Here is another entry in nature writer Jean Craighead George's fantastic ONE DAY series. This one, unlike the other books in the series--ONE DAY IN THE. . .WOODS, ALPINE TUNDRA, DESERT, and TROPICAL RAIN FOREST--is written more dramatically in the present, and is a very satisfying introduction to the lively environment of the United States prairie. Henry Rush, a young photographer, gets to spend one day on the prairie to take a picture of a prairie dog doing a backflip. These comical little critters provide humor, while the buffalo of a nearby herd seem wise and noble. Suddenly, disaster strikes. A tornado is headed for the prairie, and Henry, the buffalo, the prairie dogs, and countless other creatures are in its path. The result is thrilling and tense. The illustrator's amazingly realistic drawings add to the excitement. This is a fine story about a lively environment from the author of JULIE OF THE WOLVES, MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN, HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG, and many, many more superb books about the environment.

A study of family genealogy often explains the present-or in this case, the past.

In late 1700s George, Prince of Wales, was every bit the scandalous Prince Charming, the lover of older, married women that his great-great-great nephew, the Duke of Windsor, was. George, who later became King George IV, even tossed over his mistress, Maria (Perdita) Robinson, in the same manner that the Duke of Windsor got rid of one of his mistresses. He wrote her a letter and refused to take her calls.

In both cases, the princes had a morally upright, dull father who never cheated on his wife. Filial rebellion and serial adultery are long-standing traditions in the British royal family.

In this book Jean Plaidy highlights the life of Perdita Robinson, George IV's first serious fling in a life full of flings. In it, she tells a lot about the character of George IV and sets the stage for "The Sweet Lass of Richmond" and "Indiscretions of the Queen."

Plaidy does us all a service by writing easy to read, entertaining novels about the British monarchy.

The survival of the British monarchy as a popular institution owes a lot to its queens who were, more often than not, more intelligent than their husbands. Caroline of Ansbach is such a queen. Well-educated and from one of the poorer German principalities, Caroline married into the boorish House of Hanover. It isn't long before she discovered she's caught between a loathsome, vindictive father-in-law, George I, and her not-too-bright and domineering husband, the future George II.

The House of Hanover, newly ascended to the English throne, would not have survived on the personal popularity of its kings. It took the cleverness of Caroline coupled with that of Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister, to keep things in balance. Jean Plaidy tells the tale of the reign of George I through the personal trauma of this most remarkable of English Queens.

This is a remarkable story from Jean Craighead George, the author of over eighty classic nature books for young readers branching several decades. Published in 1965, this book is sandwiched between the publication of Ms. George's two most well-remembered classics, MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN and JULIE OF THE WOLVES. SPRING COMES TO THE OCEAN, although written very scientifically and perhaps considered nonfiction, is not without engrossing characters and a powerful story. It chronicles the lives of more than twelve species of underwater creatures--everything from the tiniest acoela worm to the largest gray whale. As the Earth spins out of the somber depths of winter through the springtime days of renewal and survival, a hermit crab searches for a new shell, baby turtles struggle from their nest to the ocean, a porpoise gives birth, and silver herring gleam as they dance in the underwater sunlight. Their stories are almost unbelievable, they are so unique and completely different from our lives on the land. It's obvious that a lot of research went into this story, it is so detailed and thorough. The author's words are hightened by the illustrations by John Wilson, which are eerie and otherworldly. Taking a journey underwater is like heading into outer space. . .a very special trip, especially when told through the words of Jean Craighead George.

