Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This is a practical guide exploring how to fight climate change but I did find some of the practical tips lacking. However, it makes a great introduction to the subject for those looking to change their way of life.

I finally got around to reading this book and I really enjoyed it. I'm really trying to be more environmentally conscious and this really helped to give me some simple tips to be better.

The biggest takeaway is that we don't all have to be eco warriors. But we all have to be a bit of one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for provide me with a digital copy in exchange for my honest review.
The most important about this book is that shows how easy is for any of us, take responsability and make something good to preserve our planet. Is easy to understand and with great potencial impact.

This was a nice and easy book to read full of good advice. I thought it might be a bit heavy with a lot of fancy terms but it's actually very light and features some cute graphics too. The information is gathered in easy-to-read sections and overall I really got some great advice to use in my own daily life.

I also recently saw the physical book in a clothing store in Denmark (yes, indeed) and it looked great!

This is a much needed book that I hope finds its way into homes, and perhaps more importantly libraries, across the globe. Proof that environmentalism need not just be for the upper and middle classes, everyone can and should do their part.

As I am personally trying to change my lifestyle and being more environmentally conscious, I found this book really insightful and well researched.

Despite knowing quite a lot of the topics covered,I got to know new tips that I can use on a daily basis.

I would totally recommend this book for ‘newbies’, a perfect gift for a birthday or for Christmas!

Extremely useful! As someone that already has a big interest in living more sustainably, I’ve come across quite a few books that repeat the same general tips. This book was totally different. It dove deep while still covering a lot of aspects. Would recommend for both newbies in the world of trying to do good things for the planet, and also hard core activists. I’ll be buying a few copies of this for Christmas presents this year I think.

This is a book that fits well with Greta Thunberg's current campaigns & the focus on the environment. It's easy to read & understand and has some very practical tips. Not everything is doable all at once but if we each make a small change, those small changes add up to big changes.
It is split into sections looking at the impact on the oceans, forests, atmosphere etc and then tackles how we can make small differences with what we eat, what we use etc.
It definitely makes you think ...

Disclosure: I received this book free via NetGalley, . All opinions are my own

This is a great book on environmentalism. I liked the approach and it shows that in many cases, it doesn't cost a fortune to be environmentally friendly.

I really enjoyed this book. I have been learning a lot recently about the environmental impact or plastics, recycling or lack of it. It's both eye opening and fascinating. I always thought I was a fish swimming upstream. I dind't know how to make changes that would truly benefit the world we live in. How could I as one person make an impact. But that's the thing with this book. Its engaging and uplifting. I'm not just one person I am one of many. I already use water bottles that are reuseable and bamboo trtavel mugs for my coffee. I switched my coffee for recyceable containers and grounds. I give coffee grounds to family and friends for their allotments.
I have most recently read a few really good books about plastics, marine life and how we can help. I have even been looking at truly rececyleable brush heads for my oral b toothbrushes as we have 4 of them for the family. It's not easy trying to make a change but the tips and tricks that Natalie shares in htis book really are great. I feel that some are easier to implement than others, some we as a family are already doing but others, hadn't even occurred to me and there are changes that I will try and make going forward.
This book is user friendly and not at all overwhelming like some books on this subject can be. I read some of it with my girls are talked about the changes we can make. It has made them think about how we are using things and how mindless our shopping can be, the first change they wanted to make was cutting out palm oil (chocolate spread from sustainable sources) which for a 7 and 8 year old is pretty huge. The second was the bamboo coffee mugs and reuseable water bottles. We now buy our juice in large containers and split it into their bottles for school lunches instead in buying little cartons. Ideas that were generated by Natalies brilliant book!

My thanks to Laurence King Publishing Ltd for a digital edition via NetGalley of ‘How to Save the World for Free’ by Natalie Fee in exchange for an honest review.

Written by environmental campaigner Natalie Fee, this is a guide on how to make small practical changes in our everyday lives in order to help the environment and save the planet.

It opens with a section on ‘seven things we need to save’ that includes the oceans, rivers, trees, the soil, the air, plants and animals and us. After this she breaks down key areas where we can make changes including food and drink, clothing, finance, travel, to using the bathroom, exercising, relaxing, our intimate lives, voting and getting involved in the wider world.

