Inspiring Teens, Tweens, and Families to Make a Difference in the World: Programming to Advance the Sustainable Development Goals

This title provides a foundational framework for building a series of young adult programs centered around thematic elements, including Feed the World, Gender Equality, Affordable and Clean Energy, Climate Action, and more. Each section is broken down within the theme by programs geared towards families, tweens, or teens. An extremely helpful element for librarians in developing their own programs are suggested book club topics with several example book lists that are relevant within each topic. For example, within the chapter of Ending Poverty, books such as Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give and Jennifer Richard Jacobson’s Paper Things are suggested, among other relevant titles. Some of the suggested activities are practical and low-cost to no-cost, with each section usually incorporating at least two or three programs that would require materials or funding of some sort. The balance of this makes the book helpful to libraries both big and small, as well as an informative read to librarians both established or just starting out serving teens and tweens. The “Community Connections” section at the end of each chapter is slightly less helpful, as it often gives a somewhat overarching and ephemeral suggestion of reaching out to a local expert or business who could come and speak at the library on the theme the programming is based around. These sections are short and feel like something of an afterthought. However, that does not detract from the title as a whole, which functions as a useful tool for any librarian trying to engage a younger, socially conscious crowd that are looking to make a difference in their local community, while still being entertained and engaged at their library.