Save the Planet

Desert Girl, Monsoon Boy
Written by Tara Dairman & Illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan
Age Level: 4-7 Years
Published May 12, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Books of 2020

What if your homeland became unlivable?

Poetically written, vibrantly illustrated, and thoroughly researched, this is a delicate and enchanting story about climate change.

Taking place in northwest India, this book focuses on two different groups of the Rabari people - a girl who lives a nomadic lifestyle in the dry desert, and a boy who lives in the monsoon-prone village. Both children are living the harsh reality of weather extremes wrought by climate change. In the story, the girl and her family are driven out of the desert by extreme drought, and the boy and his family are forced to uproot their lives and relocate to higher ground due to severe monsoons.

“River trickles.
Higher ground.
Thirst quenched.
Dry and sound.”

In a lovely conclusion, the author imagines both children crossing paths up in the verdant Aravalli hills, where both families have sought refuge from their increasingly inhospitable environments.

Author Tara Dairman and illustrator Archana Sreenivasan put so much thought, intention, and research into this book and the outcome is stunning. Sreenivasan visited a Rabari settlement in Rajasthan and documented her experience, and a Rajasthan-based nonprofit that supports camel pastoralists helped ensure accuracy. Their precision and sensitivity shine through beautifully.