I found this quite interesting and certainly useful. It is so easy to feel overwhelmed by the problems facing the world and helpless to effect change. I felt that she was proposing changes that were both effective and possible to do.

She freely admits that not all her proposed changes are free though many are. It is a positive, uplifting book.

Reading through the various sections I was able to see the areas where I was ticking the boxes as well as where I needed to improve and new areas to implement change in my life.

I feel that it would be a perfect book for families to open up discussions about the environment and to implement changes together.

Overall a practical and educational guide that I happily recommend.

Despite a rather depressive topic this book nicely combines pleasure of reading with effectiveness of learning. It is mainly due to a very approachable "youthful" style and clear content layout. Actually, we start off directly with a conclusion, namely, "Saving the world can be much more fun than you could ever imagine". This puts the whole topic into a completely different frame than in most other publications on this theme.
At the same time, it rises the bar for the author to a pretty high level. Fortunately, for me, extensive expectations are fulfilled almost in 100%. The book is packed with loads of small, middle-sized and huge actions that practically everyone can apply to save our natural environment, so your motivation really gets a boost. And... Yes, it is true that one complete long chapter is about sex life.
A little drawback I found is that the list of "People and Movements to Follow" is not published at author's webpage and the list of references "Downloads & extras" at https://www.laurenceking.com/product/how-to-save-the-world-for-free/ doesn't contain hyperlinks, but just plain text. And the link to 80000hours.org isn't mentioned anywhere. Overall, I strongly recommend this book simply to everybody.

I was excited about How to Save the World For Free by Natalie Fee. Who doesn’t want to help save the world? However, I was unfortunately unimpressed by this book.
The first section of this book is a brief overview of the state of Earth, and the primary elements we need to focus on saving (surprise, it’s basically everything!). The second half of the book consists of bullet pointed tips for saving the world as you move through your daily life. I appreciated that these were all actionable items, and this could be a great starting place for someone who has not ever tried to change their habits. However, I had a few gripes with her approach.
1. The title: MANY of her suggestions were not actually free: they often involved buying products that would cost a lot of money up front (e.g. offsetting flights, buying organic foods, filtration bottles, reusable mugs, period underwear). Even if those will eventually pay off and result in less money being spent in the long run, many people do not have an abundance of extra cash to invest in these purchases. Saying that these are free ways to save the world feels like the book version of click-bait. Also, she doesn’t mention anything about just making do with products you already have, rather than buying an abundance of “eco-friendly” products that still involve waste and plastic.
2. Too many suggestions: Without distinguishing which ones were very important changes and which ones were relatively insignificant, it was hard for me to tell where I should focus my energy, time, and money.
3. Simplifications of complex situations: I think that some suggestions required more nuance than was possible within the format of the book, e.g. telling people who need straws for medical reasons that they should just bring their own straws, suggesting that people fly economy to take up less space without considering larger-bodied individuals, or discussing the use of sea sponges without detailing the many possible negative outcomes.
4. Individual changes vs. industry changes: Fee puts a lot of the burden on the individual, bringing up things like people-powered movements and the impact that each of us can have on the planet. I agree that these changes can make a large impact with time and dedication. But there is MUCH more to saving the world than buying eco-friendly products. The book ended up feeling like superficial changes to make yourself feel better about your individual impact, rather than addressing necessary industrial changes. I appreciated the small section at the end of the book on saving the world when you vote, but that just wasn’t enough for me.

Topical, funny and user-friendly.
Whether you are already trying to be green (beyond recycling correctly that is) or whether this is all new to you, there will be something to learn and take away.
Let's start with a staggering fact though: "In the case of straws, coffee cups, lids and stirrers, we're using a material which lasts forever, to make things we'll use for only a few seconds."
So yes, there is a problem. With plastic and many, many other aspects of our every day life.
While you may not be able to go out and buy a full new wardrobe of bamboo clothing tomorrow (that would not be free AND be wasting the clothes you have already), there are lots of things to take from the book, and many more mental notes to take for the future as well.
From eating (it takes 180 showers' worth of water to make a single pound of beef) to travel, to sex and porn (yes, you read that right), there are things we can change in every aspect of our lives.
The truth about the state of our planet is sad, but you will have some laugh-out-loud moments reading this!

