzles (see www.gaiagirls.com). Teachers will be happy to see that curriculum guides are available, as is Gaia Quest for further learning. And the publishers do practice what they preach; the books are printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper.

Recommended for readers aged 10 and up, and especially girls, though boys can certainly get a lot out of these books as well. Good resource for teaching about nature and conservation, though the story alone is universal enough to draw readers in.