Continuing the four-part series that began with AUTUMN MOON and WINTER MOON, Newbery Medalist Jean Craighead George writes vivid accounts of North American wildlife as their lives revolve around the seasonal changes of the moon. Originally published in the 1960s, and later reprinted with a new design and illustrations in the early 90's, the THIRTEEN MOONS were not widely read, perhaps because they were in hardcover. Now, with the early 90's versions compressed into paperback books, maybe the books will draw more attention, from school groups learning about nature to the most avid reader. The series title has changed from THIRTEEN MOONS to SEASONS OF THE MOON, and each book contains three stories, with colorful illustrations for reference. SPRING MOON features a spotted salamander who, under the moon of March, is making his way from under rock crevices across the damp forest floor to a pond where he will perform an ancestral mating dance. This gives readers a unique look into a world rarely described; the hidden life of an amphibian that has been around for 330 million years. Next, comes a cheery story quite the opposite of the salamander's dark drama. In Montana, a mother chickaree--a small red squirrel--is busy raising a brood of helpless youngsters while trying to defend her property from some hungry intruders--a magpie, a pack rat, a woodpecker. The chickaree's screaming indignance is amusing, and it's fascinating to learn about the area of the mountainous Bitterroot River where she makes her home. The last story is filled with tranquility and beauty as we learn about a monarch butterfly who is making the thousand-mile migration from her wintering area in Mexico all the way to Canada. It's easy to imagine the graceful, fluttering movements of the butterfly as she crosses rivers, towns, and fields, performing her ultimate task, to lay eggs and pass on the legacy of the monarch. I highly recommend this stunning book to anyone who enjoys studying the mammals, insects, and amphibians of America, and also to read the other books in the SEASONS OF THE MOON series. Also, check out Chris Kubie's instrumental CD MUSIC OF THE THIRTEEN MOONS, which wonderfully captures the grace of Ms. George's words and the feeling of the animal life she describes.

SUMMER MOON concludes the SEASONS OF THE MOON series, which was originally published as the THIRTEEN MOONS series in the 1960's, and thirty years later in beautiful harcover editions with new illustrations. For the first time ever, the books are available in paperback, condensed from thirteen separate books to four volumes each containing three stories. Critically acclaimed naturalist and author Jean Craighead George writes with the same detailed and intriguing prose as was found in her Newbery Medal- winning classic JULIE OF THE WOLVES and MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. Her love for animals shines through in these detailed accounts of North American species whose lives revolve around the seasonal changes of the moon. In SUMMER MOON we first meet a bumbling family of fox pups, who are learning from their parents how to become good hunters. The pups' lessons are filled with humor and insight into fox life. We see them develop from playful youngsters to elegant adolescents, while at the same time learning about the habitat of their sparkling Pennsylvania home, filled with singing birds and flowers bursting into June bloom. Next, we are taken from the Northeast to the scorching Sonoran desert of Arizona, where a lost peccary piglet wanders under towering cacti and over sizzling earth, trying to find his close-knit family. A thunderstorm is rolling ominously toward the piglet, and he, like the other animals of the desert, must prepare for the sudden, short-lived, and violent torrents that are approaching. The Arizona desert is depicted so well, you can practically feel the heat waves, and you learn that pigs, which may seem unlikely heroes, are affectionate family members and intelligent, interesting creatures. Finally, the moon of August is hanging above a herd of elk making their way down a rocky slope in Washington state, unaware that they are being watched by the fiery eyes of a lone mountain lion. The predator stalks quietly through the hemlock forests until he happens upon a couple of orphaned young lions and abandons his solitary life. The setting of the great mountain peaks is dramatic and eerie. You may learn a new respect for this beautiful and misunderstood predator. SUMMER MOON, like the other books in the series, is a satisfying read that will leave you with a graphic picture of the featured environments and have you carrying fresh and accurate knowledge of wildlife. Check out the other books in the series as well as Ms. George's other stunning nature stories. You may want to listen to Chris Kubie's charming accompanying CD MUSIC OF THE THIRTEEN MOONS as you read.

Jean Plaidy (Victoria Holt) does a service to readers that writers of historical biographies seem unable to do. She tells a good story and makes the people seem real. Biographies of royalty tend to be stilted, heavily burdened with the intricacies of politics and remote from the person and character of the royal. They are not fun to read. Plaidy's novels are fairly close to historical fact without being tediously so.

