Seedfolks (Joanna Colter Books)

Amazon.com

Sometimes, even in the middle of ugliness and neglect, a little bit of beauty will bloom. Award-winning writer Paul Fleischman dazzles us with this truth in Seedfolks--a slim novel that bursts with hope. Wasting not a single word, Fleischman unfolds a story of a blighted neighborhood transformed when a young girl plants a few lima beans in an abandoned lot. Slowly, one by one, neighbors are touched and stirred to action as they see tendrils poke through the dirt. Hispanics, Haitians, Koreans, young, and old begin to turn the littered lot into a garden for the whole community. A gift for hearts of all ages, this gentle, timeless story will delight anyone in need of a sprig of inspiration.

Book Description

A vacant lot, rat-infested and filled with garbage, looked like no place for a garden. Especially to a neighborhood of strangers where no one seems to care. Until one day, a young girl clears a small space and digs into the hard-packed soil to plant her precious bean seeds. Suddenly, the soil holds promise: To Curtis, who believes he can win back Lateesha's heart with a harvest of tomatoes; to Virgil's dad, who sees a fortune to be made from growing lettuce; and even to Maricela, sixteen and pregnant, wishing she were dead.

Thirteen very different voices -- old, young, Haitian, Hispanic, tough, haunted, and hopeful -- tell one amazing story about a garden that transforms a neighborhood.

Chosen as a state and citywide read in communities across the country:
Vermont
Racine, WI
Tampa, FL
Newburgh, NY
Boca Raton, FL

Customer Reviews:

Good Stories, but Too Disconnected.......2007-05-31

It all started with one little girl. Kim's father died before she was even born, and she is afraid that he might not know her as he looks down from heaven. So she decides to do something to make him recognize her and to make him proud. He was a farmer back in Vietnam, so she takes a handful of bean seeds to a trash-covered vacant lot near her inner-city apartment and plants them. When he looks down and sees them, he will know she is his daughter.

Someone looks down from a window and is intrigued by this girl who keeps visiting the vacant lot in secret. Upon investigation she sees what is going on and decides to clear a little patch of land for a tiny garden of her own. Others observe and like the idea, and soon the vacant lot is covered with a patchwork of gardens from all sorts of people living nearby. Someone is able to bully the city into moving the trash off of this land. People who usually avoid eye contact at all cost are suddenly meeting neighbors and relating to one another. Through this garden project, a neighborhood of strangers becomes a real community.

I liked the characters in this story. They were all very vivid and their stories were well thought out. I also liked being able to see the different perspectives on this garden, and the different reasons people decided to plant things here.

I didn't like that each person's story was just dropped after it was told. I wanted the author to go back and write what the people were thinking. What did Kim think when her garden idea caught on? Was Sam able to stop the segregation he saw developing in the garden? I wanted some followup to each story.

Inspiring Seedfolks.......2007-04-25

Seedfolks is a book about a vacant city lot in Cleveland, Ohio that is abandoned until one day a Vietnamese girl decides to plant some beans as a way to become connected to her father who died before she was born. It tells the story of 13 different people who come together by this garden. They are all different ages and have different ethnic backgrounds and jobs. Somehow this garden brings them all together and means something different to each of them. The individual stories are interesting and touching.

My favorite part of the book is Gonzolo's Tio Juan story. He came to the U.S. with Gonzolo's mother and brother. Because he didn't speak English and couldn't work he would wonder around all day long with nothing to do and had to be baby sat by Gonzolo who who referred to him as a baby. One day he went off on his own in the neighborhood and came across the garden. The next day he went back and started working in the garden and planting seeds. Back in Guatemala he used to be a farmer and this gave him life again and he went from being a baby back to a man again.

I would recommend that you read Seedfolks. I think you will be touched by the 13 different people who are brought together through this community garden. In Reading Gonzolo's story it made me think about my Mom's parents who are immigrants from Portugal and how they too must of felt like Gonzolo's Tio Juan when they first arrived in the U.S., like they were babies and didn't know anything.

