Children describe playing in the colorful, scratchy leaves as they fall down from the trees.
Nature
Dear Baobab
Maiko has left his village in Tanzania far behind, moving to Canada with his aunt and uncle. When he thinks of home, he thinks of the beautiful big baobab tree at the center of the village. In his new home, Maiko feels a connection to the small spruce tree in the front yard—it’s seven years old, the same age as he is. The tree sings to him and shares his secrets. When he learns that the roots of the tree are growing too close to the house, putting the little spruce in danger of being cut down, Maiko tries to save it. He knows all too well what it’s like to be small and planted in the wrong place.
The Plant Hunters
Driven by an all-consuming passion, the plant hunters traveled around the world, facing challenges at every turn: tropical illnesses, extreme terrain, and dangerous animals. They battled piranhas, tigers, and vampire bats. Even the plants themselves could be lethal! But these intrepid eighteenth and nineteenth century explorers were determined to find and collect new and unusual specimens, no matter what the cost. Then they tried to transport the plants- and themselves- home alive. Creating an important legacy in science, medicine, and agriculture, the plant hunters still inspire the scientific and environmental work of contemporary plant enthusiasts.
Working from primary sources–journals, letters and notes from the field– Anita Silvey introduces us to these daring adventures and scientists. She takes readers into the heart of their expeditions to then-uncharted places such as the Amazon basin, China and India. As she brings a colorful cast of characters to life, she shows what motivated these Indiana Jones-type heroes. In The Plant Hunters, science, history, and adventure have been interwoven to tell a largely forgotten- yet fascinating- story.
The Crossing
This young, lyrical picture book reveals the adventure and natural wonders that Lewis and Clark encountered on their Western expedition in the early 1800s. Told from the point of view of Jean Baptiste Charbonneau, the baby on Sacagawea’s back, this story offers a fresh perspective of a young country and gives voice to a character readers will already be familiar with–at least visually (the baby is shown on the golden Sacagawea dollar).
Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature
This book introduces the sights and sounds of the changing seasons, along city streets and in country meadow.
Illus: woodcuts, paper-cut collage
Who Will Save My Planet?
This unique and powerful wordless book uses striking photos to show the impact of humans on the environment. Each provocative image speaks volumes. On every spread we are shown a treasure that nature has given us beside a picture of how we’ve abused that treasure. We see a beautiful forest glade beside a devastated patch of burned-out wood, a gorgeous green parrot beside a dull-feathered caged bird, a sparkling waterfall beside a garbage-clogged river. It would take thousands of words to express the important environmental message presented by Cristina Urrutia.
A Circle Of Cats
One a quiet day, when the wind was still, the creek could be heard all the way up to where the old beech stood. Under its branches, cats would come to dream and be dreamed. Black cats and calicos, white cats and marmalade ones, too. But they hadn’t yet gathered the day the orphan girl fell asleep among its roots, nestling in the weeds and long grass like the gangly, tousle-haired girl she was. Her names was Lillian.
Lillian is an orphan who lives with her aunt on a homested miles from anyone, surrounded by uncharted forest. She wanders the woods, chasing after squirrels and rabbits and climbing trees like a possum. Free-spirited and independent, Lillian is kindard soul to the many wild cats who gather around the ancient beech tree. One day, while she is under the beech, Lillian is bitten by a poisonous snake. The cats refuse to let her die, and use their magic to turn her into one of their own. How she becomes a girl again is a lyrical, original folklore that begs to be read aloud. Set in the hill country outside of the author’s fictional city of Newford, A Circle of Cats is the much anticipated first picture book by longtime friends Charles de Lint and Charles Vess, whose art is as magical as the story.
Mary Margaret’s Tree
Like many children, Mary Margaret has an affinity for nature. In her efforts to plant a small tree she undergoes a transformation, and becomes a part of nature herself.
The Wolf Of Gubbio
At night we lay in bed and listened to the howl of the wolf on the hill. In sleep, we saw his shadow slink along the moonlit wall as the great beast circled the town. No one in Gubbio is safe from the monstrous wolf that stalks them. The townsfolk, armed with pitchforks, travel in groups and never venture out at night. One day a band of strangers comes to town led by the Poverello, the poor one. People say he understands the language of bird and beast. Even so, when he offers to go into the forest and face the wolf, everyone is certain he will never return. What happens between the wolf and the Poverello as they stand face to face, is a matter of trust and understanding. But for the people of Gubbio, and one boy in particular, it is nothing short of a miracle. Based on one of the legends of St. Francis of Assisi, the story may contain some truth. During repairs to a chapel in Gubbio dedicated to the saint, a large wolf’s skull was found underneath the flagstones. The Afterword recounts this amazing fact and provides historical details on the life of St. Francis of Assisi.
The Wonder Thing
In a lyrical poem (which is also a riddle) and stunning linoleum block prints, Libby Hathorn and Peter Gouldthrope guide readers on a journey around the world–and to a deeper appreciation of “the wonder thing” that is all around us.