Carbon Diaries 2015, as Weik points out in her article, never become too depressing or overbearing[it] leave[s] space for hope that makes [it] bearable and indeed enjoyable for young readers [70]. As the title suggests, the novel is written as though teenager Laura Brown is writing in her own personal diary. Later on we learn Laura sent her diary to her cousin in the United States in order to help her with a school assignment. For two reasons these facts qualify the novel as an appropriate and informational outlet to teach young readers the importance of taking care of the environment before damages become irreparable. Michael Svec and Mike Winiskis article, SF and Speculative Novels: Confronting the Science and the Fiction, states Readers of any piece of fiction must find a touchstone, a place, person, or emotion where they can connect and engage in the story [45]. Carbon Diaries is considered a young adult dystopian novel geared toward a younger generation. The language thats used, the form Laura writes in, the dialogue included within her entries, and the thoughts and emotions readers get through reading the diary are written in language young readers can relate to and comprehend. At the end of the novel when we learn Laura sent her diary to her cousin to help with her research. This demonstrates how Carbon Diaries could be a source of information for readers.
In Svecs and Winiskis article, they write As we move toward a pedagogical definition of SF, we are guided by the goal of providing students with the opportunity to develop both their sense of informed skepticism and wonder [37]. As a result of this, they propose four necessary elements for the use of speculative fiction as a form of teaching. One of the elements which pertains to how Carbon Diaries 2015 could be used to teach environmental awareness is the novum, a possible solution or idea that comes from the science being speculated [38]. The novum is meant to connect to both curiosity and openness to new ideasScience education should foster and then channel curiosity into productive investigations [40]. As mentioned earlier, many speculative fiction novels begin by immersing their readers into a dystopian society where the world is changed completely and usually controlled by the government and science. Carbon Diaries differs from these because the novel begins just a week before society changes to carbon rationing, which allows readers to follow the characters on their journey and feel the changes as they appear within the society. Since Lloyd chooses to start the novel before the dystopian elements come into play, she is essentially introducing a potential solution to the issues caused by reckless behaviors. Going back to Svec and Winiskis analysis, The growth of scientific knowledge and technology comes from generating new ideas, and the novum can serve as the means to generate those innovations [40]. Lloyds idea for the government to create carbon rationing is her own creativity expressed in the novel though it also contributes to the novum, shown through the apparent research that was undertaken throughout Carbon Diaries. The inclusion of a game plan shows that a possible solution has been thought out and there are in fact ways that people can start reducing the harm being done to the environment. Lloyds decision to employ a possible long term solution to environmental issues is one reason this novel would make an influential platform to use for educating young readers.
Dystopian novels such as Carbon Diaries 2015 are becoming increasingly popular amongst young adult readers. Linda A. Gann and Karen Gavigan in their article, The Other Side of the Dark, believe these novels are becoming increasingly popular because, simply put, its what young adults want to read about. They write, the climate of fear in young adult dystopian novels, many consider them to be cautionary tales that help the reader view different perspectives of reality. They typically warn readers about the dangers of a current societal trend [237]. Since not many dystopian novels have been written in the past until recently, young readers are drawn in to the new worlds that are being speculated in the novels. One of Weiks arguments is that dystopian novels, though discussing topics that some may consider depressing, should still include moments of hope and promise for the future. Lois Lowry stated in Weiks article that young readers need to see some hope for [a better] world [many young readers] are forced to handle dystopia every dayin their lives, their dysfunctional families, their violence-ridden schools [72]. The reason there is a need for hope in dystopian novels is that manyyoung readers are faced with depressing topics in both real life and in the books they read as well. Much of what Gann and Gavigan writes contradict Weiks belief that in order to make young adults read dystopian novels there must be an aspect of hope: young adult literature can serve as a conduit through which moral values can be communicated to the young and that reading literature, such as dystopian novels, forces teens to think about issues in way they may have never considered before [238]. The idea that eco-dystopian novels such as Carbon Diaries can be used to inform and teach readers to view environmentalism differently is one perspective which Weik does not consider as thoroughly as she does the idea that novels with similar themes should end on a hopeful note though she agrees that Lloyd does in fact want to teach her readers.
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