This is an amazing, practical guide of how to begin to make changes in your life, small changes that aren’t hard but will make a difference to the planet. It’s hard to know where to start and that’s where this book is so useful, full of practical suggestions, great chapters and subheading for different sections, it’s easy to navigate and even easier to understand. Yes, not all is completely free, but will save you money long term and more importantly could help save the planet. Great practical and moral help.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

A concise environmental read outlining changes you can make to become more eco-friendly in all areas of your life!

I really liked the section about being sustainable in regards to having periods, and I loved that the wording was inclusive to trans people who have them too. I thought there were a lot of good ideas in here, and I thought that how the book was organised into different areas of our lives was a really good idea.

I think my main gripe with this book is that the majority of suggestions in this book weren't free at all. For a book that is literally called 'How to Save the World for Free', you'd think the emphasis would be on things that really are free and accessible to people who aren't middle class. However this wasn't really the case so I felt a bit betrayed. There was a part in the book that I thought illustrated this well, where the author talks about having instruments around the home and how they bought a second hand piano off of the site Gumtree. Most working class people do not have the spare funds to do this sort of thing, do not have the space in their house, and nor is this in any way 'free'.

Another issue I had with the book, was its attitude towards disability and straws. I liked that disabilities were acknowledged in regards to straw bans, but I think the information towards it was half baked and missed out a lot of the main issues. For example, most alternatives to plastic straws aren't usable by most people by disabilities who need straws, for a multitude of reasons. I also have heard stories from disabled people where they've been shouted at for asking for a plastic straw due to the widespread negativity associated with them and ignorance towards disability issues. Although the impact of eating fish was mentioned, I think perhaps it would have been good to emphasise how much more important cutting out fish is than straws. It's really important for societal change to be inclusive.

My other criticisms of the book would be that I don't think the part about sex added anything to the book. I didn't learn anything from it, and it felt like it was only added to be a bit edgy. If it was going to be included, I think more detail about making your own, lubes etc. is important as that is definitely something that can go wrong and it read as very vague. Additionally, the humour in the book just fell flat to me.

Overall, I learnt a couple new things that I will try to apply to my lifestyle from now on. I do think it's more a case of finding a few gems in the dirt, with a lot of the suggestions neither being free nor realistic. I think it was worth the read though, definitely if you're new to the environmental movement, although please don't let reading about peeing in a bottle put you off making changes!! Making changes doesn't need to be that extreme.

I received a free ARC of this book from the publisher on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

You think you know everything about climate change. Well think again!
This informative book taught me a think or two. The first section is on how the world is falling into the crisis. From deforestation to eroding soil.
The second part is more on the way we can make a change.
If everyone only did 5-10 things listed in the book imagine what a better world could could live in.
Well done Natalie Fee on a fabulous book.

If you’re looking for a simple book which succinctly sums up the growing problem of climate change and how you can help, this is an excellent book to start with. If you’ve never considered the environmental impact your lifestyle has on the planet, then this book will probably be a real eye opener and will enable you to make lots of small changes which are beneficial to the planet. However, anyone who already makes an effort to minimise the impact their lifestyle choices have on the environment will probably learn nothing new from this book.

One issue I do have with the book is the catchy title “For Free” but I think “How to save the world and save money” would have been a truer title. Many of the lifestyle changes are indeed free. Some require an upfront cost, which will save you money in the long term. However, some suggestions, like opting for organic food or buying organic disposable sanitary pads, are generally more costly.

This is a short, helpful book on ways to make a real difference for the world and environment in all different ways, from at play to in politics. There's even a section on how to save the world in the bedroom. While a lot of the tips were standard for me (though not some of the bedroom ones), I've been an environmentalist for a long time and would expect as much.

Fee is cheerful and enthusiastic, and while she gives sobering, saddening and infuriating information throughout the book, the ultimate take-away is that change is really possible and all of us can make a difference.

I especially appreciated the last section, on how to change the world through politics. She gives real examples of ways that groups of people have changed democracy and our corrupt political system, and gives lots of organizations to follow.

My one criticism is that most of the book is along the lines of what some modern environmentalists deem "wreck the world slower" advice compared to action that actually improves the world. If you want more hardcore suggestions, I suggest reading through the forums on permies.com.