Nature Books

WILD is like the components of a good meal—we relish each part and look forward to the next bite. Following her difficult, challenging, and fulfilling journey on the Pacific Coast Trail (PCT), we look inward and ask "could I do that?" Your answer might surprise you. Recommended by Raven customer Martha.

The subtitle pretty much says it all. If, like many, you’re intrigued by recent information about the intelligence of crows and other members of the corvid family, this book will delight. I particularly enjoyed the passage about how crows have been known to leave "gifts" for those that feed them. The science here is easily digested by a lay audience. Recommended by Kelly.

ONE SQUARE INCH OF SILENCE: ONE MAN’S QUEST TO PRESERVE QUIET cites "acoustic ecologist" and author Gordon Hempton’s trek across the country to find the quietest spots, to prove to himself and to others that silence is an endangered species of sorts and one that is essential to the health of every living thing. Readers learn not only how rare silence actually is but also the science of acoustics as well. It reads beautifully well as both travelogue and soft science. (Paperback, $17.00) Recommended by Kelly.

Now well-known for her break-out memoir about the death of her mother, REFUGE, Tempest Williams returns to the subject of her mother, Mormonism, women, and voice. In this new memoir she writes, "In Mormon culture, women are expected to do two things: keep a journal and bear children." When her mother died, she left Tempest Williams her journals to read. They were indeed where her mother said they would be, but every single one of them was blank. In the more than twenty years since her mother’s death, Tempest Williams has been contemplating her last message to her. This haunting memoir is the result. It’s a beautiful book. Recommended by Kelly.

Throughout his career as a nature writer and anthropologist Childs has had many up-close encounters with iconic animals of the American West. Each portrait, from mountain lion to deer mouse, reveals an openness to surprise and a willingness to think across species barriers. I couldn’t put this book down. Recommended by Kelly.

This isn’t dry science. In a series of essays, Raffles sheds light on the intricate wonders and, occasionally, horrors of our smaller comrades’ lives. An anthropologist by trade, he takes his own intense interest and folds it into an exploration of the intersection of worlds. A fascinating read. Recommended by Kelly.

A POCKET GUIDE TO KANSAS SNAKES THIRD EDITION by Joseph T. Collins & Suzanne L. Collins with photographs by Suzanne L. Collins and Bob Gress Published by the Friends of the Great Plains Nature Center (Wichita). Sponsored by the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks (Pratt), Westar Energy (Topeka), The Center for North American Herpetology (Lawrence), and the Great Plains Nature Center (Wichita). This pocket guide covers the 38 kinds of snakes found in Kansas, all illustrated with exquisite color images. Pocket guides are an important way to get people involved with wildlife conservation, because the more people become familiar with a group of animals, the more they have invested in them and their habitat. In this guide, Joe and Suzanne Collins reveal the abundant serpent fauna of the Sunflower State, with sections on size, description, and habits. Contains information on all Kansas serpents and organizes them in the Family Leptotyphlopidae (Slender Blind Snakes), Family Colubridae (Harmless Egg-laying Snakes), Family Dipsadidae (Harmless Rear-fanged Snakes), Family Natricidae (Harmless Live-bearing Snakes), and Family Crotalidae (Pitvipers). New features: Taxonomy remains generally unchanged except that the Family Xenodontidae is synonymyzed with the Family Dipsadidae (resulting in both Hognose Snakes being placed in the Family Dipsadidae), the generic name of the New Mexico Blind Snake is now Rena instead of Leptotyphlops, and the Speckled Kingsnake is recognized as a distinct species, Lampropeltis holbrooki. For greater accuracy, comprehension, and ease of use, this book has adopted the long-standing, traditional, standard common names for North American herpetofauna maintained by CNAH, published by Collins & Taggart (2009), and recently adopted in the new book, Amphibians, Reptiles, and Turtles in Kansas, by Joseph T. Collins, Suzanne L. Collins, and Travis W. Taggart (2010 Eagle Mountain Publishing). Date of Publication: July 2010 69 pages, softbound A free PDF of the guide can be found .

On this 40th anniversary year of Earth Day, I can’t think of anything better to read than a biography of Rachel Carson, arguably the founder of the modern environmental movement. Though not necessarily new, Linda Lear’s biography RACHEL CARSON: A WITNESS FOR NATURE is well worth reading. It delves deeply into Carson’s life, loves and motivations, which offers remarkable insights into her career.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Obsessions are hard to explain and even harder to justify if you’re a woman and they take you away from your family. Harder still if your obsession is "just" about birds. That’s why Olivia Gentile’s biography of Phoebe Snetsinger LIFE LIST is such an important book.