Sustainable(ish) Guide to Green Parenting, The: Guilt-free eco-ideas for raising your kids

by Jen Gale

'The most family friendly way to start doing your bit.' - The Sunday Times

The must-have friendly green bible of accessible eco-tips for families.

As a parent, getting out of the house with everyone wearing shoes (on a good day) can feel like you're winning, so adding 'being green' to the never-ending to-do list might feel like the thing to bring all your spinning plates crashing to the ground. If that's the case, then this is the book for you.

No preaching. No judgement. No guilt.

Instead you'll find easy, do-able ideas and suggestions for you to pick and choose from, try out and adapt. Plus bucketfuls of encouragement as you explore what works for you and your family.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction, Environment

224 pages, Paperback

Published May 18, 2021

Reviews

[Josephine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Filled with generally well-known principles for sustainability - BUT I think that's the point of the book. Very much an introduction to sustainability. Even so, I did get a few specific ideas that I hadn't heard of before, like camping dishes as more durable kids' dishes. (spoiler, just kidding).

It's an easy read with a positive tone, so the book is still worth the time regardless of how basic it is. I'd even read a newer edition if Gale adds additional specific ideas per section.

I did find the "pre baby" section a bit confusing. I almost skipped the section thinking it was about "trying to conceive", but it's actually the "pregnancy" section.

[Carolina Ibanez · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you have read more books about climate change and what to do then this book turns up to be a little redundant. Most of the suggestions are not necessarily applicable just to kids. It also is very focused on the UK, most webpages and resources are from there, so if you live there it might be more useful.
I was expecting to find more tips, more ‘global’ too so anyone anywhere could apply them easily without having to do some extra research. Sounds lazy but at the end I believe that’s the idea about reading these kind of books.
Nevertheless, there are some good links you can look into and the author does not judge which is comforting when you are trying to do your best for your kids and the planet at the same time.

[Caprice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic take on a current global conversation. I definitely want to move into being more sustainable and a conscious consumer. I’ve taken notes based on the author’s advice. I like that the author wasn’t overly preachy and admitted the things she doesn’t do or struggles with. I find her to be relatable, funny and honest. Some of the recommendations I already do which is reassuring. Would read again in the future as my circumstances change and need more guidance. The renting of clothes was a novel idea that I’d not heard of- looked on Selfridges and there’s a dress renting service that I’m now considering for my best mates upcoming wedding. Really good read.

[Rebecca B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good starting point for thinking about how to parent in a more eco-friendly way. My children are older and I've been trying to live in a greener way for some time now so I skim read a lot of it, but there were still some useful things to learn in there. While I appreciate the 'ish' nature of the book, I do feel like it could have been bolder in some areas, but otherwise I found it fairly balanced.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll admit, it feels a bit premature for me to read the primary school and teenage chapters but I'll come back to those in a few years! However, this is a great get started guide to living more sustainably as a parent, without the guilt tripping, perfectionism and impracticalities often spouted online. Start small, do what you can, when you can and keep going.

[Tatiana García Blanco · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is an interesting book with some good ideas but most of them I was already aware of and implementing them at home. I have only read the chapters relevant to the age of my daugther. I find it a bit too dense and chapters could be organised better in my opinion.

[Amanda Kane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d treat this more as a reference when you need specific ideas for a season of parenthood than reading cover to cover. Lots won’t apply depending on the age of your child. The author is based in the UK so lots of resources were UK based.