Book Description
A feat of historical detection--the most significant, andcertainly the most enthralling, book on American prehistory to appear indecades.The greatest "unsolved mystery" of the American Southwest relates to theAnasazi, the native peoples who by the 11th century converged on ChacoCanyon (now New Mexico) and built a flourishing cultural center thatattracted pilgrims from far and wide, a vital crossroads of the prehistoricworld. The Anasazis' accomplishments--in agriculture, in art, in commerce,in architecture and engineering--were astounding, rivaling those of theMayans in distant Central America. By the 13th century, however, the Anasazi were gone from Chaco. Vanished.What was it--drought? pestilence? war? forced migration? mass murder orsuicide? Craig Childs draws on scholarly research and a lifetime ofadventure and exploration in the American Southwest to pursue the mysteryof their disappearance. Considering many possibilities, he points the wayto a new understanding of how a vibrant civilization collapsed.
Customer Reviews:
Childs has done it with this book..........2007-09-11
It's been a long time since I was thoroughly captivated by a book but House Of Rain has managed to do just that. Craig Childs is arguably one of the finest non-fiction writers today. For those of us who live and breathe the Great Southwest, Child's descriptions will bring back vivid memories of Sleeping Ute mountain in the distance and standing where the Ancients stood at Mesa Verde, Hovenweep, and Chaco. For those reviewers who felt like they needed maps and an answer, you can get maps at the visitor centers all bound up in glossy little books with equally glossy descriptions of people and places. This is not one of those books - it's so much deeper. This book is not a souvenier, it's a vehicle that takes you to places that a relative few will ever see and even less will understand. Sometimes, there is no final answer - there's just the lingering questions. That's part of what makes it so interesting.
Excellent Read With Interesting Personal Point of Views.......2007-09-06
This is the first book by Craig Childs that I've read. I will say it is an excellent book on the Anasazi. Craig has spent his whole life in the desert Southwest and appears to be quite knowledgeable about his subject. If you are the least bit interested in knowing a bit more about the Anasazi but don't want to read a "dry" scientific book about the subject, this is "the book" for you. Craig has travelled, worked and talked with many southwest Archaeologists who study the Anasazi. His discussions on the Anasazi are not boring and dry and his writing style is superb. I have a passing interest in the subject matter and this is one of the newest books on the subject and based on reviews of his other books, bought this one. I'm glad I did. Craig covers some controversial areas in regards to the Anasazi and where they went. They didn't disappear, their ancestors are still here, spread out over the southwest. He hits on a few quite creditabal possibilities and presents material to support them. I not being an expert on the subject but none the less interested and with some of my own ideas, I think Craig is on to something in regards to some of the reasons for the abandonment of the ancient sites across the entire southwest not just the Four Corners area commonly attributed to the Anasazi. Craig's descriptions of his backcountry travels are excellent and gives the sense that you are there with him which makes it even more enjoyable to read. This one is a keeper which I know I will read over and over again.
House of Rain, A Great Read.......2007-08-16
If you'd like to take a journey into the SW United States looking for the "missing" Anasazi, you should crack open this book, and delve into Craig Child's riveting journey. Child's style of writing puts you there with him, and he's very skilled at creating images that draw you into the adventure.
House of Rain .......2007-07-07
Craig Childs and "House of Rain" took me to places I've been and most importantly, to places I've been unable to experience. As I was reading this descriptive narrative of the Southwest that I love so much, I felt I was walking right beside him...excellent!
Exception read for the non-archeologist interested in the Anasazi.......2007-07-06
I already own several of Craig Childs books which I enjoy reading so that I can vicariously explore the canyons with him. This book is Exceptional. I bought it just last week at the Anasazi Heritage Center near Mesa Verde and Canyons of the Ancients while vacationing there with my wife and granddaughter. Living in Utah, we make yearly trips to the Moab area and southeastern canyons of Utah always hopeing to find a ruin to explore and photograph. This book is great for the non-scientist but those interested in the cultures of the Southwest like me!
Book Description
The delectable new installment in the best-selling and beloved adventures of Isabel Dalhousie.
When Mimi, Isabel’s cousin from Dallas, arrives in Edinburgh with her husband, Joe, several confounding situations unfurl. First, Mimi and Joe introduce Isabel to Tom Bruce–a bigwig back home in Texas. The roving eye of Tom’s young fiancée leads Isabel to believe that money may be at the root of her love for Tom. But what, Isabel wonders, is at the root of Tom’s interest in Isabel herself? Then there are the feelings that Isabel has for Jamie, which are certainly hard to ignore. And she mustn’t forget about her niece, Cat, who’s busy falling for a man whom Isabel suspects of being an incorrigible mama’s boy.
Of course, Jamie counsels Isabel to stay out of it all, but there are irresistible philosophical issues at stake–when to tell the truth and when to keep one’s mouth shut, to be precise–and philosophical issues are meat and drink to Isabel Dalhousie, editor of the Review of Applied Ethics. In any case, Isabel is certain of the ethical basis for a little sleuthing now and again–especially when the problems involve matters of the heart.
Customer Reviews:
Needs More Substsance...........2007-10-03
I've read McCall's entire #1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, the first of The Sunday Philosophy Club series and now this. His books are repetitive, with constant allusions to what was written about in previous books. Please, in the future, write a prologue for those who haven't read prior books in a series, so those who have, don't have to be reminded of what they know.
The protagonist in this series is Isabel Dalhousie, who edits a journal of applied ethics. She fancies herself to be a philosopher, and constantly rambles on and on ad nauseum about defining her duties to other people.
She, like Mms Ramotswe, in the detective series, longs for a more gentile time, where people were connected to others, and polite to everyone; is a woman who was left money; starts out being single; unwinds with tea; and has an assistant whose first name is Grace. Although this series is more substantive than the first, there isn't enough meat in it for me.
Should Isabel have an affair with Jamie, or shouldn't she? Will it affect her friendship with him or not? Will her niece be upset (since her niece had an affair with him in the past)? Does her niece have a right to be upset? Is their age difference a problem? What will her housekeeper think? Does it matter if others approve. Get the picture.
I believe authors should "show not tell" and this author tells from every angle possible. Repeatedly.
Why the book is considered a mystery, is the only mystery one will encounter.