The Sweet Lass of Richmond not only is fun to read, it brings to mind an interesting parallel between George IV and his great-great-great nephew, The Duke of Windsor. Both men were the brilliant centers of fashionable society, on bad terms with their fathers, and both fell heedlessly in love with unacceptable, older women. Where Wallis Simpson was a twice-divorced woman, Maria Fitzherbert was a twice-widowed woman. Where Wallis did not mind welcoming her prince into her bedchamber outside of marriage, devotely Catholic Maria Fitzherbert would have nothing less than marriage before she'd consent to give in to her prince. This drove George IV into a secret marriage, a device that allowed him to keep his place in the succession while enjoying the marital favors of the woman he loved. Had this marriage been open, he not only would have been at odds with his father for marrying without the King's consent, he would be barred from the succession for marrying a Catholic. George IV wanted Maria, his crown and his debts paid. George ended up choosing money and the Crown over Maria, his good wife--a choice he regretted for the rest of his life.

Here is another winner from children's greatest nature writer of today, Jean Craighead George. The author of over eighty books about the environment, including JULIE OF THE WOLVES, MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN, THE ONE DAY. . .series, and HOW TO TALK TO YOUR DOG, Ms. George did a great writing job with this picture book of 1978. It's the story of Dennis, a young boy who lives on an island and who is anxious to be a grown man like his father, a fisherman. When his father tells him that he will come a little closer to this aspiration by buying all the things he needs to make a living out of fishing--a boat, a grapple, a net, and a bucket--Dennis asks him just how he will get the money for such things. His father tells him to find a wentletrap, a rare seashell of the greatest beauty and wealth. So, while his father is out at sea, Dennis makes a wentletrap trap, using everyday objects to capture a wentletrap when it is washed up on the beach. In the end Dennis finds lots of things besides a remarkable wentletrap--some of them beautiful, some of them alive, but each one wonderful in its own subtle way. Ms. George's fondness for even the smallest things in nature is apparent in this book. The pictures are as distinct and handsome as a wentletrap, lively and interesting. The lyrical storytelling--active and wise the whole way through--and the humorous illustrations combine to make an excellent picture book.

Newbery Medal-winning naturalist and acclaimed author Jean Craighead George wrote a series of stories in the late 1960's entitled The Thirteen Moons. Each of the thirteen books focused on a different wild animal struggling to survive in a different month of the year and a different part of the United States. The books were: THE MOON OF THE ALLIGATORS, BEARS, CHICKAREES, DEER, FOX PUPS, MOLES, MONARCH BUTTERFLIES, MOUNTAIN LIONS, OWLS, SALAMANDERS, WILD PIGS, WINTER BIRD, and GRAY WOLVES (see my review of these books under THE MOON OF THE OWLS). They had simple black-and-white drawings for illustrations and went out of print. Then in the early nineties the books were republished in handsome hardcover versions, with spectacular full-color paintings to complement Ms. George's original writing. Sadly, these books again went out of print. But now the thirteen books have been republished! They have been condensed into four paperbacks that revolve around the different seasons; AUTUMN MOON and WINTER MOON have already come out, SPRING and SUMMER MOON will be out in spring of 2002. At last this enchanting nature writing has been made easily available. The books are sure to be enjoyed by any person, young or old, who appreciates the natural world, its seasons, and its creatures. WINTER MOON features four stories--THE MOON OF THE WINTER BIRD (December), MOLES (December-January), OWLS (January), and BEARS (February). They are captivating and enjoyable, and very descriptive. Each one resonates with the kind of chilly coziness, combined with a sense of gloom and antagonism, that comes in winter time. You will shiver with the little song sparrow under the December moon; find your way through the underground darkness of a mole's lair; fly with the great horned owl through the Catskill Mountains; and wait for winter to be over with the hibernating black bear. Ms. George's words are lively and interesting and will draw you right into the stories. Also, some of the paintings from the early 90's versions of the books have been reproduced; however, they are not as fine quality to portray the scenes as wonderfully as they did in the out-of-print hardcover versions. Still, it is nice that they were included in the new paperback books. The colors are rich and accurate; I wish that more had been included. Jean Craighead George has written almost 100 books for young naturalists, among them JULIE OF THE WOLVES, MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN, the ONE DAY. . .series, and the ECO-MYSTERIES, so check these out as well. Also, musician Chris Kubie has released a spellbinding CD of the Thirteen Moons entitled MUSIC OF THE THIRTEEN MOONS. Read along with the music and you're sure to find a very enjoyable reading experience.