A Garden of Love.......2006-05-11

Seedfolks is a 69 page book, an easy read. Seedfolks is a book that shows that all different races, religions, cultures, and ages can come together to make something nice and beautiful and have meaning. They took a dump-like place and made it into something beautiful.
Some things I liked about this book were, that you can see how the author makes it so everyone of different backgrounds and stuff come together and do something together as one whole. Another thing that I liked about the book was that the author demonstrates how you can except people for who they are. In this story it seems like everyone is the equal and stuff like that. Like for example there was thing young girl who was pregnant and when this book was written it was like a big deal if you were pregnant at an early age but when she went to the garden no one judged her or anything like that. Another good thing about the book is that there is like no anger or anything bad in it, it seems like when everyone goes to the garden all there problems go away and most people go there to relax and just have fun.
Some things I didn't like about the book were that you cant really get to know one character because the character only has like 3 or 4 pages and there is 13 characters in the book so there really isn't one main character. Also in this book there was no plot, climax and there wasn't that big of a problem I mean there was a little one but it really didn't have a lot to do with what was going on in the book. Another bad thing about the book is it wasn't very interesting I'm the type of person who likes to read a book that you cant put down that you get really into but with this book I didn't feel that way. Overall I think Seedfolks was a decent book.

A Book for Building Community.......2006-04-25

This small book (69 pages) contains thirteen vignettes, each written from the point of view of a different person. Although the people begin as strangers from various ethnic backgrounds, they become acquainted as each cultivates a part of a vacant lot. As the lot becomes a place of beauty, individual lives are transformed as well -- and a community is created.

_Seedfolks_ is an excellent tool for building community among people with diverse backgrounds -- perhaps especially among educators, parents, and students.

Good reading for children.......2006-04-25

This is a good book for children who does not understand the meaning of working together. Also, this book was structured very intelligently; so that any reader can follow the same story but from other people point of views. In addition; the way the author painted colorful pictures of the city was very unique.

From Neurons to Neighborhoods : The Science of Early Childhood Development

Average customer rating:

Good condition at all levels
super terrific
Review of From Neurons to Neighbourhoods.
Great resource!
From Neurons to Neighborhoods : The Science of Early Childhood Development

From Neurons to Neighborhoods : The Science of Early Childhood Development
Committee on Integrating the Science of Early Childhood Development , Youth, and Families Board on Children , Committee on Integrating the Science of Early Childhood Development , and National Research Council
Manufacturer: National Academies Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Accessories:

Braun IRT 4020 ThermoScan Ear Thermometer

ASIN: 0309069882

Book Description

Authoritative yet accessible, Neurons to Neighborhoods presents the newest evidence about early brain development and how children learn to speak, think, get along with others, and regulate their behavior. It examines the effect of the surrounding context-family, child care, community-within which the child grows.

Are the early years a time of vulnerability or resilience? To what extent are our future prospects constrained by how well we navigate them? How can we get all children off to a good start in life? When should we worry? The committee provides a framework for approaching such vital questions and explores how scientists know what they know about childhood development.

This timely release will be important to all those who care about children and their families: policy makers, educators, researchers, program administrators, advocates, journalists, caregivers, and parents.

Customer Reviews:

Good condition at all levels.......2007-03-22

I received the book in in a timely fashion, and the book is in great condition.

super terrific.......2006-10-24

This book is a staple in the early childhood mental health field. It represents everything good in the promotion of social-emotional development in our society. Creating neurobiologically friendly environments for young children is a crossroad our society faces in an effort to have a positive impact on the mental health for our time. Implications for risk and resilience research contributions are included.

Review of From Neurons to Neighbourhoods........2006-08-04

I purchased this book, because I am doing a Graduate Diploma in Maternal & Child Health in Australia. Many of our lecturers were taking quotes from this book and referring to Jack Schonkoff's remarks contained within, pertaining to new evidence on myelination and the importance of interaction and stimulation of small children and the relationship between this and brain growth. It is easy to read and I am confident that both the lay person and health professional alike will glean valuable insight. I find myself constantly referring to this book and know that this will have an effect on my future practice as a Maternal and Child Health Nurse.

Great resource!.......2006-03-27

An amazing breadth and depth of neuroscience and its implications for how we treat children. Must reading for anyone wishing to get beyond prejudice and rhetoric to the core of what needs to be done in public policy to protect and preserve childhood in modern America. Should be 5 stars, but now a little dated, although references are excellent and it's not hard to follow the themes into the most recent research.

From Neurons to Neighborhoods : The Science of Early Childhood Development.......2005-10-09

The book was iin better condition than i expected, and it sent out the day after i ordered it.

