Consider the Octopus
NOW AVAILABLE!
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When chance, or fate, throws two twelve-year-olds together on board a scientific research ship at the edge of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, it’s not all smooth sailing!
Jeremy “JB” Barnes is looking forward to spending the summer before seventh grade hanging on the beach. But his mother, a scientist, has called for him to join her aboard a research ship where, instead, he’ll spend his summer seasick and bored as he stares out at the endless plastic, microbeads, and other floating debris, both visible and not, that make up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
Miles and miles away, twelve-year-old Sidney Miller is trying to come up with an alternate activity worthy of convincing her overprotective parents that she can skip summer camp.
When Jeremy is asked to find the contact information for a list of important international scientists and invite them to attend a last-minute Emergency Global Summit, he's excited to have a chance to actually do something that matters to the mission. How could he know that the Sidney Miller he messages is not the famous marine biologist he has been tasked with contacting, but rather a girl making podcasts from her bedroom―let alone that she would want to sneak aboard the ship?
Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner's Consider the Octopus is a comedy of errors, mistaken identity, and synchronicity. Above all, it is a heartfelt story about friendship and an empowering call to environmental protection, especially to our young people who are already stepping up to help save our oceans and our Earth.
9/10 from TIME Magazine for Kids!
A The Week Junior Book of the Week!
Parent/Teacher Resources
Praise for Consider the Octopus
Superlative writing and character development uplift this timely story . . . An inspiring tale of friendship and conservation. ―Kirkus Reviews, starred review
With nonstop action . . . and empathetic characters, this is a fast, fun read. A sure winner for readers interested in the environment and adventure, or even just in adventure. ―School Library Journal
An eco book without being preachy… [A] STEM book with more humor than education, as well as enough heart… quite a tall feat…CONSIDER THE OCTOPUS is a fun book that breezes along for ages eight and up as effortless as sailing with the wind at your back. - Daddy Mojo
9/10… A fun read… made me laugh… also has a really powerful message about how we need to save the environment. - Ronak Bhatt, TIME for Kids