Kid Lit Saves World

At Home with the Gopher Tortoise

 At Home with the Gopher Tortoise
The Story of a Keystone Species
Madeleine Dunphy

Ages 9-12
Paperback, 32 pages
Web of Life Books
ISBN: 978-0977753956
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This book would be doing a great service, even if it were not stunningly illustrated by Michael Rothman. But because every lavish two-spread takes you either close to, or deep inside, the ecologically essential Gopher Tortoise burrow and the many animals that make use of it, this book is all the more special.

The Gopher Tortoise, native to the Southeastern United States, is known as a Keystone Species because over 360 other species depend on its burrows for nesting, protection, and sustenance. It is now listed as Federally Threatened in Louisiana, Mississippi, and western Alabama.

I was surprised to learn what a wide variety of birds, insects and mammals is supported by the burrowing habits of the Gopher Tortoise. Creatures as diverse as the gopher cricket, mole skink, Northern Bobwhite, Red-Tailed Hawk, the Gopher Frog and even the bobcat would be adversely affected if the Gopher Tortoise became extinct.

A short essay at the end of the book summarizes the plight of the Gopher Tortoise alongside sketches of the animals that interact with the Gopher Tortoise's burrows. Here is a bit more info on the Gopher Tortoise and a nice pictorial on how the Gopher Tortoise lives. There's also helpful site for land managers, developers, and others seeking to minimize their impact on the Gopher Tortoise.

This is a beautiful book for teachers to read aloud in the classroom, or for naturalists to use in presentations to children. I hope the National Parks in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Florida are all aware of this very well-made and educational children's book.

Great footage of Gopher Tortoises eating in this video:

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Ceci Miller is co-publisher of BooktiMookti Press, home of the Runt Farm chapter book series. She is also a children’s author, book editor, and owner of CeciBooks editorial and book publishing consultancy for authors and indie publishers. See some of her book projects here.

Passport Into the Wild (Jungle Jack Hanna)

If you heard this had become a video blog, you were misinformed. Although I love a good heartwarming YouTube moment as much as the next reader, it's the page-turnin' life for me. So here I go again . . .

Passport into the Wild
Jack Hanna

Ages 8-12
Hardcover, 72 pages
10.5 x 10.4 x 0.7 inches

Thomas Nelson
ISBN: 978-1400311385
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Leafing through this log of Jack Hanna's wilderness adventures (winner of the prestigious Mom's Choice Award) it's hard not to get excited to learn about (and protect) the wild places on our globe that few have seen up close. Adding a few twists on the old-school follow the khaki-shirted-explorer-dude-into-the-wild theme, this book includes a passport and photo stickers of animals "seen" on different continents, as well as stickers showing the reader's "travels" through the book, spanning seven continents. The book brings kids along with Jungle Jack Hanna as he reminisces in his travel journal about hiking through stinging nettles in Rwanda, or paddling an inflatable raft through the icy seas of Antarctica to see Gentoo penguins.

The big book offers two-page spreads on each continent, rich with photos tracking the animals and showing some of the people Jungle Jack has met in his real-life exploits. Also included are maps of the continents and (sometimes) their locations on the globe. The layout is peppered with paperclips, pushpins, a set of binoculars and a fountain pen intended to give readers the feeling they are leafing through Jack Hanna's private travelogue.

Children ages 8-12 are the best audience for this book. Kids may notice that (for all its carefully orchestrated stains and weathered edges) this journal looks a bit too neat for one that's traveled around the world. But kids are voracious explorers themselves and aren't likely to object. They'll be far too engaged with the book's enjoyable ruse of taking them on a trip through these wild places on our planet. All in all, a very good homeschooling tool, a fine book for teachers to use on units about these continents and their indigenous peoples and animals. And a great way for parents to engage kids in conversations about these people and animals who live in interesting places.

To get a look at Jack Hanna's Daytime Emmy Award-winning children's TV series, Into the Wild, check out this helpful Show Finder from the Jack Hanna website.

