A Country Year: Living the Questions


Sue Hubbell - 1983
    Keeping bees, she found solace in the natural world. She began to write, challenging herself to tell the absolute truth about her life and the things that she cared about. The result is one of the best-loved books ever written about life on the land, about a woman finding her way in middle age.

The View From Here


Lynne Hinton - 2018
    This is a story about love and forgiveness, about loss and what it means to be family. It’s a story about finding peace in whatever place you call home. It’s also quietly, unpretentiously about environmentalism and preservation of place.Katie Sinclair climbed up a loblolly pine just to see if she could. And then she stayed, creating a media sensation and more than a little trouble for the folks in Jones County, North Carolina. There is a lot of speculation about why the state employee took to the tree. Some think she is making a political statement about the destruction of forests for urban development. Others believe her recent divorce has driven her to a nervous breakdown.But the truth is she’s living in a tree because she needs a new perspective. She needs a wider view of a life that had somehow become tedious and small. From her perch high above everyone, Katie deals with the deputy who keeps being sent to try and talk her down, a brutal spring storm, well-meaning environmentalists, odd and interesting townspeople, a pair of protective horned owls, a mysterious reporter, and even some dangerous boys sent by the developer whose plans demand taking down her tree.There is plenty for Katie to take in while living in a tree. Author Lynne Hinton’s elegant, effortless prose shows us as if we were there what Katie is seeing and learning about birds, sky, wind, and people. But she -- and us with her -- is changed primarily by what she discovers about herself, about grief and forgiveness, and about the true love that has been in front of her for most of her life.No reader will be unmoved by this lyrical, empathetic novel crafted by a master storyteller.

Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man


Tim M. Berra
    Berra, whose "Darwin: The Man" lectures are in high demand worldwide, tells the fascinating story of the person and the idea that changed everything. Berra discusses Darwin’s revolutionary scientific work, its impact on modern-day biological science, and the influence of Darwin’s evolutionary theory on Western thought. But Berra digs deeper to reveal Darwin the man by combining anecdotes with carefully selected illustrations and photographs.This small gem of a book includes 20 color plates and 60 black-and-white illustrations, along with an annotated list of Darwin’s publications and a chronology of his life.

The Curious Nature Guide: Explore the Natural Wonders All Around You


Clare Walker Leslie - 2015
    Using photography as well as the author's own illustrations, Explore Your Nature invites readers to start at home, using all of their senses to notice the colors, sounds, smells, and textures of the trees, plants, animals, birds, insects, clouds, and other features that can be observed right outside their doorstep, no matter where they live. Prompts range from suggestions to note one daily exceptional nature image to learning to identify cloud types and the weather they bring, or creating a record of nature spottings on daily walks with the dog.

The Language of Butterflies: How Thieves, Hoarders, Scientists, and Other Obsessives Unlocked the Secrets of the World's Favorite Insect


Wendy Williams - 2020
    From butterfly gardens to zoo exhibitions, they are one of the few insects we’ve encouraged to infiltrate our lives. Yet, what has drawn us to these creatures in the first place? And what are their lives really like? In this groundbreaking book, New York Times bestselling author and science journalist Wendy Williams reveals the inner lives of these “flying flowers”—creatures far more intelligent and tougher than we give them credit for. Monarch butterflies migrate thousands of miles each year from Canada to Mexico. Other species have learned how to fool ants into taking care of them. Butterflies’ scales are inspiring researchers to create new life-saving medical technology. Williams takes readers to butterfly habitats across the globe and introduces us to not only various species, but to the scientists who have dedicated their lives to studying them. Coupled with years of research and knowledge gained from experts in the field, this accessible “butterfly biography” explores the ancient partnership between these special creatures and humans, and why they continue to fascinate us today. Touching, eye-opening, and incredibly profound, The Language of Butterflies reveals the critical role they play in our world.

Mean and Lowly Things: Snakes, Science, and Survival in the Congo


Kate Jackson - 2007
    Culled from the mud-spattered pages of her journal, this is her unvarnished account of her adventures and research.

Backcountry Lawman: True Stories from a Florida Game Warden


Bob H. Lee - 2013
    Follow dedicated wildlife officers as they use their wits and skills in the pursuit of poachers and wildlife law violators.”—Tom Mastin, forester and managing broker, Mossy Oak Properties Legacy Realty Services “Lee recounts his amazing and challenging career as a Florida game warden with wit, wisdom, and careful attention to detail. You will travel with him as he boats the St. Johns River, walk beside him as he wades past resting alligators, and listen for that gunshot on a cold Putnam County night.”—Jeff Hahr, former patrol supervisor, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission In the underbelly of Florida, hardened poachers operate in the dark, out of sight and away from residents who sleep soundly through the night. But poachers are not the only midnight hunters. In the state’s public wilderness tracts, cattle ranches, and water courses, wildlife thieves are stealthily and silently tracked. Most people have never imagined the often dicey, comical, and sometimes bizarre job of a Florida game warden. Backcountry Lawman tells what it’s like to catch an armed poacher in the act—alone, at night, without backup or a decent radio to call for help. These stories describe the cat-and-mouse games often played between game wardens and poachers of ducks, turkeys, hogs, deer, gators, and other species. Few people realize that “monkey fishing”—electrocution of catfish—had the same outlaw mystique in the rivers of Florida as moonshining once did in the hills of Georgia and Tennessee. With thirty years of backcountry patrol experience in Florida, Bob Lee has lived through incidents of legend, including one of the biggest environmental busts in Florida history. His fascinating memoir reveals the danger and the humor in the unsung exploits of game wardens.Bob H. Lee spent over three decades as a water patrol officer on the St. Johns River and a land patrol lieutenant in Putnam, St. Johns, and Flagler counties. Before retiring in 2007, he taught man-tracking classes through the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Unbranded