A little more introspective.......2007-08-27
Not as jolly fun as some of Mccall Smith, this book deals with fall summer romances and other topics on love and life after forty. Certainly not a mystery. No corpses in this book
Isabel Dalhousie takes a new direction.......2007-08-22
This is a wonderful, meandering story that gives the Isabel Dalhousie series a totally new focus. Isabel comes to the fore as a central character instead of her accustomed role as an observer of others. To be sure, the reader still gets the benefit of her ongoing philosophical mulling of virtually everyone and everything that happens in her life, but in this book, she actually HAS a life. And it's a life that has real emotion and serious romance. Throughout this book (and the rest in the series), the author, Alexander Mccall Smith, uses his characters so well to demonstrate the unceasing zig-zagging that marks everyone's interior lives and ultimately serves up a continuing story full of human foibles, generosity, uncertainty, warmth and love of all kinds. Like virtually all of Mccall Smith's books, "The Right Attitude to Rain" leaves the reader feeling better about human kind and reflective on how to better deal with life's fellow travelers.
I finally love Isabel Dalhousie.......2007-08-18
I was not sold on Isabel when I read the beginning portion of this series (I preferred 44 Scotland Street), but I loved this book. Isabel in particular came alive for me in this book. Smith is so amazing -- even a classic fiction ploy comes as a surprise at the end of this novel.
Interesting and fun characters.......2007-08-17
In another installment in the Isabel Dalhousie mystery series set in Edinburgh, Scotland, we see the wealthy philosopher in a different light. In previous books she was described as a middle-aged spinster, but in this novel Isabel has a suitor. Who cares that he is her niece's castoff? Or that he is fourteen years her junior? Isabel ponders these sticky details as she continues to fall in love with Jamie.
Isabel isn't an innocent; she has been married before and has seen much in her life. She is aware of how fortunate she is to have inherited a house and enough money to keep her in good stead for life. She enjoys a good relationship with her niece, Cat, and is hosting her cousin and spouse, Mimi and Joe, on vacation from America.
It is through Mimi and Joe that she is introduced to another couple from America. Tom and Angela were observed by Isabel in an Edinburgh museum before she met them. She noticed things out of kilter with their relationship on first view, and those things are only reinforced when introduced. Why is Angela with the older man whose face is partially paralyzed? Is it love? Of him or his money? Should Isabel tell Tom of her suspicions about his fiance? Always a philosopher, Isabel feels the need to think and talk these questions out with Jamie. Here lies my biggest, maybe only, problem with the book. Jamie seems to agree with her every spoken thought and seems to have no opinions of his own. He comes across as too malleable. It's hard to feel sexual tension in the story when he has so little personality.
But this series is about philosophical judgments and how they apply to everyday life, and this book is no different. Isabel Dalhousie is an intriguing, fun character. The other characters in the book are interesting and the dialogue is entertaining. The lack of strong mystery doesn't detract from the diversionary amusement value.
Alexander McCall Smith always makes the reader aware of the gentle nature of humans, and a genteel way of life. This book becomes more difficult to put down after the halfway point.
Armchair Interviews says: You can count on this author making you think about human nature.
Book Description
At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt’s harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous rivers on earth.
The River of Doubt—it is a black, uncharted tributary of the Amazon that snakes through one of the most treacherous jungles in the world. Indians armed with poison-tipped arrows haunt its shadows; piranhas glide through its waters; boulder-strewn rapids turn the river into a roiling cauldron.
After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil’s most famous explorer, Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. In the process, he changed the map of the western hemisphere forever.
Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. Three men died, and Roosevelt was brought to the brink of suicide. The River of Doubt brings alive these extraordinary events in a powerful nonfiction narrative thriller that happens to feature one of the most famous Americans who ever lived.
From the soaring beauty of the Amazon rain forest to the darkest night of Theodore Roosevelt’s life, here is Candice Millard’s dazzling debut.
Customer Reviews:
river of doubt.......2007-10-06
This book was great, if you like adventure, exploration, or teddy roosevelt this is the book for you.
not boaring at all this book is awsome
A Gripping Tale of Men of Character.......2007-09-21
Oh, for a President who had even one tenth of the character and integrity of the Teddy Roosevelt portrayed in this book. This is a real-life version of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, but the central figure never loses his sense of dedication and honor. Although there is plenty of suspense, even horror, in the story, I found it to be ultimately quite inspiring.
Awesome.......2007-09-20
This book went into so much detail about TR's expedition in Brazil that is hardly mentioned in other books on his life. And what a story it is! I heartily recommend it to anyone.
They Don't Make Presidents Like this Anymore..........2007-09-20
And that's not a statement of partisan politics, but it does say a lot about leadership. Volumes have been written about Theodore Roosevelt, the soldier, the statesman, the adventurer, and the president, but if there is a single book that captures the vitality, the determination, and the indomitable spirit of this great American, it is "The River of Doubt." Former National Geographic writer and editor Candice Miller pulls no punches and leaves no stone unturned in spinning this vibrant and suspense-packed tale of risk and discovery cutting through the heart of the Amazonian jungle on an uncharted Brazilian river. Miller brings the Amazon to life in all its bloody glory, an unfathomably dangerous place where even the frogs are deadly, where schools of piranhas can turn an ox - or a man - to a skeleton in minutes, a place where, despite caymans and poison dart-wielding natives, it is the insects - insects of all types and descriptions - that pose the greatest risk.
This is an epic journey facing not only the challenges of a wild river cascading over rapids and waterfalls through an impenetrable jungle, but also treachery and even murder. Roosevelt and expedition co-lead Candido Mariano da Silva Rondon, an officer of the Brazilian military and renowned Amazon explorer, find themselves surprisingly ill-equipped for their voyage through one of the planets most inhospitable regions, and ironically are soon near starvation in a green hell that while teaming with life, food is stubbornly unattainable. Meanwhile, it is a poignant tale of the bond between father and son, as Roosevelt and second son Kermit alternately sacrifice and suffer for each other while proudly denying emotion. This is one of those stories that, after weeks of terror, when Roosevelt and the tattered remains of his party emerge feverish from malaria and near starvation, you'll ask, "why haven't I heard about this before now."
Were this fiction, it would strain the bounds of credibility. But that this is the story of a former President of the United States is truly staggering. A remarkable achievement, "The River of Doubt" is a must read, illuminating a fascinating slice of world history in the twilight of the age of exploration while providing an intimate peak into the unparalleled character of Theodore Roosevelt. Bully!
Real-life adventure.......2007-09-20
River of Doubt is a cominbation of very interesting history and great adventure. This is the first book I have read about TR and as a result I plan to read more. Candice Millard does an outstanding job of presenting a grand adventure, while at the same time, letting you into the personal and interesting lives of the explorers. Ms. Millard has renewed my interest in historical books.
