Why We Live Where We Live

Why do we live on Earth and not Jupiter? How do water, energy, and money affect where we live? Vermond examines these and other questions as she looks at how humans have built communities and cities, resettled around the world, and dealt with environmental and socioeconomic problems. Twenty topics get spreads of their own, framed by McLaughlin’s bright cartoons, which keep the mood fairly light, even as Vermond discusses food shortages, climate change, and troubled cities (“Today more than one billion people live in slums”). An accessible primer on the development of human civilization, with plenty of potential to spur classroom activities and conversation. Ages 8–12. (Sept.)