Lyons Regional Library

In 1957, more than six thousand products made with the chemical pesticide DDT were available. Farmers used DDT for pest control on their food crops. Consumers used wallpaper laced with the pesticide to keep bugs at bay. Scientists and the government all considered DDT safe, until a thoughtful and brave woman dared to question the indiscriminate and excess use of the synthetic chemical. Rachel Carson was a writer and marine biologist. The publication...

"In 1831, at the age of twenty-two, Charles Darwin embarked on a momentous five-year-long voyage on the HMS Beagle. His observations during this voyage led Darwin to eventually conclude that all species of plant and animal life have slowly evolved over thousands of years, adapting themselves to their environment by a process of natural selection. This book tells the story of Darwin's life, detailing the findings and events that led him to develop...

"Botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer's best-selling book Braiding Sweetgrass is adapted for a young adult audience by children's author Monique Gray Smith, bringing Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the lessons of plant life to a new generation."--

Meet Katherine Johnson, a brilliant mathematician who worked at NASA in the early 1950s until retiring in 1986. Katherine's unparalleled calculations (done by hand) helped plan the trajectories for NASA's Mercury and Apollo missions (including the Apollo 11 moon landing). She is said to be one of the greatest American minds of all time.--

Speak Up! is a joyful celebration of 45 speeches by children and teenagers who have stood up for causes they passionately believe in and challenged adults in power to take note. This collection is testament to the hopefulness and spirit of the next generation, and the positive belief that we can, and should, act to protect the things we love. From ground-breaking scientific inventions to pleas for the environment, anti-war speeches to incredible testimony...