DEBORAH CHOLETTE
Author
A bit about me
As a kid, my mom and I would watch classic movies on TV. The images I saw inspired me to create intricate scenes in my mind until my story was finished. I remember being seven or eight and not getting enough sleep.
Over the years, I wrote romantic comedies.
Then, one day I woke up with a vision of a boy waking up in front of his house, only a head on a mysterious metallic base. I thought… who would like a crazy story about a boy who had his body stolen? So, I ignored it for a few months. But it kept haunting me, so I had to write it. And when I did, kids disappeared for hours reading it all the way through. And the kids I met at school readings were so full of wonder, acceptance and excitement.
I was hooked on writing for kids.
NOW FOR SALE!!!
DIGGER: DIG OR DIE
*scroll to the end of the reviews to check out the real science sources from DIGGER'S EPILOGUE
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Written By: Deborah Cholette
Illustrated By: Davide Ortu
Red Chair Press: ONE ELM BOOKS
Lexile: 580L
Total Words: 36,553
ISBN: 978-1-64371-399-1
SKU: DIG
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Climate change is presently a worldwide concern, however, what is not often mentioned is that greenhouse gas emissions not only affect Earth’s lower atmospheric layers but that they also affect Earth’s outer layers which protect us from solar particles entering our atmosphere and damaging satellites, power grids and aircraft electrical systems.
In this dystopian middle grade novel Digger: Dig or Die!, a climate change disaster forces humanity to search for safety as Earth's atmosphere escapes into space. Narrated by siblings Nick and Lily, the story follows their resourcefulness in aiding neighbors. Nick's digging prowess and Lily's strategic planning become vital as oxygen diminishes. Nick unveils a plan to create a lifesaving network of tunnels as breathable air disappears. Lily crafts a communication system with walkie-talkies and baby monitors to share critical information. A frantic race ensues to complete tunnels before food and oxygen become scarce; it’s a tense battle for survival in a world teetering on the edge of extinction.
5.25" x 7.75" 240 pages Ages 9 to 12
BISACS: JUV059000 JUV029030 JUV029010
Free Educator & Library Discussion Guide.
Jacketed Hardcover / 978-1-64371-399-1 / $18.99 (List)
Ebook and Audiobook editions to be available.
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On-Sale date: February 4, 2025
Order before Earth Day April 2025!!!
Early Praise for Digger: Dig or Die!
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"In Cholette's compelling middle grade novel, Nick and Lily miss Dad, who left home a year ago for a construction project in New York. "He was the best digger around," Nick says, "operating big backhoes." To impress Dad, Nick dug a tunnel from his basement bedroom to the 50-foot-deep ravine behind their neighborhood; Mom, meanwhile, is too overwhelmed with work and single parenting to notice. When a climate catastrophe hits, Nick reveals his underground dugout, and the family hides food there...The fast-paced story includes social-issue themes, including bullying, mental health, and gun violence. Ortu's crisp illustrations individuate Cholette's diverse cast of characters and enhance her storytelling. Young readers will find this a (pun intended) breathtaking, page-turning read." -- ALA Booklist (Starred Review)
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"This concisely written novel, aptly depicting a worldwide catastrophe through the lens of one small neighborhood, ends on a satisfying and convincing note. Ortu's crisp, comic-book style illustrations feel immersive as they wrap around the text, cover multiple pages, or show above- and underground perspectives simultaneously. Engaging adolescent heroes propel this streamlined, riveting eco-fiction." -- Kirkus Reviews
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“Dig for your life in this scientific dystopian novel where the sky really is falling. . . . An additional purchase where science-based novels are needed.”-- School Library Journal
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“As siblings Nick and Lily watch panic engulf their neighborhood, their talents—Nick digs tunnels; Lily is a champion organizer—take on new importance. The pace of the story never lets up as the two kids struggle to provide their neighbors with the basics that they have always taken for granted: food, shelter, and above all, air. Based on a scientific possibility, Digger: Dig or Die will have middle-grade readers on the edge of their seats from the first page to the last.”-- Cindy Trumbore, Sibert Medal-winning author of Parrots Over Puerto Rico and other award-winning books for children"
This action-packed dystopian novel kept me turning pages. I was cheering for our heroes Nick and Lily, who are well-drawn and compelling characters. Digger: Dig or Die! contains a fascinating and fresh twist on Earth-threatening disasters. Best of all, this book contains the wonderful message that kids can lead and truly make a difference. i really dig this story!"-- Polly Holyoke, Author of the award-winning Neptune and Skyriders series"
A thrilling adventure for middle-graders packed full of twists, turns, suspense --and a powerful climate change message."-- The Wishing Shelf
THE SCIENCE BEHIND DIGGER: DIG OR DIE
Until recently, scientists called the upper layers of earth’s atmosphere the “ignorosphere” because they knew so little about them. Although this novel is a work of fiction, it touches upon alarming evidence of real damage made to these layers. 1
The five main atmospheric layers are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere and exosphere, with many secondary layers including the ozone, the ionosphere and the magnetosphere.
The region we know best, because it is where our weather happens, is the troposphere. And it is being damaged by greenhouse gases, especially CO2 (carbon dioxide), resulting in climate change and many of the disasters Earth is presently experiencing. 2
CO2 also damages the upper layers which are located above the troposphere. 3 An example of this are the holes in the ozone layer of the stratosphere that protects living things and the environment from harmful ultraviolet rays. Ozone holes have been in the news for many years, but an especially alarming event, occurred, in 2020 where a hole over the Antarctic was three times the size of the continental United States. 4
CO2 concentrations that warm the troposphere, actually cool the ionosphere and have been thought to be the main cause of climatic changes at these high altitudes. New simulations indicate the densest part of the ionosphere is lowering by about 5 km globally. 3 The sky is actually falling.
The magnetosphere that protects Earth from harmful solar wind is being destabilized.
In 2007, Nasa’s Themis mission involving five spacecraft discovered a crack four times wider than Earth itself in the magnetosphere. The entire day-side of the magnetosphere was open to the solar wind."5 Solar particles are constantly bombarding Earth. Sometimes solar flares bombard us. Sometimes CME (Coronal Mass Ejections) bombard us. 6
SOURCES
1. https://e360.yale.edu/features/climate-change-upper-atmosphere-cooling%20
2. https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/how-can-climate-change-affect-natural-disasters
3. https://phys.org/news/2014-05-earth-magnetic-field-important-climate.html#jCp
5. https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2008/16dec_giantbreach THIS LINK IS BROKEN. PLEASE SEARCH KEYWORDS: THEMIS SPACECRAFT, 2008, HOLE IN MAGNETOSPHERE
6. {LiveScience} https://tinyurl.com/bdfb9mm6
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CONTACT FOR DIGGER READERS: diggerdigordie@gmail.com
CONTACT FOR DIGGER BUSINESS, SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES: deborahcholette@gmail.com
Get Me Out Of This Book: Rules and Tools for Being Brave
When Max the bookmark went into a scary book, he couldn't LOOK and he SHOOK and he SCREAMED, "GET ME OUT OF THIS BOOK!"
Then he learned to (1) breathe deeply, (2) make a plan, and (3) think positive thoughts--techniques used by the Navy SEALs. Max put his new tools into practice and now he's brave enough to face a snake, yucky bugs, and even a seven-headed monster!
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THIS HOLIDAY HOUSE BOOK CAN BE FOUND AT:
Penguin Random House, Barnes and Noble, Chapters Indigo, Amazon and many web sites and stores all over the world!
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