Owl’s Outstanding Donuts

“Whatever that sloopy gloop was, something would need to be done. People can’t just dump stinky slop into creeks and get away with it” (2)

Set just off Highway One in Big Sur, California, Owl’s Outstanding Donuts is an eco-mystery that can introduce children to environmental activism. Warned by Alfred, an English-speaking, donut-loving owl, ten-year-old Mattie Waters sets out to discover who is secretly polluting the creek across from her Aunt Molly’s donut shop with “gloop.” To do so, she enlists the help of her friends Sasha and Beanie. Grieving and traumatized by the recent hit-and-run death of her mother, Mattie is both terrified of riding in any vehicle on the highway and hesitant to enlist the help of adults, particularly since she seems to be the only one to believe that the owl understands speech and is aware of how the polluters endanger both the environment and the future of the donut shop. Each of twenty-four short chapters is whimsically headed by the name of a different kind of gourmet donut. The book begins with Alfred’s favorite, “The Strawberry Iced Classic: A sour cream cake donut with strawberry-infused pink icing and sprinkles.”

Although climate is not specifically mentioned, the conflict arises from land use, water quality, and waste management issues. Aside from the central conflict, the novel hints at an evolving utopian ideal of multicultural community. The parents demonstrate healthy lifestyles and the neighborhood families share sustainable lacto-ova vegetarian meals. There is an 80s vibe to the clothing. Although the children play games on mobile phones, most of their time is spent playing outside or helping their parents. Yardi, who lives in the Santa Barbara foothills, vividly describes redwood trees and splashing in the creek, making it clear that there is a fragile ecological balance that could be lost.

Interspecies cooperation in protecting a shared environment is a key theme. Yardi, who is an accredited teacher, clearly depicts children who are moving from concrete to abstract thinking and demonstrates how communication difficulties can be processed and resolved through problem solving and networking. Even though Mattie and her friends make mistakes in judgement while investigating the crime, all is well in the end and Mattie’s increasing confidence is central to the novel.

©2025 ClimateLit (Sandra Lindow)

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Publisher: Carolrhoda Books, Lerner Publishing, 2019

Audience: Ages 8-13

ISBN: 978154533059

Pages: 232

Lexile Score: 760L

Format: Novels

Topics: Activism, Eco-mystery, Ecological Balance, Interspecies Kinship, Land Ethic, Pollution, Sustainability, Vegetarianism, Waste Management, Water Pollution, Youth Climate Activism