The First Rule of Climate Club by Carrie Firestone

 

Mary Kate Murphy is excited about her school's new climate class, where she will join eight other students and focus on scientific solutions to climate change. But the new school year brings lots of other challenges for Mary Kate: her best friend Lucy is really sick, and nobody knows what's wrong with her. Mary Kate realizes that not everyone in her community is as accepting as she thought--especially towards the Black and brown students who come to her school from Hartford. And it's hard to feel optimistic when it feels like nobody in her town wants to make any changes--especially the mayor. Will Mary Kate be able to join forces with her fellow students to solve some of these problems?

This is the sequel to Dress Coded, as it follows some of the same characters, but it has a different protagonist and can be read independently. 

I loved this book! I often find that books that are focused on a topic or issue like climate change get too involved in the topic and leave out the story; but just like Dress Coded, Carrie Firestone creates a well-rounded story that is both hopeful and inspiring, despite its serious subject.