The Greenhouse Effect
by David P Reiter
artwork by Sarah Dunk
The first in the Project Earthmend Series of environmentally conscious but enjoyable novels for kids who want to learn about how to save the Earth.
When Tiger the Cat moves to Canberra with his owner Alexander, there are bound to be a few rough patches in settling in. The dogs next store are anything but friendly, and the nearby park is crawling with snakes and other creatures of the night.
But Tiger makes friends with Wanda, the blue-tongued lizard and then finds himself wanting to become a Member of the Sacred Few, a group of magical frogs, actually extra-terrestrials in disguise. This crew has come to Earth on a mission to spread the word about the Great Danger, and the need to heal the planet of pollution and energy waste before it's too late.
It's an adventure Tiger can't resist, filled with many surprises along the way. All he needs to do is be sure he won't miss out on his Cat Gourmet dinners along the way...
Dr David P Reiter (pictured here with his son Alexander) is a multi-award winning author and publisher living in Brisbane. He has written 20 fiction, poetry and children's titles, as well as scripts and multimedia. His previous children's books are Real Guns and The Greenhouse Effect.
He's won the Queensland Premier’s Award and been shortlisted for the Steele Rudd and Adelaide Festival Awards. He’s presented his work to audiences in Australia and overseas and received several grants from the Australia Council and Arts Queensland.
ISBN 9781921479250 (2nd edition 2009; PB, 208pp);
125mm x 203mm
$15
$17
$10
$12
£6
This book is on the list for the South Australian Premier's Reading Challenge, as well as the Victorian Reading Challenge, along with the two next sequels in the Project Earth-mend Series, Global Cooling and Tiger Tames the Min Min.
Links
Book 2: Global Cooling
Book 3: Tiger Tames the Min Min
David's Google Profile
David's LinkedIn Site
David's MobileMe blog
Sample
in which Tiger meets Prince
Say what you will, Tiger thought, licking his lips as he walked down the drive, the world would be a happier place if everyone just had a full tum.
As the sun went down, a cool breeze came up. A fine time for a prowl in the park. Tiger cut across the front yard and stopped at the edge of the flowerbed that marked the property line. The dogs next door might be awake by now. He pretended to sniff at a banksia, and then had a lick or two at his fur, but he was really checking out the gate to their back yard. The latch seemed solid enough, but you could never be sure.
He remembered what his mother had told him when he was just a kitten. You’re only as safe as the closest tree.
Next Door’s yard didn’t have any trees, just a patchy lawn and a few scrubby bushes that seemed to be crying out for a good feed and some water. There was a nice big gum tree back in Tiger’s yard, but the last thing he wanted was to be caught out in the open with two dogs between him and the tree. One dog he could handle. Two coming at you at once could be a bit of a challenge.
There was only one way to be sure.
He trotted over to the gate and scampered up onto the tallest post. Sure enough, the dogs were awake. As soon as they got his scent, they came racing over, barking like crazy.
‘Don’t get your collars in a knot,’ said Tiger. ‘I just came by to introduce myself. My name’s Tiger, and I’m your new neighbour. My bloodline goes back to the Egyptians, you know.’
Tiger’s mother had told him the Egyptians were a people who lived by the River Nile and thought of cats as gods. So they had to have something going for them.
‘A cat! A cat!’ the biggest dog barked, jumping up against the gate.
The post Tiger was sitting on shuddered ever so slightly, but the gate held.
‘Do something, Tony,’ the second dog growled, pacing back and forth.
‘I’m doing my best, Cleo,’ he said, wheezing a bit. ‘You could help for a change!’
‘Tony and Cleo?’ laughed Tiger. ‘What kind of names are those?’
Tony put a bit more energy into his next jump, but it still fell well short of the cat. He shrank back, gasping for air.
‘It has something to do with Shakespeare, I think,’ said Cleo. ‘I think he’s a writer. Have you heard of him?’
‘My human’s a writer, too,’ said Tiger. ‘He’d know that Shake-spear guy — if he’s any good.’
‘Oh, yes,’ said Tony, still panting. ‘Just because you’re out there and we’re in here, you think that you’re better than we are.’
‘Did I say such a thing?’ Tiger said, trying to keep a straight face. ‘But the world can be a cruel place . Anyway, I’ll be seeing you around!’
With that, he skittered back down the post. The dogs kept barking until he was out of the yard and had crossed the road into the park. He headed straight for the tall grass. It was best to take cover in a strange place until you got your bearings. As the colour passed from the sky he could hear crickets and frogs nearby. Tiger stopped. Where there are frogs there must be water. He decided to have a look.