Meera Subramanian (NASW member) & Danica Novgorodoff—A Better World Is Possible: Global Youth Confront the Climate Crisis

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

Cover of the book A Better World Is Possible: Global Youth Confront the Climate Crisis by Meera Subramanian and Danica Novgorodoff, showing an Industrial setting with spewing smokestacks at the top, better energy solutions such as windmills and solar panels in the middle, and four youth holding signs saying Global Youth Confront the Climate Crisis" at the 2019 climate rally in New York at the bottom. The title is in large red letters superimposed on the upper two-thirds of the cover, and the authors — Better World

A BETTER WORLD IS POSSIBLE:
GLOBAL YOUTH CONFRONT THE CLIMATE CRISIS
Meera Subramanian (NASW member)
Danica Novgorodoff (Co-writer and Illustrator)
First Second (Macmillan imprint), March 3, 2026
Hardcover: $25.99, Paperback: $18.99, eBook: $11.99
Hardcover ISBN: 9781250262974
Paperback ISBN: 9781250262981
e-Pub fixed layout ISBN: 9781250466518
e-book Nook ISBN: 9781250466525

Subramanian reports:

For the 20 years I’ve been freelancing as an environmental journalist, I’ve mostly written long-form narrative stories thick with science and long, complex sentences. My latest project is completely different!

Portrait photo of Meera Subramanian — Meera Subramanian
Photo by CC Boyle Photography

In early 2020, I bumped into an old friend, Danica Novgorodoff, at a mutual friend’s book event in Brooklyn. I’d long-admired her artwork, and when I asked what she was up to, she told me she had a book deal with First Second, a Macmillan imprint, for a YA graphic novel about climate change. She was struggling with the writing. Her first attempts felt like a textbook, she told me. “I do narrative!” I said. “Let’s talk!”

As the pandemic locked us down, we continued our conversation remotely. We connected our agents to work out a deal in which she hired me to take the lead on a manuscript that she would illustrate, with shared authorship.

Seeking an anchor for the story, we decided to frame the entire book around youth climate activists. We set the scene around the 2019 climate strike in New York City, which Danica had attended with her baby. To find our main characters, I searched news reports, learned who helped organize the event, and took notes from a YouTube recording of the event. After I’d developed a long list of possible teenagers, I reached out to see who was open to sharing their stories. I sought those who captured geographic and experiential diversity, always zeroing in on the question: what led them to take such powerful action on climate change at such a young age?

I’m glad we used real-life youth, but it did add a level of complexity with the press’s legal department! In the end, I am happy with our decision.

Four teens’ stories provide the narratives, Danica’s gorgeous watercolors bring the science and story to life, and deeply researched and fact-checked interludes on climate science, biodiversity, extreme weather, eco-grief, corporate fossil fuel disinformation campaigns, religion, and—of course!—climate solutions from the easy to the ambitious, make this what we hope is an engaging learning tool that is also a delight to read.

Contact Info:

Meera Subramanian, meerasub@gmail.com
- Subramanian’s website: Meera Subramanian
- Bluesky: Meera Subramanian
- LinkedIn: Meera Subramanian
- Threads: @meerasub
Novgorodoff’s website: Danica Novgorodoff
Book:
- Macmillan: A Better World Is Possible: Global Youth Confront the Climate Crisis
- Subramanian’s website: A Better World Is Possible: Global Youth Confront the Climate Crisis
Publicist: Morgan Rath, 646-307-5783, cell: 917-612-9638, morgan.rath@macmillan.com
Agent: currently unagented

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Banner image adapted from original photo by Meera Subramanian.

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Advance Copy

The path from idea to book may take myriad routes. The Advance Copy column, started in 2000 by NASW volunteer book editor Lynne Lamberg, features NASW authors telling the stories behind their books. Authors are asked to report how they got their idea, honed it into a proposal, found an agent and a publisher, funded and conducted their research, and organized their writing process. They also are asked to share what they wish they’d known when they started or would do differently next time, and what advice they can offer aspiring authors. Lamberg edits the authors’ answers to produce the Advance Copy reports.

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