Average customer rating:
- Best Rainforest Photographs Anywhere!
- Bugs & Stuff
- Now you can have the world's rain forests and their sounds at your fingertips!!!
- Save them!
- Amazing!
|
Rainforest
Ben Morgan
Manufacturer: DK ADULT
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 General
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Photographers, A-Z
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Nature & Wildlife
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Rain Forests
| Nature & Ecology
| Science
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Trees
| Plants
| Biological Sciences
| Science
| Subjects
| Books
Forestry
| Agricultural Sciences
| Professional Science
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
| Deforestation
| Ecology
| Economics
| Fires
| Management
| Products
| Wood Science
Look Inside Art Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Look Inside Outdoors & Nature Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Look Inside Science Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Ocean
-
Animal: The Definitive Visual Guide to the World's Wildlife
-
Universe
-
Earth
-
Planet Earth: As You've Never Seen It Before
ASIN: 0756619408 |
Amazon.com
Over the past 16 years Swiss photographer Thomas Marent has traveled all over the world photographing rainforests, from Peru and Ecuador to New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. Usually traveling alone, Marent has been known to spend extraordinary lengths of time to get the perfect shot--sometimes 12 days. You can see the results in his first book, Rainforest. The book is his testament--an intimate collection of more than 500 breathtaking animal and plant portraits, and the fascinating stories behind them.
Questions for Thomas Marent
Amazon.com: What inspired you to start taking pictures?
Marent: I used to be a birdwatcher in Switzerland--and soon I was also interested in amphibians, insects, and plants. After a while I thought it would be nice to have pictures of all these beautiful animals.
Amazon.com: Waiting for the perfect shot takes patience and time. How do you decide what images are worth waiting for?
Marent: I mostly focus on the colorful and spectacularly shaped creatures. Sometimes it is a matter of luck to find them, but sometimes I have to know where and when to look for them.
Amazon.com: What photo in Rainforest is your favorite?
Marent: I don't have one favorite--there are many favorites! I especially like the photos of frogs, butterflies, fungi, birds and weird insects.
Amazon.com: What would people find most surprising about the world's rainforests?
Marent: When people think of the rainforest, it's the monkeys, birds, and wild cats that first come to mind. But there are so many small and beautiful creatures. We need to see and appreciate them too--they're just a little harder to find! Many of these smaller creatures have never been seen by most people.
Amazon.com: Do you consider yourself a rainforest activist?
Marent: With the book I want to show to the people the endless beauty of the rainforests. I do hope that it might open the eyes of some people, so that they'll agree that it's worth protecting this fantastic environment.
Amazon.com: Some of the photos in the book, especially some of the insect photos, are really strange and otherworldly. What's your favorite exotic rainforest animal?
Marent: Some of my favorites always were frogs and butterflies, but birds and monkeys as well. And of course the weird-looking insects.
Amazon.com: What's your favorite rainforest?
Marent: In Asia it is Borneo. In Africa it is Madagascar. In Latin America it is Costa Rica and Peru/Colombia. But I also like the Australian and New Zealand rainforests.
Amazon.com: Do you have any advice for amateur nature photographers?
Marent: A tripod is an absolutely must. Try to move to the animals slowly and quietly--it takes some patience. Whenever possible try taking your pictures at the animal's eye level. And it's always important to think about the background when you compose the picture.
Book Description
Thomas Marent, a self-taught photographer who has dedicated half his life to capturing images of rainforest life, tells the story of his journey through these spectacular photographs. Join him as he travels across five continents for an up-close view of the astonishing variety and fascinating behavior of rainforest plants and trees, reptiles, birds, amphibians, insects, and mammals.
Customer Reviews:
Best Rainforest Photographs Anywhere!.......2007-09-15
Without doubt, the best set of rainforest photographs I have ever seen. I live in the tropics (North Queensland, Australia) and am very interested in quality depiction of the subject of rainforest flora and fauna. This book sets a new standard of excellence, especially regarding insect life. This is an important part of the world's record of rainforests, and probably could never be duplicated due to global warming.
Bugs & Stuff.......2007-09-10
If you like big, gorgeous pictures of colorful bugs and frogs, then this is the book for you. You also get some pictures of monkeys and a few flowers and mushrooms too.
Now you can have the world's rain forests and their sounds at your fingertips!!!.......2007-09-04
XXXXX
This breathtaking book takes the reader on an awe-inspiring five continent tour of rain forest tree and plants, reptiles, birds, amphibians, insect, and mammals.
The book itself can be divided into three components:
(1) Photographs (with informative captions)
(2) Text
(3) CD
The photographs are spectacular and jaw dropping! For over sixteen years, nature photographer Thomas Marent has traveled around the world to achieve the difficult task of recording the diverse, complex, unexplored, and endangered ecosystems of rain forests. In other words, these spectacular color photos capture close-up images of some of the most rarely visited places on Earth.
The photographs are divided into five sections: (1) panorama (2) diversity (3) survival (has three sub-divisions entitled predator, arms and armor, deception) (4) cycles (has three sub-divisions entitled flowers to fruit, lifelines, recyclers) and (5) society.
The number of captioned photos for each section is as follows (these totals are rounded off):
Panorama: 40; Diversity: 20; Survival 170; Cycles: 105; Society: 45. There are also about 10 captioned photos that appear before the table of contents. (TOTAL captioned photos in entire book: 400.)
There is a well-written text that accompanies many photographs giving the reader facts and figures about the rain forests and their diverse plant, insect, and insect inhabitants. (The last chapter of this book entitled "Rainforests of the world" is especially well done.) As well, there are fascinating brief stories and descriptions (in quotation marks) that were said by photographer Marent that accompany some of the photos.
You might be tempted to just look at the photographs with their captions and skip the text. However, you would be cheating yourself. I feel that the comprehensive text should be read to fill in the gaps about rain forests that the photographs do not and cannot provide.
The third component of this mesmerizing book is the 80 minute, 23 track audio CD entitled "Sounds of the Rainforest" inserted into an envelope attached to the inside back cover. Recorded on it are sounds that are unique to the rain forests around the world. On the insertion envelope itself, we're told what the main sound is on eleven of these tracks. More than a quarter of this CD is devoted to the sounds of the Amazon Rain Forest (the world's largest rain forest). (Note that many of the titles on the CD itself (but not on its insertion envelope) are in a foreign language. My favorite tracks are 14 to 16, 20 to 23.)
This CD definitely does "enhance the unique experience of this book."
