Oil Spill Disaster

On the heels of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in April, this exposé explores the consequences of the disaster and the ramifications of worldwide oil dependence. Profiles of individuals involved with the recovery process address pertinent questions: a sea turtle expert discusses how turtle eggs may not hatch if exposed to oil, and an oil spill expert explains that the difficulty in stopping the spill had to do with the cold temperatures and high pressure deep in the ocean. While text and color photographs convey the extent of the devastation to the Gulf, the book also highlights some innovative attempts to clean up oil spills and profiles two middle school students, who researched cleaning up oil in their own neighborhood. Ages 8–12. (Sept.)