Average customer rating:

Unique concept, beautiful pictures
Home was a good book
Pictures Worth Thousands of Words!
What a fabulous book!
The best picture book published in 2004. No debate.

Home (Horn Book Fanfare List (Awards))

Manufacturer: Greenwillow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Picture Books | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0066239354
Release Date: 2004-03-16

Book Description

A family.
A house.
A neighborhood.
A place to play.
A place to feel safe.

Little by little, baby Tracy grows. She and her neighbors begin to rescue their street. Together, children and adults plant grass and trees and bushes in the empty spaces. They paint murals over old graffiti. They stop the cars. Everything begins to blossom.

In Jeannie Baker's striking, natural collages, an urban community reclaims its land. A drab city street becomes a living, thriving neighborhood -- a place to call home.

Customer Reviews:

Unique concept, beautiful pictures.......2007-06-18

Jeannie Baker is no novice to this kind of subtle-changes-on-each-page book. However, her book "Window" --quite similar in approach-- left me feeling quite down and thwarted by urban overdevelopment and the loss of rural life. Quite opposite, "Home" bolsters one's spirits by depicting an area of urban decay turning gradually, over the period of some 20+ years, into a lovely urban oasis, complete with many trees, flowers, and shrubs and the reappearance of birds and animals. What's even better - it shows a family growing and thriving in the same environment and taking an active role in the neighborhood's change.

My four year old has asked for this book every day since we checked it out of the library, and I love it, too. A book that can appeal to multiple generations is a hands-down winner in my eyes.

Home was a good book.......2005-08-28

A very good book to read on the subject. Well written and informative.

Pictures Worth Thousands of Words!.......2005-01-22

Jeannie Baker's "Home" is a model for a book without text: The pictures are compelling, the story flows easily, and there's enough intrinsic narrative to stimulate discussion. Although much of the material is relevant to social and economic issues, the gorgeous collages and everyday scenes will appeal to infants and toddlers, as well as older siblings and adults. Publisher Greenwillow displays its usual excellent production values.

Baker shows the progression of a rundown neighborhood to the small city equivalent of a town square, as well as the maturation of the female protagonist ("Tracy") from newborn to mother. Baker cleverly shows this--"Rear Window"-like-through Tracy's upper floor apartment window. From this perspective, we view the changing interior (a window ledge and some of the wall), the adjoining backyards, and the stores and dwellings at the intersection. When Tracy is born, the backyards and large apartment building are run-down, and graffiti ("DAMAGE," "PAIN ") reveals residents' frustration and anger. You get the feeling that the people, too, are neglected objects.

As the young girl grows, she and her environment begin to change. It starts small: The girl plants some flowers, a wall is fixed, and eventually someone puts up a sign: "Reclaim Your Street." Gradually, more and more people enact the spirit of that sign as they rebuild their houses and yards. Residents make a small common area in a former driveway/vacant lot, and newer buildings replace old ones. On a larger scale (one that may be appreciated by grade- and middle-school kids), economic and perhaps political forces begin to shape the neighborhood: The apartment building is renovated, the streets are lined with plants, and a large complex in the background is torn down-revealing a beautiful lake that was previously hidden from view. Meanwhile, the young girl makes friends, goes to school, and later falls in love, marries, and has a baby.

The changes are gradual and believable: They apparently spring from residents' desire to fashion a better place to live. A couple of times, Baker "cheats" just a bit by painting the sky overcast on one page, and then a clear light blue as the intersection improves. For the most part, however, the book doesn't take the easy way out-not everything is perfect in the end, nor is everything simply a "slum" in the beginning. Neighborhood improvement is not necessarily equivalent to "neat and tidy" either: By the end of the book, large, varied, and somewhat overgrown foliage blocks the view.

"Home" is a beautiful picture book with exceptional composition and colors. It is bright and pleasant to look at and it's fun to compare the subtle on each page. It is also heartfelt, as Ms. Baker, in an afterward, discusses how the term "home" once encompassed the entire neighborhood. This is a superb book that with appeal to many different age groups, each of which will experience it in a different way. That quality makes "Home" a small treasure.