I should tell the potential buyer of this book that "2% of the royalties from this book are paid to The Rainforest Foundation," a foundation devoted to the long-term protection of rain forests. The singer Sting is a founding patron of this foundation.
Finally, I had some problems with this book. Note that these in no way affect the book's readability but are more "irritations:"
(1) Who wrote the text for this book? From the book's front cover (displayed above by Amazon) it's Thomas Marent. Right? Wrong!! He's responsible for the photographs (and some of his verbal statements are included with the text). On the title page (located on page 2) of this book we have "Thomas Marent with Ben Morgan." If you go to the copyright page there is in small print "Text copyright 2006 Dorling Kindersley [abbreviated DK] Limited." We're also told all images are copyright to Marent.
Thus Ben Morgan, a writer for DK (I think??), is the author of this book. Why is his name not also displayed on the book's cover?
(2) Where did Morgan get all the facts and figures for his text? There is no reference section that tells us.
(3) I almost missed the fact that there's a CD with this book! I just happened to read the back cover and there is a little blurb that tells the reader that there's a CD (but not where it's located). We're only told what the main sounds are on 11 of its 23 tracks. Why? And why are we not told that there's a CD at the front of the book?
In conclusion, this is a unique and stunningly beautiful book about rain forests around the world. I leave you with a list of facts found in a "fact box" entitled "Wealth of the Rainforests" that itself is found in the last chapter of this remarkable book:
(i) One-fifth of the world's fresh water is in the Amazon River basin.
(ii) Almost all the medicine we use every day come from plants endemic to the rainforest.
(iii) A single pond in Brazil [that holds over half of the Amazon Rain Forest and holds about one-third of the world's remaining tropical rain forests] can sustain a greater variety of fish than is found in all of Europe's rivers.
(iv) If present rates of destruction [of rain forests] continue, there will be no rainforests remaining by 2060.
(copyright 2006; forward; a photographer's passion; 6 chapters; main narrative 360 pages; photographing the rainforest; index; acknowledgements; "sounds of the rainforest" CD)
<
>
XXXXX
Save them!.......2007-08-27
Save the rainforests, in the meantime you will love this book it has the most amazing, beautiful photos in it I highly recommend it! Not just a coffee table book either, this really opens up the true, hidden beauty of the rainforests!
Amazing!.......2007-08-01
The photos are just astonishing. I highly recommend this book. It captures nature's beauty and color and showcases an array of rare animals that you will probably never see yourself.
Average customer rating:
- Four hundred pages of character development?
- Dull, dull and then more dull
- Forty Signs of Rain by Kim Stanley Robinson
- Very Disappointing
- Not Free SF Reader
|
Forty Signs of Rain
Kim Stanley Robinson
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
General
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Technothrillers
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Robinson, Kim Stanley
| ( R )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Look Inside Mystery & Thriller Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Look Inside Science Fiction & Fantasy Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
General
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Technothrillers
| Thrillers
| Mystery & Thrillers
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
( R )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
All 4-for-3 Deals
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Fifty Degrees Below
-
Sixty Days and Counting
-
The Years of Rice and Salt
-
Antarctica
-
Red Mars (Mars Trilogy)
ASIN: 0553585800
Release Date: 2005-07-26 |
Book Description
The bestselling author of the classic Mars trilogy and The Years of Rice and Salt returns with a riveting new trilogy of cutting-edge science, international politics, and the real-life ramifications of global warming as they are played out in our nation’s capital—and in the daily lives of those at the center of the action. Hauntingly realistic, here is a novel of the near future that is inspired by scientific facts already making headlines.
When the Arctic ice pack was first measured in the 1950s, it averaged thirty feet thick in midwinter. By the end of the century it was down to fifteen. One August the ice broke. The next year the breakup started in July. The third year it began in May. That was last year.
It’s an increasingly steamy summer in the nation’s capital as Senate environmental staffer Charlie Quibler cares for his young son and deals with the frustrating politics of global warming. Charlie must find a way to get a skeptical administration to act before it’s too late—and his progeny find themselves living in Swamp World. But the political climate poses almost as great a challenge as the environmental crisis when it comes to putting the public good ahead of private gain.
While Charlie struggles to play politics, his wife, Anna, takes a more rational approach to the looming crisis in her work at the National Science Foundation. There a proposal has come in for a revolutionary process that could solve the problem of global warming—if it can be recognized in time. But when a race to control the budding technology begins, the stakes only get higher. As these everyday heroes fight to align the awesome forces of nature with the extraordinary march of modern science, they are unaware that fate is about to put an unusual twist on their work—one that will place them at the heart of an unavoidable storm.
With style, wit, and rare insight into our past, present, and possible future, this captivating novel propels us into a world on the verge of unprecedented change—in a time quite like our own. Here is Kim Stanley Robinson at his visionary best, offering a gripping cautionary tale of progress—and its price—as only he can tell it.
From the Hardcover edition.
Download Description
The bestselling author of the classic Mars trilogy and The Years of Rice and Salt returns with a riveting new trilogy of cutting-edge science, international politics, and the real-life ramifications of global warming as they are played out in our nation's capita—and in the daily lives of those at the center of the action. Hauntingly realistic, here is a novel of the near future that is inspired by scientific facts already making headlines.
When the Arctic ice pack was first measured in the 1950s, it averaged thirty feet thick in midwinter. By the end of the century it was down to fifteen. One August the ice broke. The next year the breakup started in July. The third year it began in May. That was last year.
It's an increasingly steamy summer in the nation's capital as Senate environmental staffer Charlie Quibler cares for his young son and deals with the frustrating politics of global warming. Charlie must find a way to get a skeptical administration to act before it's too late—and his progeny find themselves living in Swamp World. But the political climate poses almost as great a challenge as the environmental crisis when it comes to putting the public good ahead of private gain.
While Charlie struggles to play politics, his wife, Anna, takes a more rational approach to the looming crisis in her work at the National Science Foundation. There a proposal has come in for a revolutionary process that could solve the problem of global warming—if it can be recognized in time. But when a race to control the budding technology begins, the stakes only get higher. As these everyday heroes fight to align the awesome forces of nature with the extraordinary march of modern science, they are unaware that fate is about to put an unusual twist on their work—one that will place them at the heart of an unavoidable storm.
With style, wit, and rare insight into our past, present, and possible future, this captivating novel propels us into a world on the verge of unprecedented change—in a time quite like our own. Here is Kim Stanley Robinson at his visionary best, offering a gripping cautionary tale of progress—and its price—as only he can tell it.