Ben Masters - 2014
    For their trail horses, they adopted wild mustangs from the US Bureau of Land Management that were perfectly adapted to the rocky terrain and harsh conditions of desert and mountain travel. A meticulously planned but sometimes unpredictable route brought them face to face with snowpack, downpours, and wildfire; unrelenting heat, raging rivers, and sheer cliffs; jumping cactus, rattlesnakes, and charging bull moose; sickness, injury, and death. But they also experienced a special camaraderie with each other and with the mustangs. Through it all, they had a constant traveling companion—a cameraman, shooting for the documentary film Unbranded. The trip’s inspiration and architect, Ben Masters, is joined here by the three other riders, Ben Thamer, Thomas Glover, and Jonny Fitzsimons; two memorable teachers and horse trainers; and the film’s producers and intrepid cameramen in the telling of this improbable story of adventure and self-discovery.

Beguiled by the Wild: The Art of Charley Harper


Charley Harper - 1994
    Charley Harper (1922 2007), with his masterly use of simple geometric shapes, patterns, and vivid colors, distilled the essence of each bird, bug, otter, raccoon, or elephant he painted to its most important details. He called his style of painting "minimal realism. . . . Instead of trying to put everything in when I paint, I try to leave everything out. . . . I reduce the subject to the simplest possible visual terms without losing identity, thereby enhancing identity." Harper's approach to depicting the natural world is both sophisticated and fun. This edition of Beguiled by the Wild comprises all of Harper's serigraphs produced from 1968 to 2007. The original text by Roger Caras and Charley Harper is joined by a new commentary from the artist's son, Brett Harper.

The Shorebird Guide


Michael O'Brien - 2006
    Experienced birders use the most easily observed characteristics — size, structure, behavior, and general color patterns — to identify birds even before looking carefully at plumage details. Now birders at all levels can learn how to identify shorebirds quickly and simply. This guide includes more than 870 stunning color photographs, starting with a general impression of the species and progressing to more detailed images of the bird throughout its life cycle. Quiz questions in the captions will engage and challenge all birders and help them benefit from this simplified, commonsense approach to identification.

Walk With The Wind: The Endless Circle


Tom Savage - 2015
    Experience the incredible exploits of this young elk as he grows to become a great leader of his kind. His life is one of challenge and near tragedy as he struggles to survive the often violent life that is nature. Under the guidance of great bulls and mysterious spirit guides, this brave young bull grows to understand the never-ending circle of life and the oneness that he and all living things share. Enter the brutally honest world that is nature, and walk the journey of this courageous young bull as by his grandeur he brings all four-legged ones to a great oneness with their most feared enemy, man. You will laugh and cry as this young elk grows to become that which you an I hope someday to be.

Justice Series Box Set #13-15


M.A. Comley - 2018
     Digging into the victim's past leads Lorne across the county border to team up with an old friend, DI Sally Parker. What they reveal is mind-blowing. Grown men are terrified, too terrified to speak out. So how will Lorne and Sally bring the culprit to Justice? Determination and putting their lives on the line will be the key to solving this case. Prime Justice A killer, an abductor, and a villain intent on revenge. Just a normal day in the life of intrepid policewoman DI Lorne Warner. A rural idyll should be everyone's idea of paradise, it is... until a murderer strikes. The mystifying case, situated on Lorne's doorstep is about to intensify when an abduction occurs in the same vicinity. Are the two cases connected? Lorne's world is about to come to a grinding halt when a recent adversary threatens her career. Will Lorne succeed in restoring the tranquillity to a sleepy community? More importantly will she still have a job at the end of the investigation? Heroic Justice (a joint investigation between DI Lorne Warner and DI Hero Nelson) One killer. Several gruesome murders... Two hundred miles apart! A complex issue that will take two exceptional detectives to solve. Who is targeting his victims in public places? What is his motive? Lorne is prepared to lose sleep and to travel the length of the country searching for clues. But the killer is canny... ups his game with devastating consequences. Lorne shakes her head in confusion when the truth is revealed...

Patricia Fisher: Ship's Detective


Steve Higgs - 2021
    

The Enlightened Spaniel - A Dog's Quest to be a Buddhist


Gary Heads - 2018
    Ably assisted by a bookshelf, who holds a fountain of knowledge, they embark upon a quest to discover the secrets of meditation and uncover the path to ancient wisdom. As they progress along the road to enlightenment, they not only transform their own perception of life, but also the lives of those around them. The journey is a challenging one, but is held together by Half-Sister’s wicked sense of humour and a desire to enter into spaniel folklore. The Enlightened Spaniel is a wise tale, filled with insights and humour, that celebrates the connection between all beings that reside on Planet Earth.

Good Bug Bad Bug: Who's Who, What They Do, and How to Manage Them Organically


Jessica Walliser - 2008
    Garden expert Jessica Walliser also offers strategies for dealing with the new bugs in town, those worrisome strangers that are starting to show up as a result of climate change. Thirty-six bugs, presented in full color on laminated stock, with concealed wire binding. Sturdy enough to take into the garden for easy reference.