Galapogos Islands

Welcome to the Galápagos Islands, a pristine archipelago in the Pacific Ocean, where locals and visiting scientists
work among giant tortoises, salt-snorting iguanas, diving penguins and erupting volcanoes. They are looking for just
the right balance between humans and nature to lead the world to a sustainable future.

Far off the coast of Ecuador lies a group of volcanic islands unlike any other. Home to species as diverse as giant tortoises, saltsnorting
marine iguanas, and the birds that made Charles Darwin famous, the Galápagos are a living laboratory for scientists
working on the most urgent problem of our times: How can humans exist in harmony with nature on the only planet we are ever
likely to have? Karen Romano Young, author of Antarctica: The Melting Continent, again takes to the field, visiting the
archipelago to observe its environments first-hand and to interview the people who are lighting the way for the rest of us.

• Illustrator Amy Grimes brings Karen’s experience into vivid visual life for those of us who haven’t been there – yet.
• Nonfiction reading/ information literacy at its best, with author Karen Romano Young melding first-hand experience,
  interviews with scientists in the field, and easy-to-understand background and context that will make every reader an
  expert.
• STEM, STEM, STEM, including Earth science, ecology, technology, and lots and lots of animals.
• Profiles of a diverse array of scientists and locals, historical and modern, will activate readers to solve the problems of
  the world themselves.
• Gorgeous illustrations and maps draw the reader into the world of these exotic islands.