Customer Reviews:
Four hundred pages of character development?.......2007-10-02
I bought this book after hearing about the trilogy on NPR. In the context of a trilogy, perhaps this book makes sense. It seems clearly intended to set up the characters and events that will occupy the latter two books.
However, unlike the first books in many great trilogies, this book is literally almost *entirely* character development. I kept reading and reading, waiting for something to happen. What I got was page upon page of seemingly pointless prose. Finally, towards the end, "something" happens, but even that event is rather (pardon the pun) uneventful, and then the book ends abruptly.
I really think that if the author had wanted to spend 400 pages on character development, he should have written an 800-page book. As it is, I feel a bit ripped off.
I gave the book two stars rather than one mainly because the characters actually are interesting. I suppose I will attempt to read the second book in the trilogy to see whether it proves any more interesting. However, I think I'll get it from the library. Even the price of a paperback seems a risk after this volume.
Dull, dull and then more dull.......2007-09-29
'Forty Signs of Rain' seems like it would be a good book. Competent author, pertinent subject, and people love political thrillers. Unfortunately, there's not enough tension in the book to ever make it overly interesting, so the story never quite feels like it gets off the ground.
Reading it is somewhat like watching a disaster miniseries on television - you know the disaster is coming, you know it won't happen until the beginning of act two (sadly at the very end of this first novel in a set of three), and so you have wade through endless character development and minor plot points to get to the good part. And in this case, the character development and minor plot points are about as interesting as government memos on policy reform. Now that I think about it, the whole first half of the book IS about government memos on policy reform. The rest is a character walking around with his toddler noticing the inane little things the kid does, and those sections of the book are very reminiscent of coworkers launching into long, boring stories about their kids that are neither engaging nor interesting. In this book, we're treated to information on what the kid eats, how often, what his stroller is like, what he does at afternoons in the park, and on and on. The whole first 200 pages should have been condensed into three.
So, sadly, the book, although written well enough, is dull and boring, and that's probably the worst thing you can say about a 'political thriller'.
Forty Signs of Rain by Kim Stanley Robinson.......2007-09-19
This is a series about global warming and what it might do to our planet, except it isn't set in the distant future, like The Day After Tomorrow; this series is set a decade in the future at the most. While no date is given, the world is much like ours with its citizens enjoying the frivolities of life, the administration cares nothing about the planet, the Arctic is breaking up and melting while pieces of Antarctica are falling off into the ocean. Our main characters are Charlie Quibler, a Senate environmental staffer, and his wife Anna who works for the National Science Foundation.
Four fifths of the book are spent with the characters and their ordinary lives with their children. Charlie is a stay at home dad, working with a phone and an Internet connection, looking after young Joe who needs constant supervision, while Anna works hard every day in her office, using a breast pump to provide milk for Joe. As the book progresses the reader learns of our current reality: melting of the ice caps, rising sea levels, and increase in weather activity. In the last part of the book, the storms come to Washington DC with severe rainfall, there is flooding, the Potomac overflowing and soon the streets become flooded rivers and boats become the only form of transportation. The book ends with Charlie traveling home by boat with a great finishing line: "Are you going to do something about global warming now?" he says to his Senator.
What makes Forty Signs of Rain, especially for a science fiction novel, more enjoyable and realistic than most books I've read is the author make his characters constantly doing ordinary things like meeting new people, interacting with them, cleaning the house, shopping, the father looking after the children. The details of ordinary life that you and I go through every day are in this book and presumably the others in the series; it makes it very human. Robinson was mostly setting the stage in the book, making it seem much like ordinary life, and then with the onslaught of global warming, things are kicked into high gear and I can't help but think when this big change or catastrophe is going to happen to us. With the Fall of constant hurricanes hitting the southeastern United States most notable with Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and with the severely cold winter we've had here in California, as well as record breaking warm temperatures on the east coast for this time of year, I can't help but wonder if we are not already in high gear. Perhaps these books will serve as a guide for when things really start to go bad with global warming. Next in the series if Fifty Degrees Below.
For more book reviews, and other writings, go to www.alexctelander.com
Very Disappointing.......2007-09-15
Forty Signs of Rain reads like a polemic against such anti-science works as State of Fear. This is a much needed rebuttle, an engaging and prescient topic, and an idea begging for pathos and adventure. The only problem with Forty Signs of Rain? It reads like a polemic against anti-science works.
I kept on waiting for something to happen. I got so tired of waiting I had to start skimming large sections of the book. Believe me. Nothing happens. Not really till the last couple chapters. In the meantime Robinson engages in a highly preachy style on the dangers of Global Warming, the benefits of science and a scientific outlook on the world, and everything humans have done wrong. Don't get me wrong- all of what he says is true. It just doesn't make that good of fiction. I learned a fair bit about the inner workings of the NSF. But that didn't make me excited about the storyline.
It's rather the storyline that's lacking here. Robinson has some initial good and drawing descriptions of characters and scenery. And then it's daily life- the kind of description the reader's come to expect right before the big catastrophe. But no. No catastrophe, for page after page. And by the time there is one, you just don't care about the people.
Even the science here is questionable. I mean that literally. Since Robinson doesn't include a Works Cited or Endnotes, I can't tell which parts of the presented facts about Global Warming are made up, and which are real- or which are science fiction for the near future, and which are current. His near future is so near, and so unclear, I don't know how bad things are now, or will be.
We need to fight the climate of fear of science created by State of Fear, and we need more books to do that. Just better to do that with nonfiction, or well-written fiction that informs as well as entertains.
Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03
An interesting book, and one that politics geeks may well enjoy. Robinson has decided to have a look at climate change, via a couple of
political insiders, including an evironmental advisor, and a scientist.
An embassy from a small island nation literally about to disappear comes to Washington D.C. and the aforementioned characters become
involved with them.
Oh, and Washington gets really, really wet.