The Talking Earth is a story about a young Seminole girl, Billie Wind, who is in disbelief of her tribe's beliefs on talking animals and spirits. Although she wants to believe in the culture, she does not think this makes any sense. In school she is learning the scientific reasons for things, such as pollution, and her ancestor's reasons for nature just don't match up. She goes to live in the Everglades until she hears the animals talk and sees the spirits. She does not believe it will ever happen. Throughout the story Billie grows and changes. She learns how to survive in the wilderness, and befriends animals, such as an otter, that help her. Through this experience she begins to understand her tribes beliefs, and gains a stronger bond with nature. The only problem is: is this bond strong enough to survive the challenges she meets?

The author, Jean Craighead George, does a great job at painting a picture of the Everglades through her imagery and detail. This story is also easy to relate to, as everyone has doubts about beliefs of other people sometime in his/her life. However, this detail often made the book difficult to understand. This book would be a good choice for multicultural studies in the classroom; however, the teacher would need to be reading and discussing with the students. If I had trouble with it children definitely would. Personally, I don't think I will ever read this book again, but after reading the review by a third grader, I see that it is possible to enjoy it. I believe the key to a child enjoying the book is the help of his/her teacher. So, from a future teacher's viewpoint, if you liked the book, read it to others, otherwise, stay away from it; and, if you haven't read it yet, I wouldn't recommend it.

Talking Earth is a very exciting book to read. The main character, Billie Wind, is a doubter of her tribe's beliefs and has to be punished. For her punishment, she chose to go to the Everglades to learn about her tribe's beliefs. There, Billie makes friends like Petang, the otter, Coootchobee, a panther, and Burden, a turtle. How will Billie Wind survive in the dangerous Everglades? Will she survive? Read the book to find out.

Billie Wind developed from the beginning of the book to the end. In the beginning of the book Billie Wind didn't care about her tribe's traditions. As time went by, though, she started to use the traditions to survive. At the end of the book, Billie tried to make Oats Tiger (now known as Hurricane Tiger) believe in the traditions. Billie Wind has learned much from her punishment and is using it to teach others.

Kerra S.
Grade 5
Mr. Sizemore's class
Pleasant Plains Elementary

The Talking Earth
by Jean Craighead George

The Talking Earth is about a Seminole girl named Billy Wind who is very curious. When her tribal elder spoke of spirits everywhere there is, Billie said she did not believe in that. The religious leaders got very angry and asked what punishment she should give herself. In sarcasm, she said that she should go to the pay-hay-okee (the Everglades)and stay until she heard the spirits of the animals talk, see the magical serpent, and find the little people who lived under the ground. The people agreed while she wondered in shock because it was just a joke. She was still forced to enter the pay-hay-okee and hear the spirits herself. Therefore, she stayed there and lived with an otter, a panther, and a turtle. At the end, she endured a hurricane in a cavern and lived to tell the tale.
The reason I liked this book is because it had a lot to do with the flow of nature. It told about why the Seminoles said there were animal gods and magical things. It also said how nature has its own special type of flow and to disrupt it can result in disaster. It also had a lot of feeling into what happenned around her and why it happenned.
I also liked the book because it was very interesting. I couldn't stop reading it until I had no other choice. It grabbed me in the ears and pulled me into the book with all my senses so that I could feel everything around me. In the tense parts, I was scared for Billy Wind and I was also relieved when that part was over. It was like real life!
My favorite part was when Billy wind had just entered the pa-hay-okee. There was a great fire that burned down the whole forest that she was in. She found a strange pit that seemed to be inhabitted before. She found a baby otter inside a small tunnel and named him Petang. She also noticed there were small artifacts in the walls that were related to the Seminole's. She stayed and tried to reach home and get an archeologist to the site.