The world consumes over 300 million tonnes of plastic each year. But when did we start using plastic? And why? Where does all the plastic waste go?
Journey through the life cycle of plastic – how plastics are produced and recycled, the many uses of plastics throughout the last century, how our plastic use and pollution has spiralled out of control, and what we can do about it.
About the Author :
Eun-ju Kim has been writing children’s books for a long time since studying physics and early childhood education in college.
Ji-won Lee studied illustration and has been working as an illustrator of children’s books.
Joungmin Lee Comfort is a translator who enjoys children’s literature as much as her kids do. She is delighted to have translated Plastic: past, present, and future, and looks forward to helping spread more Korean children’s literature around the world.
Review :
‘[R]eaders are launched into a close examination of plastic — how it came to be, how it’s made and used, and how it has changed the world, for better and for worse. The book objectively presents the petroleum-based substance’s contributions to the field of medicine and to the accessibility of manufactured goods alongside its increasingly harsh toll on the environment ... Lee’s boldly coloured digital illustrations attractively and neatly chart out complex phenomena such as microplastics consumption.’ STARRED REVIEW
‘Author Kim and illustrator Lee offer scenes to help kids digest the complex story of plastics ... [R]efreshingly, plastics recycling is not presented as a catchall solution for single-use plastics. Readers are encouraged to reduce single-use plastic consumption, to learn about innovative solutions from scientists and activists, and to acknowledge that eliminating plastics use is unlikely. Illustrations of people throughout show varied skin tones consistent with the bold style used by the illustrator.’
‘This book aims to make the topic of plastics accessible to a younger crowd. Beginning with a brief account of a wayward shipment of bath toys spilling into the Pacific Ocean and making their way across the globe, Kim uses a narrative nonfiction style ... Full-page art further enhances the story, while smaller frames or diagrams help describe how plastic is created, how toxic pollutants fill the air, and how to achieve recycling and reusing.’
‘[T]ake a brightly coloured look at plastic, starting with the story of bath toys set loose in the ocean. Even-handed and informative, the book details the many helpful uses of plastic, its damage to the environment, and the latest work in cleaning up, recycling, and reformulating plastics.’
‘This Korean import is more than the history and manufacture of plastic…[I]llustrations are done in simple, subdued tones that easily explain past and present history… [S]imply and expertly explains the pros and cons of plastic making it very useful in any class on environmentalism, climate change and recycling … A timely and important subject.’
‘Plastic is one of the most celebrated and regrettable inventions that has become a presumed indispensable material throughout the world but at what cost? A thorough and highly engaging look at the history, facts and what do we do next with this long lasting material that has become increasingly abundant.’