Average customer rating:
- Get Kids Interested in the Rain Forest
- Great Book about Animals In the Rainforest
- The true story of the rianforest
- Treasures of Nature
- great for teaching a unit on the rainforest
|
The Great Kapok Tree: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest
Lynne Cherry
Manufacturer: Voyager Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Fiction
| Environment
| Nature
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Fiction
| Nature
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Picture Books
| Ages 4-8
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Ages 4-8
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Literature
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Ages 4-8
| Children's Books
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Picture Books
| Ages 4-8
| Children's Books
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
General
| Literature
| Children's Books
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Fiction
| Environment
| Nature
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Fiction
| Nature
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
All 4-for-3 Deals
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Nature's Green Umbrella (Mulberry Books)
-
The Shaman's Apprentice: A Tale of the Amazon Rain Forest
-
A Walk in the Rainforest
-
Tropical Rain Forest
-
A River Ran Wild: An Environmental History
ASIN: 0152026142 |
Amazon.com
If a tree falls in the forest... someone or something will always be there to hear it. Many, many creatures will feel the effects when their source of sustenance and shelter falls to the earth. So when a man is sent into the Amazon rain forest one day, under instructions to chop down a great kapok tree, many eyes watch him nervously. It's not long before he grows tired, though, and the "heat and hum" of the rain forest lulls him to sleep. One by one, snakes, bees, monkeys, birds, frogs, and even a jaguar emerge from the jungle canopy to plead with the sleeping ax-man to spare their home. When the man awakens, startled at all the rare and marvelous animals surrounding him, he picks up his ax as if to begin chopping again, then drops it and walks away, presumably never to return.
Unfortunately, there's always someone else who is willing to take his place, but the message of this environmental book is plain: Save the rain forest! The story itself is not overly compelling, but each personalized entreaty from the animals provides an accurate and persuasive scientific argument for preserving nature's gifts. Lynne Cherry's fertile watercolor and colored-pencil illustrations, including a map of the tropical rain forests of the world, are vivid and colorful. A fine starting point for a discussion about conservation. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter
Book Description
This inspired look at what the Kapok tree means to the creatures that live in it--and what rain forests mean to the world's ecology--was at the forefront of the ecological movement ten years ago and continues to resonate profoundly with children everywhere.
Customer Reviews:
Get Kids Interested in the Rain Forest.......2007-07-29
I used this book as an introduction to the Rain Forest for my 3rd graders and it got them interested in learning more. It is a great book as a lesson plan or in a classroom library. Kids seemed to read and reread this book more than any other.
Great Book about Animals In the Rainforest.......2006-11-10
Both my 4 year old boy and my 7 year old girl like this book and so do I. It's a great way to introduce them to many of the different types of animals you could find in a rainforest. Great pictures!
The true story of the rianforest.......2006-04-12
This book is truly inspiring for anyone that does not believe in saving the rainforests. The Great Kapok Tree really tells you from all the animals point of view on how the rianforest is their home. This timeless children's book is not just for little children it is for all to learn a lesson from what could become of the future or what people are destroying. In this book there is one man who is told to chop down this very big and old Kapok tree. He starts to wack and chop. After a little bit the man is worn out so he desides to just sit and rest for a little bit, but the sounds of the rainforest lulls him to sleep. One by one animals that depend on trees or have homes there come down and talk to the man whispering and telling of how the rainforest will soon destroy all life on earth because of the oxygen that the trees give us. When the man wakes up he now has a choice, he cqn listen to what the animals said or what the other bigger man told him to do... To find out read The Great Kapok Tree by: Lynne Cherry.
Treasures of Nature.......2006-02-27
For centuries, man has abused nature and thoughtlessly destroyed forests without realizing the harm this causes. Only recently has the importance of trees become apparent, brought to light by those who value the life that trees provide. Lynne Cherry is one of these people; her gorgeously illustrated book teaches the importance of trees and the abundance that they give to nature and its creatures.
In this book, a man is hired to chop down a Kapok tree, one of the largest and most important in the entire forest. After just a few chops, the heat of the forest and the exertion of his efforts tire him out and he lies down to sleep. One by one, the different creatures of the forest creep over to him and whisper in his ear the importance of the tree, asking him to spare it and leave it to those who need it. By the time he wakes, his decision and his view of the forest are altered forever. This book is beautifully put together, both with illustrations and a story that's simply but powerfully written.
I've loved trees all my life and this lovely story teaches children the importance of taking care of nature and animals. I really can't believe one person's snooty comment that nature preservation is "not the job of children". First of all, children will not be children forever; they are the future and it is our responsibility to teach them how to take care of the environment if we want them to be responsible adults. Second of all, children CAN make a difference! If you go to Lynne Cherry's website, you'll see that a kid's organization convinced Mcdonald's to recycle their paper products.
I also disagree with the silly statement that the book puts animals above people. What it does is remind us that if we don't take care of nature, there will be no tomorrow for future generations. Besides, one of the "creatures" of the forest who whispered to the man while he was sleeping was a Native American who needed the tree, so the message of the book would be to put others ahead of yourself. I personally think it's refreshing to write a book that gives animals a voice since they're so often overlooked. This book is highly recommended!
great for teaching a unit on the rainforest.......2006-01-17
I got this book for my son, but I also work in a kindergarten and this is a good tool for teaching young children about the rainforest.
Book Description
In this compelling memoir, Brooke Shields talks candidly about her experience with postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter, and provides millions of women with an inspiring example of recovery hen Brooke Shields welcomed her newborn daughter, Rowan Francis, into the world, something unexpected followed-a crippling depression. Now, for the first time ever, in Down Came the Rain, Brooke talks about the trials, tribulations, and finally the triumphs that occurred before, during, and after the birth of her daughter.
Customer Reviews:
depicts PPD perfectly.......2007-09-30
I, too, had severe PPD. I, too, have written a book about it. This is 50 times better than Marie Osmond's book. If you are gettting it because it's written by a celebrity..well I suppose that's appealing to some people...but this was not like Marie's book in that regard. Brooke comes across as a regular person. PPD is not picky about who it afflicts. Brooke is real and open and brutally honest. She helped me identify some feelings I'd not been able to express. Thank you, Brooke, for doing such a great job! I have no idea what you could've done better. In my opinion, this was dead on and flawless. If you don't buy my book, buy Brooke's!
Just OK - not really that much on PPD.......2007-09-10
It felt like the PPD was discussed very briefly and most of the book was her telling her story of how she grew up, how she wanted a baby, how hard it was to get there, how she missed her old life, how she then loved her baby, how cute her baby is, how she balanced her career and motherhood, her relationship with her mother, yada yada yada. I certainly wouldn't read this book to learn about PPD. It is just an easy read book if you are interested in looking into the lives of celebrities.
Changed my life!!.......2007-09-04
I'm so glad i bought this book. I was suffering from postpartum depression, and I was ashamed of the thoughts that i was thinking and why i didnt feel a bond with my daughter... I read the book and it made me realize I needed to do something about it. GREAT BOOK!!
