Ripple’s Water Quest
Ripple travels through aquifers, rivers, lakes, and the ocean to learn how drinking water is collected, cleaned, and protected before it reaches our homes.
Children’s books · Ages 3–12
Meet Ripple, the water droplet who shows kids where water goes.
Ripple & Friends turns drinking water and wastewater treatment into stories kids enjoy and remember. Written by Nikki Ingram, a licensed Professional Engineer who works in water every day.
The books
Two adventures, one curious droplet. Each book follows Ripple through a real part of the water system.
Ripple’s Magical Wastewater Treatment Plant Adventure
To get into Sparkle’s birthday party, a muddy Ripple has to get clean. His trip through the treatment plant shows kids what happens after water goes down the drain.
Why Ripple exists
Most kids, and plenty of adults, never see the systems that bring clean water to the tap and carry used water away. Ripple makes that hidden work visible, so kids grow up understanding it and valuing it.
The books are built for reading at home, in classrooms and libraries, and alongside utility plant tours and outreach events.
“If people don’t understand what we do, they won’t value it.”Nikki Ingram, P.E.
Every book gives back
10% of proceeds support Texas AWWA scholarships, helping students prepare for careers in the water profession.
Water facts for kids
- About 71% of Earth’s surface is covered by water.
- About 97% of Earth’s water is salty ocean water. Only a small share is fresh water we can use.
- An aquifer is a layer of underground rock, sand, or gravel that holds water. Many towns pump drinking water from aquifers.
- Water is the only common substance found naturally on Earth as a solid (ice), a liquid, and a gas (water vapor).
- The water cycle keeps water moving: it evaporates, forms clouds, falls as rain or snow, and collects in lakes, rivers, and the ground.
- After you flush or drain, used water travels through pipes to a wastewater treatment plant, where it is cleaned before returning to rivers and streams.
Bring Ripple to your classroom, library, or utility
Author visits, bulk orders, and outreach partnerships. Bulk orders: rippleandfriendsadventures@gmail.com