These largest European rodents lived in primordial forests, building their complex abodes with the use of tools that Homo sapiens had no concept of at the time. In this way, they banked up water or changed its course, influencing forest biodiversity and shaping the landscape like architects. Humans, who once almost exterminated the species, are today the only ones responsible for protecting it. In his lyrical nature reportage, Adam Robiński takes the reader to central and eastern Poland, to the dense, still barely accessible forests, where today, many beaver families live in the wild, well hidden from humans. He also demonstrates the extent to which Polish and European culture is indebted to nature – the beaver was and is an inspiration to many artists, writers, and filmmakers. The ecosystem humans are also a part of is hugely valuable to us but requires care.

In January 2020, Homero González, a butterfly keeper from a wildlife sanctuary, vanished without a trace in the Mexican state of Michoacán. Szymon Opryszek follows the trail of the last footprints left by the victim. The author discovers a spider web of local and global relations in his investigation: drug cartels, corrupt politicians, multinational corporations, and…– contended consumers gorging themselves on tasty avocados. And even though he’s looking for the missing activist, anytime he pricks up his ears, all he can hear is the sound of water. What do the monarch butterflies and avocado plantations have in common? What is the connection between the wailing fir trees and technological giants like Google or Meta? And why did the current events in Iraq affect the situation on the Polish-Belarussian border? The book inquires into one of the most burning problems of the modern world – the global water crisis. This book is essential to all of us. Just like water

Feast of Fire is the story of the Łabendowicz family. It is essentially three interwoven narratives intended to be moving, entertaining, and sometimes gently affecting. The story of a father caring for his twenty-ne-year-old daughter Anastazja, who has cerebral palsy, and the trials and tribulations of his second daughter, thirty-year-old ballet dancer Łucja, truly reads like a movie script. In particular, the sections narrated by Anastazja are richly and authentically delightful. This young woman, imprisoned in her disabled body, observes and, at the same time, creates the world beyond her window. Yet Małecki’s aim is not to write yet another story about suffering. Anastazja’s world is poetically moving because it makes us practice sensitivity and imagination. When she lovingly gazes at photos of puddles from different corners of the globe, it is better to go “jumping” through the puddles outside her window later. This warmth of detail seems able to rescue even the most challenging story.

Earthlings is a report on the Earth compiled by aliens. Using this humorous concept, the authors present information about Earth (one of an infinite number of planets) and its inhabitants (not as unique as they would like to think they are) objectively using numerical data, avoiding judgments and analyses. The book shows readers that diversity is common and natural; it is intended to teach tolerance and understanding and to reflect together about who we, Earthlings, are and how we treat our planet.

Roch the Raven can’t stand the way he looks. He hates his dark plumage and wishes he had colorful feathers like Lola, the parrot! Roch decides to do something about his dream, with a few hiccups along the way. Eventually, he figures out that every color on Earth has its purpose. He also falls in love and does everything he can to form a bond of love and honor. Moreover, he learns to earn and respect his friendships with the other animals around him.

A dog called Fred decides to save the drought-and plastic-threatened planet, starting from his backyard. Fred’s methods are unconventional. He washes dishes with his tongue and takes mud baths to save water and protect the environment – a technique not always approved by adults. The environmental education element of Fred’s story is a joyful adventure – the protagonist teaches care for the planet entertainingly, revealing interesting facts about our world for young readers.

Twenty-four different events from various corners of the world – from the Western celebrations of Carnival in Venice and the Day of the Dead in Mexico to Eastern traditions such as the Day of Silence on the Pacific island of Bali. As we discover the details of these diverse festivities, we also see how much human beings across the world have in common: the need and desire for community, togetherness, celebrating the past and present, having fun, and being creative.

Readers can learn why wolves are wonderful, fascinating creatures, the structure of wolf packs, the size of their territories, and why they make long migrations. The book also looks at the likely fate of specific wolves. Humans have taken over the Earth and changed it irrevocably. In this world, wild animals cannot survive without our help. But help must be given wisely – guided not by emotions but knowledge. And that, essentially, is what this book is about.

The book demonstrates the Polish community of people who are deaf, deaf and speechless, and hard of hearing. The author comes to understand what life can seem like for people who are completely separated from others. A life in which one’s native language is a foreign tongue since one cannot employ it. But this “in turn” means that practically speaking, one is a citizen of no state, becoming instead an inhabitant of the titular “deaf backwoods” – an extraordinarily silent, lonely, and unbearable planet. In this sense, Goc’s book is no run-of-the-mill interventionist reportage but a manifesto from completely isolated places and mysterious enclaves, where one communicates differently and perceives people and reality in a different way, too. God’s reportage opens an entirely new perspective on human life to us, the “hearts” of people.