Honestly Written.......2007-08-15
Honestly written, so truthful,I am sure it was as painful to write as it was to experience. This had to be. For Tom (Jack*ff) Cruise to go spurting off his ideas and opinions(opinions obviously not solicited from Brook or her husband) was not only in poor taste, but dangerous. What is wrong with him? Not that I think America at large listens to Tom, I for one will not buy any paper,book,see any movie or show that endorses him. As for his poor wife katie Holmes she looks miserable and should run....not walk away from this marriage. He is as lousy as a bedside doctor as he is an actor. Matt Lauer should have b*tched slapped him when he got in his face. While I myself had uneventful pregnancies and no problems after(NO blues, thank God)It is thoughtful and honest and gives other women hope. God Bless Brook and her children.
AMAZING! .......2007-07-09
I never enjoyed a book this much in my life! YOU ROCK BROOKE!! I love the way she writes and her humor was so refreshing. I felt the same pain and the tears would stream down one minute and laugther the next. I'm 37yrs now and I suffered 2 Ectopic pregnancies with in five months of each other and wound up in the hospital both times having emergency surgery. We went thru the IUI procedure as well and now we are moving on to IVF next month August 2007 and I'm so grateful to have read this book. Please write more Brooke. Thank you so much thank you!!!
Book Description
If you had to kill three people to save your best friend's life, would you do it?
When John Rain decides to get out of the business, his hand is forced by rogue CIA operative Jim Hilger. Hilger kidnaps Dox, Rain's trusted partner and closest friend, and offers Rain a choice: carry out a final assignment, or bear the responsibility for Dox's murder.
For a professional like John Rain, the choice ought to be easy: Do the job-a series of three hits-then walk away. But how does Rain know Jim Hilger won't kill Dox anyway, once the assignment is complete? How does he know that each of the hits isn't simultaneously a setup for Rain himself? And what will he do when he finds out that among the targets of this lethal game of extortion is someone else Rain cares about deeply?
From the urban canyons of Silicon Valley and New York to the lush forests of Bali, the boulevards of Paris, and the old killing fields of Vietnam, Rain must grapple with his age, his enemies, and most of all, his conscience in a battle that not even Rain-"the stuff great characters are made of" (Entertainment Weekly)-can hope to survive intact.
Customer Reviews:
A vehicle for Eisler's personal politics.......2007-10-08
Barry Eisler is not shy about his left wing politics, nor his hate of the Bush administration. Frankly, I could care less what he thinks. His Rain books have been exceptionally original and well written. I have read each of them and I have thouroughly enjoyed them, until now.
While this story was probably the least gripping in the series, it may still have been an enjoyable read if not for Eisler's frequent spewing of vitriol aimed at the Bush administration. His liberal tirades are so frequent and full of vinegar that they progress from mildly annoying to childish to flat out distractions.
On the strength of his other works, I MAY consider reading another Eisler book in the future, but this one could well leave a bad enough aftertaste that I change my mind. There are plenty of great writers today that are content to keep their politics out of their stories, and after all, I don't need to pay $20 to hear Eisler spit this crap out...I can turn on the TV and listen to Keith Olbermann or some other idiot.
"Mr. Softy" John Rain has got to go!.......2007-10-05
I love John Rain the Bad guy..and have looked forward to Barry Eisler's new book being release; so, am disappointed with his efforts to show John Rain's emotional side..if he is going to make John Rain soft, then he might as well kill him off. Better yet, kill off his new girlfriend..the blond, what's her name..don't like her at all! Dox is great in this book and without him it would not have been worth reading. As always, the descriptions of all the exoctic places John visits are wonderful and the action scenes are great too..new gadgets, intrigue..still works..I just don't need to worry that Rain is going all soft and mushy on us.
Barry takes a breather...........2007-10-03
I love this series so much so that I had Requiem ordered in hardcover in the US and sent to me in Australia, where it is still not available. It gets 4 stars as compared to other authors but I'd probably give it only 3 if compared to other books in the series. Rain seems to be getting a bit soft with age. Please don't let this turn into a sappy story of an old battered warrior finding love and understanding in the twilight years... yawn! Don't get me wrong, this book is still good and I will continue reading future books in the series... but hope they acknowledge an assassin can never go back to being a normal civilian. If the twists and turns eventually bring Rain to save his son and start a fatherly relationship then I am burning my collection of this series!
Aptly Entitled Novel - The John Rain We Knew is Gone.......2007-10-02
Jerry Saperstein's review entitled "The Wussification of John Rain is Complete" is a classic and is not to be improved upon. I agree with all of his comments and mourn the passing of the John Rain that ruled the first four novels that Eisler wrote. The softer, gentler, although still deadly, John Rain is not a welcome addition to the line.
My Favorite Author.......2007-08-30
I liked all the John Rain novels and my only "regret" is that there are not a hundred John Rain titles. Of all my favorite authors, Eisler is the best, in my opinion. He makes the entire story interesting, taking us to foreign locales that most of us have never seen, plus the John Rain character as a guy who is so deep into his way of life that although he wants to get out, what can he do when one of his best friends is at the mercy of an arch-villain? So he keeps on going in his line of work. And hopefully Mr Eisler will come out with one per year.....or maybe five.
Book Description
What is it like to live and work in a remote corner of the world and befriend a courageous midwife who breaks traditional roles? Monique and the Mango Rains: Two Years with a Mali Midwife is the inspiring story of Monique Dembele, an accidental midwife who became a legend, and Kris Holloway, the young Peace Corps volunteer who became her closest confidante. In a small village in Mali, West Africa, Monique saved lives and dispensed hope every day in a place where childbirth is a life-and-death matter and where many children are buried before they cut a tooth. Kris worked side-by-side with her as they cared for each other through sickness and tragedy and shared their innermost secrets and hopes. Monique's life was representative of many women in one of the world's poorest nations, yet she faced her challenges in extraordinary ways. Despite her fiercely traditional society and her limited education she fought for her beliefs—birth control, the end of female genital mutilation, the right to receive a salary, and the right to educate her daughters. And she struggled to be with the man she loved. Her story is one of tragedy joy, rebellion, and of an ancient culture in the midst of change. It is an uplifting tribute to indomitable spirits everywhere. Monique and the Mango Rains is a fascinating voyage to an unforgettable place, a voyage spent close to the ground, immersed in village life, learning first-hand the rhythms of this world. From witnessing her first village birth to the night of Monique's own tragic death, Kris draws on her first-person experiences in Mali, her graduate studies in maternal and child health, medical and clinic records, letters and journals, as well as conversations with Monique, her family, friends and colleagues, to gives readers a unique view—and a friend in West Africa.
