By Robert Snedden
Chicago: Heinemann Library, 2002. 48 pages; $25.64 hardcover.
Reviewed by Ruth Ann Hacking
Energy Alternatives is a children’s book that will appeal to teenagers and adults alike, or anyone looking for an introduction to alternative energy technologies. The book covers technology and environmental issues in short, easy-to-read sentences, without simplifying the content or the message.
The book begins with an introduction to current energy practices, an explanation of why energy is essential, and the importance of alternatives to oil consumption. After two chapters dedicated to transportation and fuel cells, the remainder of the book explores the many different alternative energy technologies, including cogeneration, solar, wind, water, geothermal, and biomass energy generation. The book concludes with an outlook on the future of energy generation, a few energy statistics, and a short glossary. It is especially helpful in understanding alternative energy technologies because it offers some of the economic, social, and environmental drawbacks associated with each method, as well as presenting energy production as an issue of global relevance.
This book is informational and provides an overview of many alternative energy technologies, but it has some drawbacks. Although the individual sentences are short, the information supplied on each page is quite dense. In addition, parts of the book are disorganized, with pieces of information added where they don’t seem to belong.
Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a short overview of alternative energy technologies. Although this is a children’s book, it does not talk down to any audience. Adults still have much to learn, and although children may need help to understand some of the concepts in this book, it would be an excellent tool to begin an environmentally aware dialogue between parent and child.
Ruth Ann Hacking is a recent graduate of Smith College and a former intern at NESEA.
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