And, as one of the photographers who did "Watchable Birds of the Great Basin" (also available through Amazon), I should know. Much of my knowledge about the distribution and physiology of Great Basin birds, and of the history of ornithological discovery in the region, comes from this book.

I was a fan years before I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Dewey, high atop the Goshute range on the Utah/Nevada border while volunteering for a raptor banding/migratory count project. In fact, she was largely responsible for encouraging me to pursue publishing my own writing and photography.

So - full circle. This book has given me much over the years, my ace-in-the-hole when answering questions from Elderhostel participants in birding classes taught in the SE Oregon portion of the Basin, and at other times in the field.

So it gives me pleasure to give something back, by recommending this book to those who are interested in the bird life of this region.

And the rest of this series is good, too...

Part of an outstanding natural history of the Great Basin series published by UNR. All are very good guides for the interested observer, but Ryser's book is the best in the series. It is written with an emphasis on behavior and adaptations to the stresses of living in the arid Basin. Too heavy for the field, and the detailed text does not lend itself to quick searches.

Jennifer Owings Dewey spent four months in Antarctic sketching and photographing wildlife, and writing this wonderful book about the “last great wilderness on earth.” The trip was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation. The book jacket claims that it is appropriate for age 7 and up… well perhaps for a precocious child. I think that ( ) has it right. Age 9 to 12 seems more appropriate.

Written as a cross between a diary and letters home, and interspersed with drawings, and photographs, this is a small, almost intimate book. I read the “Antarctic Journal” out loud to my 11 year-old daughter. We talked about each journal entry or letter home, and looked at all the pictures together. We were introduced to the Adelie penguins, nesting gentoos, blue whales, Weddell seals, and krill. We were given a little history lesson starting 200 million years ago with Gondwanaland, and many lessons in nature. Antarctic has only one year-round land-resident, a mite. It’s the size of a pinhead. Also, male and female penguins share parenting, and they are absolutely devoted parents. A “parent penguin suffering heat stroke will not abandon its nest. It will fall dead in a heap first.” Antarctica has its own etiquette. Human visitors to Antarctica are not allowed to touch any wildlife. However, penguins did check out the author, her clothes, and typewriter.

So many nature books are dry. This one is clever, well written, and interesting. It is a wonderful addition to our home library. I highly recommend it.

All of the books I have read by Georgia Heard are very creative and fun and easy. These poems just flow from the beggining to end. They are simple to read yet bring on complex thoguhts. I recommend this book to anyone who'd like to read poems and just relax.

Navajo Summer

All the wheels on the bus go round and round as we left the town. About three miles away from my home, I started to cry because I felt that my brothers were going to get beaten like I did, it was horrible.
I need to jump off this bus and run home and save my family from being accused of doing stuff just so my father can get a hold of them and take his hands and smack and punch. Then I thought about it, well what if my dad threatens to kill my mother if she doesn't tell him where she is, so I didn't jump off I just stared out the window and imagined what my new life was going to be like. Well the bus ride took forever. (Papa used to take her to Chelly all the time and it is further then Navajo Country, it was a blast.) I miss my baby brothers and I want them to know that they have my pain and my sympathy.
As we arrived to Navajo County I ask a man I didn't even know for a ride to the Johnson's family; most likely he did and then asked for $2.00. I approached their house and knocked, I was so nervous I started to shake and fidget with things in my backpack. "Who is it?" asked Mrs. Johnson. "Navajo Summers!" I said. "Oh my gosh, what are you doing here all by yourself?"
You can read the book for yourself to figure out what Mrs. Johnson's says and how Navajo responds. I rated the book five out of five stars
Because this book is interesting and makes you want to keep your eyes on the pages and the book in your hands. I recommend this book to kids the ages of ten through twelve because there are some challenging words and some kids younger will not understand. I want to thank you for taking your time out of your day to read my summary about Navajo Summer!

This warm, humorous book contains the author's experience raising a rambunctious raccoon named Frosty who was brought to her after his family died in a storm. Frosty loves to explore and meet new people and this often gets him (and Harriet) into trouble. Eventually, they move to a citrus farm in California, where Frosty meets new friends, has new adventures, and eventually goes wild.

I read this book several times as a teenager and loved it every time. I have recently found out that my wife is pregnant and this is one of the first things that came to mind. I want to read this to my child. Of course it is out of print and is likely going to be difficult to find by I will keep my fingers crossed. This is a hilarious look at the misadventures of a very lovable young Racoon named Frosty. I have thought of this book so often over the years and would encourage even adults with a desire to belly roll laugh to buy and read this book where ever you can find it. Read it to your children and save it so they can do the same for theirs.

Got this book at a library sale. I read it aloud with my ten year old, who is an animal lover. Frosty had us laughing so hard our sides hurt! What a personality! Harriet was the only woman park ranger at the Big Basin national park in California for twenty years. Her knowledge and love of wildlife and the redwood forests where she lived in the summers adds lots of authentic and colorful background. My daughter told my husband all about this baby raccoon who loved flushing the toilet and jumping in...to the point that his use of water caused a near disaster in the park! And wait'll you read about the time Harriet left him in the car for a minute and he got into her medicinal throat lozenges. "Mad 'coon!" After the crowd gathered, a truck loaded with chickens pulled up next to Harriet's car. Ever seen an explosion of chicken feathers? There are dozens of incredibly funny stories in this book. We now have a fascination with raccoons and an appreciation for them that we didn't have before. We laughed, cried, and bonded with Frosty and Harriet. I hope you find it; it is a treasure.

By presenting 14 different cases, Quinlan demonstrates theinterconnectedness of life in a biome or habitat. Outstanding softpencil drawings illustrate animal and plant species referred to in the text. I'd love to buy a class set for fourth graders to study in a nature/life science unit. What a great place to begin learning about ecology ... mummified pigs, reindeer skeletons, missing hares, trees that won't grow!

As a child, I had more fun playing with rocks in a stream than I did with plastic toys on a warm carpet. This book is just such a romp of the imagination, and will be enjoyed by any child who enjoys the enticements of nature.

Ms Dewey's book is about having fun with mud. She speaks about the role that mud plays in Native American ceremonies. She recounts her entrepreneurial excursions with medicinal mud, and tells us how people use mud and clay for buildings and art work. The books is full of imagination. For example, she finds fossils of the ever illusive camalope (part camel part antelope) in the mud banks near her home.

In Mud Matters, the author invites the reader to get down and dirty, and to explore the very heart and essence of the land: mud.

My name is Sarah and I am 11 Yrs. old. I read this book at school. I thought it was a great book. There was a lot of very exciting parts of the book, to name one, When the Dr. is operating on a young skunk and her assistant touched the skunks scent gland and got a big suprise. I think that it is neat how the Dr. takes care of so many animals including a lot of endangered ones. I want to be a vet when I grow up and this book showed me some of the most exciting fields of Veterinary work.