Customer Reviews:
Inspirational!.......2007-10-01
Monique and the author, Kris, are amazing and inspiring women. The story is told in such a way that the reader feels as though a friend is re-telling her experiences over a cup of coffee. The book touches on a number of important issues including women's health, the woman's role in the household in Mali, and the standard of living in Mali. I think it is essential for American's to read books like this so that we realize how incredibly good our lives are.
fantastic.......2007-06-20
A wonderful story of friendship and an interesting look at life in the Peace Corps and Mali in the 80's. The author's style is so easy to read; I felt like she was sitting next to me, telling me her story.
Poignant and Warm.......2007-05-12
I was so sad to see this book end. I wanted to continue to read more about Kris and Monique. I loved the look into the daily lives of the African village and the struggle to provide good quality care to the women and children of the village.
I definitely recommend this book!
Monique and the Mango Rains.......2007-05-11
Absolutely superlative writing and insights into village West Africa. Read this book if you want to begin to understand West Africans.
Wow!.......2007-04-30
This book takes you right there and you are able to live in Kris' shoes. She does an excellent job at making the people, places and events feel "real" to the reader. I was so sorry to finish this book!
Average customer rating:
- The Water Hole
- great book on so many levels
- Not appropriate for school-age kids
- favorite children gift
- Environmentally Correct
|
The Water Hole
Graeme Base
Manufacturer: Harry N. Abrams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Counting
| Basic Concepts
| Baby-3
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Baby-3
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Fiction
| Environment & Ecology
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Fiction
| Environment
| Nature
| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Picture Books
| Ages 4-8
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Base, Graeme
| ( B )
| Authors & Illustrators, A-Z
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Fiction
| General
| Animals
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Literature
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Look Inside Children's Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Animalia
-
Jungle Drums
-
Uno's Garden
-
The Eleventh Hour : A Curious Mystery
-
The Sign of the Seahorse: A Tale of Greed and High Adventure in Two Acts (Picture Puffin)
ASIN: 0810945681 |
Amazon.com
Who can resist the allure of the hidden wilderness water hole? Certainly not one rhino. Not two tigers. Nor three toucans. Pretty soon the delicious pool is drawing moose, catfish, pandas, tortoises... and more than 100 other critters from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and beyond. But is it our imagination or is that rhino-sized water hole dwindling to a mere shadow of its former self, a puddle not fit for eight ladybugs, let alone 10 kangaroos? As the seasons change across the world, and the animals get thirstier, the water supply diminishes. Eventually, even the flowery-shirted frog that has stoically lingered through the drought packs his suitcase and takes off. The only hope now is a drop of rain on the parched earth...
With his usual elaborate detail, Graeme Base, mad genius behind Animalia, The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery, and other wild and wonderful titles, presents a one-of-a-kind counting book. Naturally, Base would never be content to stick with a simple 1 through 10 format. Readers of all ages will linger over each spread, first counting the highlighted animals and giggling at the translation of their grunts and growls (the moose's "Moo, moo, mooooooiii!" means "Hey, get your hoof out of my ear!"). Then it's time to check out the diminishing size of the die-cut hole in the pond. And finally, readers will want to find each of the 10 additional animals cleverly hidden in every illustration, based on the silhouetted creatures in the border. A safari on paper--with an environmental and mathematical education thrown in for good measure. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter
Book Description
The long-awaited companion to the best-selling Animalia!
Graeme Base is back-with an exciting and fun new counting book! Children will love counting from one to 10 as animals of the world gather around a water hole. As one rhino gives way to two tigers, then three toucans, on up to 10 kangaroos, die-cut pages reveal the water hole in 10 different worldwide habitats, from African plains to Himalayan mountains to the Australian outback. But the water hole keeps shrinking, and with it the number of frolicking frogs. Can anything bring back the water that the animals all need to survive? Careful readers will find additional animals, many of them endangered, silhouetted in the borders of every spread and hiding within every landscape.
A stunning fusion of counting book, puzzle book, storybook, and art book, The Water Hole features the layers of interest that make Graeme Base's books among the world's best-loved picture books.
Customer Reviews:
The Water Hole.......2007-10-04
Another beautiful and entertaining book by Graeme Base! I enjoyed every page and bought more to share with my favorite young readers.
great book on so many levels.......2007-07-02
enjoyed by children learning to count and by kids that love to find the hidden animals. What I like is how my 3 and 7 year olds both love it and I can make story time long or short depending on if I just read it or if we search out all the animals. also has a great message.
Not appropriate for school-age kids.......2007-05-10
Don't get me wrong, this is a really great book. This book was just not what I expected. Illustrations were great and words in this book were minimal - very appropriate for preschool kids. I had intended this for my school-age kids and it was too simplistic for them. Also, this book make it sound like the earth will restore itself on its own (raining solving drought problem) when in fact, the earth needs our help to restore it by not wrecking havoc Mother Nature.
favorite children gift.......2007-02-07
I give this book to children all the time and the joy is given ten fold back
Environmentally Correct.......2007-01-15
The person who received this book used it to promote water savings tips to her elementary school students who greatly enjoyed finding the hidden surprises in the beautiful illustrations.
Books:
- Hydrology and Hydraulic Systems
- Introduction to Geography: People, Places, and Environment (3rd Edition)
- Introduction to Geography: People, Places, and Environment (3rd Edition)
- Introduction to Physical Polymer Science
- It Looked Like Spilt Milk
- J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide (Two Volume Box Set)
- Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology (7th Edition)
- Leading Change
- Map Use & Analysis
- Mapping Inner Space: Learning and Teaching Visual Mapping
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- John Brown
- Humble Bumbles' Baby Journal: A Keepsake Journal for Baby's First Three Years
- Crime Novels: American Noir of the 1930s and 40s: The Postman Always Rings Twice / They Shoot Horses
- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
- Creating Characters with Personality: For Film, TV, Animation, Video Games, and Graphic Novels
- Fields Virology 2 volume set
- Extraterrestrial Contact: The Evidence and Implications
- Robert Boyle: A Free Enquiry into the Vulgarly Received Notion of Nature
- Boone Pickens: The Luckiest Guy in the World
- Am I Dreaming
The Secret Knowledge of Water : Discovering the Essence of the American Desert
In Search of the Old Ones
Sandstone Spine: Seeking the Anasazi on the First Traverse of the Comb Ridge
Soul of Nowhere
Ancient Ruins of the Southwest: An Archaeological Guide (Arizona and the Southwest)