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Ceci Miller is co-publisher of BooktiMookti Press, home of the Runt Farm chapter book series. She is also a children’s author, book editor, and owner of CeciBooks editorial and book publishing consultancy for authors and indie publishers. See some of her book projects here.

Elephant & Dog R Friends: Write This Story 4 Kids!

Although this blog is mostly a place for book reviews of children's literature that promotes a more peaceful and just world, this video made me wish for a children's nonfiction book to tell the story. It shows a particularly deep bond of trust and affection between a pachyderm and a little white dog. If you write nonfiction for children, here's a find for you. And if you're an animal rescue expert or zoologist, maybe it's time you considered writing for kids!

This story inspired me and touched my heart. Hope you share it with your loved ones.

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Ceci Miller is co-publisher of BooktiMookti Press, home of the Runt Farm chapter book series. She is also a children’s author, book editor, and owner of CeciBooks editorial and book publishing consultancy for authors and indie publishers. See some of her book projects here.

Batty About Texas (book review)

J. Jaye Smith
Illustr. Kathy Coates
Ages 4-8
Hardcover, 32 pages
11.1 x 8.5 x 0.4 inches

Pelican Publishing
ISBN: 978-1589805828
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In Austin, Texas where I lived for six years, Mexican free-tailed bats are big celebrities. Many people have bat houses on their property, and they're as proud of them as they are of their birdhouses. They know the important place bats have in the ecosystem, and on Spring and Summer nights, throngs of tourists flock to the Congress Avenue bridge "to see the bats fly out." It's a sight to behold, the largest urban bat colony in the world, like a massive cloud emerging from beneath the bridge and up into the night, all at once! (And if you don't believe me, see what other people say about the biggest bat watch on the planet).

This book is a good way to introduce children to the facts about bats -- and right now, given how vampire-laden are the current books for children and tweens, some factual information is welcome! Smith's text makes bat facts come alive for readers, who learn (among other things) that they are diurnal, while bats are nocturnal. There's lots more, but I won't spoil it for you. Elegant, realistic paintings by Kathy Coates give kids both detailed close-ups and lyrical images of these amazing animals against the Texas landscape.

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Ceci Miller is co-publisher of BooktiMookti Press, home of the Runt Farm chapter book series. She is also a children’s author, book editor, and owner of CeciBooks editorial and book publishing consultancy for authors and indie publishers. See some of her book projects here.

Guide to Bears: Cuddling Is Good for the Earth

The Beginner's Guide to Bears
Gillian Shields, Sebastien Braun

Ages 4-8
Hardcover, 32 pages
9.9 x 9.8 x 0.4 inches
LB Kids
ISBN: 978-0316032735
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Massage therapists are fond of saying that if everyone in the world got a massage regularly, world peace would be close at hand (sorry, couldn't resist that one). Well, I say if everyone snuggled up with a teddy bear and a book on a regular basis, we might not have world peace, but perhaps the world wouldn't be in so many pieces . . . The point is, children need to feel safe and loved more than ever these days. Even preschoolers hear spooky global warming tales and the grownup ick of the nightly news, whether from older siblings, friends with older siblings, or from their own poorly tended TVs at home.

Love the soft padded cover on this hardcase book that makes it feel friendly for young ones to hold. Stuffed like a bear, this book is full of charming bear faces and a gentle-hearted text. Kids will appreciate seeing bear cubs doing a lot of the same things they like to do. The audience is billed as ages 4-8, but the book is far more likely to attract the pre-school set as a read-aloud. The "peek-a-boo mirror" at the back is definitely toddler fodder that no self-respecting 6-year-old would gaze into. Safe-and-cozy illustrations in a warmed-up primary palette make for enjoyable snuggly reading. Nice gift for a child aged 3-5. Nice accompaniment to a stuffed bear, old or new.

Check out this fun version of the Teddy Bears' Picnic song:

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Ceci Miller is co-publisher of BooktiMookti Press, home of the Runt Farm chapter book series. She is also a children’s author, book editor, and owner of CeciBooks editorial and book publishing consultancy for authors and indie publishers. See some of her book projects here.