We read books about the earth and environment every day and we take our job of protecting the planet very seriously. Since Earth Day is around the corner (April 22), here are some of our favorites.

The Curious Garden, by Peter Brown.
We love this story of a little boy named Liam who discovers a withering garden and makes it his responsibility to care for it. We see how the city slowly transforms into a beautiful lush garden. Bonus points because this is a great book to show city kids that they can find gardens and greenery everywhere around them!

Don’t Throw That Away, by Lara Bergen and illustrated by Betsy Snyder.
This life-the-flap book is a wonderful way to teach children that they can reuse items that they would perhaps otherwise throw away. We certainly take these lessons to heart and have taken to storing and reusing everything from paper towel rolls, plastic bottles and cardboard boxes.

The Bear Report by Thyra Heder.
Still one of our favorite books to read, we love this story of the little girl who learns all about polar bears thanks to one special bear named Olafur.

The Adventures of a Plastic Bottle and The Adventures of an Aluminum Can, by Alison Inches and Pete Whitehead.
I enjoy reading these books (almost) as much as the kids do. We learn all about plastic bottles and aluminum cans, how they are recycled and made into new things like fleece jackets and baseball bats!

Recycle! A Handbook for Kids, by Gail Gibbons.
I have lost track of how many times we have read this book. This book teaches children about the process of recycling from start to finish for five types of trash – paper, glass, aluminum, plastic and polystyrene. We can read it over and over again, along with our other favorite Trash and Recycling.

The Earth Book, by Todd Parr
This sweet story teaches children about environmental protection and conservation. Parr includes many easy, smart ideas on how we can all work together to help the Earth such as planting a tree, using both sides of the paper, saving energy and reusing old things in new ways.

I Can Save the Earth! One Little Monster Learns to Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, by Alison Inches and illustrated by Viviana Garofoli.
This adorable monster named Max has an important message for children everywhere. At first, Max is not the most eco-conscious monster, he leaves the lights on, makes a mess and doesn’t recycle – his actions cause a power outage, which in turn cause him to look beyond his walls, care about the environment and become a truly “green” little monster. 

Compost Stew: An A to Z Recipe for the Earth, by Mary McKenna Siddals and illustrated by Ashley Wolff.
This fun picture book features an alphabet of composting terms, from apple cores to zinnia heads along with engaging illustrations and an important message.