Pajama Press

Pajama Press is thrilled to announce that we have two winning books on the 15^th Annual 2019 Green Earth Book Awards list.

The Flooded Earth by Mardi McConnochie is the winner of the award in the Children’s Fiction category.

And Bat Citizens: Defending the Ninjas of the Night by Rob Laidlaw is the Honor Book for the Children’s Nonfiction category.

The Green Earth Book Award was founded in 2005 by the environmental non-profit group The Nature Generation. The mission of the award is “to draw attention to the authors and illustrators whose books best inspire youth to grow a deeper appreciation, respect, and responsibility for their natural environment.” Learn more at www.natgen.org/green-earth-book-awards/.

Pajama Press extends our congratulations to Mardi McConnochie and Rob Laidlaw. Our sincerest thanks go to The Nature Generation for their dedication to inspiring environmental stewardship in young people and for their support of the authors and illustrators who strive to do the same.

“If you love bats or the kids who are protecting them, then you will love Bat Citizens. While telling you a lot about bats, this book focuses on what kids are doing to help them. On almost every alternate page, you meet a new kid who is doing something to help the world better understand bats and their habitat.

I liked reading each kid’s story and was impressed with the things they are doing….

There are lots of photographs, and the book seems well researched, as it includes a lot of facts and many different kids. It would be great for a research project, but most kids won’t sit down and read it cover to cover….

Overall, I think this book would be best for a school library or for kids who absolutely love bats.”
—Neela, Age 9

Click here to read the full review

“Of special note is the Spotlight features on ‘Bat Citizens’ make this an empowering book for children ages 8 to 12 seeking their own expressions of global citizenship. With informational sidebars, color photographs, a glossary and index, and a center-gatefold bat illustration, Bat Citizens is an outstandingly informative and thoroughly ‘kid friendly’ book that will prove to be a welcome and enduringly appreciated addition to both elementary school and community library collections.”

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“Young readers love knowing as much as they can about bats. Rob Laidlaw writes terrific nonfiction on topics that kids love to read. It’s a win-win situation. No one will be disappointed when sharing this new book.

Rob’s writing style is conversational, and personal. He provides clear information, based on up-to-date study and creates a book that is perfect fare for his target audience….

The information provided throughout is easy to follow, answers most common questions and leaves readers with a good amount of knowledge concerning these oft-maligned creatures. The final section provides ideas for being a friend to bats. Making sure that buildings are safe for bats to make their homes there, bat mapping, understanding how important bats are to a healthy world, raising money to help fund bat research, and celebrating their place in the world. A list of 14 Ways You Can Help Bats, and a list of the many organizations that help bats around the world are presented. A glossary and index follow.

Impressive and well-researched, as are other books by Rob Laidlaw, there is much to like about this fine book.”

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“Rating: E…Readers of any of award winning Rob Laidlaw’s previous books will agree with the description on the jacket cover of Bat Citizens: Defending the Ninjas of the Night “Rob Laidlaw has devoted his life to protecting animals and empowering others to do the same.” One of the ways that Rob protects animals and empowers others is by producing excellent information-packed books.

Bat Citizens combines an impressive amount of research about bats with snapshots of many ‘bat citizens’, children and young adults, helping bats world-wide. Rob states in his introduction “Bats are disappearing because of threats like habitat destruction, roost disturbance, disease, and wind turbines.” The purpose of the book is to inform readers, to think good things about bats, and to provide inspiration and advice to help bats….

This book is highly recommended for both school and public libraries. Each ‘Bat Citizen’ article could be a starting point for individual or group projects, such as learning mapping software to study local bat ranges, conducting experiments to understand echolocation, building bat-houses in shop class for the school, and community. Students could host a bat festival educating and encouraging others to understand bats. The world needs bats.

Thematic Links: Bats; Bat Conservation; Animal Activists; Animal Welfare”
—Laura Reilly

Read the full review on page 22 of the April 2018 issue of Resource Links Magazine