What a fabulous book!.......2005-01-12

Wow, wow, wow! Another reviewer said this was the best picture book of 2004 and I'm inclined to agree: it's simply a fabulous book, beautifully produced and rich in meaning (even without text!) The book takes us through a neighborhood in transition, from a slum to a service area to a vibrant, tree-filled paradise. Through it all, the story of a young girl growing up weaves it together and provides a timeline that is easy for small children to comprehend. It's a simple story but eloquently presented to viewers through the incredible collages of paper, fabric, and pressed plant materials that are rich in detail and meticulously arranged. The author closes the book with a beautiful passage, "People are discovering the need to nurture and to be nurtured by the unique character of the places where they live. It takes time, as this book shows. But the choice is ours to make - having simply a place to live or, by understanding the land and caring for it, belonging to a living home." While this book would be read and read again by young children, it would also be a useful addition to art curriculum for older youth.

The best picture book published in 2004. No debate........2004-11-22

Without question, the most beautiful picture book of 2004. No other contenders come half so close. Author/illustrator Jeannie Baker has somehow managed to create a deeply moral book without placing even a sentence of dialogue or text into her tale. "Home" is a simple story that follows the circular nature of life and regeneration by paralleling the growth of a single young girl with the restoration of an urban neighborhood. What follows is a gorgeous story about what we owe the places where we live, and how best to interact with our environments. All that and it's still a fun book for Kindergartners to flip through repeatedly.

Almost every page of this book is the exact same shot again and again and again. We are initially looking out of a house's window onto a grimy city street. In the first picture, a mother and a father cuddle their new baby daughter within their enclosed yard. The scene is gritty but, because of the couple and their daughter, touching as well. The next two page spread takes place two years later. It's clear that the couple have recently put down new sod, though the neighborhood still hasn't changed much around them. Next door, an old man works on his garden. With every turn of the page, another 2 years passes. Right before our eyes we watch the girl, whether she's in the yard working on her bike or in the house waving to some approaching friends. She's getting older and more mature. Soon it becomes clear that there's a concentrated "Reclaim your street" effort on the part of the other people in the neighborhood. A dingy old lot across the way starts getting painted and given new green trees. The street itself looks nicer and before you know it a megamall has been torn down, giving the house a beautiful view of a nearby lake. The girl, Tracy, gets older and eventually marries in a ceremony in the street. And before you know it, she has a new baby of her own, and a job as a local native plant specialist where once a used car lot used to be.

The story in this book is told entirely through complex collaged images. I referred to Jeannie Baker at the beginning of this review as an "illustrator" but I think that term does her an injustice. She would more rightly be called an artist of the finest pedigree. I do not know how you go about creating full images like this from just snips and spots of paper and cloth. Yet every single picture in this book is filled with hundreds of delicate details. Baker gives these scenes a great deal of depth, both literally and figuratively. If you've ever seen a book by Anno or spent some delightful hours with a kid while they attempted to locate a tiny detail on an enormous image, this book will not fail to impress.

I loved the lesson of this story as well. As Baker herself explains in an afterword to the text, "In some cities...communities are finding ways their streets can once again become part of people's sense of home and play a part in their sense of belonging". In these situations, people will act similarly to the characters in this book. They'll reintroduce native plants and animals. They'll spend a lot of time revitalizing run down areas. They'll create safe spaces for kids to play and for old folks to sit and relax in the afternoons. "Home" is the ultimate fantasy. One in which a dirty city area becomes tamed by the efforts of the people who know how to love it.

Which leads to the inevitable will-kids-enjoy-this-book question. The answer is a resounding yes. They'll love it. They'll try to find the old lady in the purple dress on every page, or try to figure out exactly when that tree was planted and that highway was rerouted. Best of all, they'll look at the cover of this book and realize that it is actually the moral of the story. High above, you can see the neighborhood as the book leaves it at the end. There are green things growing, childress playing in the streets, and a young woman relaxing in a hammock. And not that far away, where the used car lot used to stand, is a building entitled, "Tracy's Forest". You can't read this book and not be impressed by it. I couldn't read this book and not love it immediately. The most impressive book created in years and years.

Average customer rating:

city Green By Kyle F
Great Story for a Community or Garden Unit

City Green

Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 068812786X
Release Date: 1994-08-15

Book Description

Right in the middle of Marcy's city block is a littered vacant lot. Then one day she has a wonderful idea that not only improves the useless lot but her entire neighborhood as well. "DiSalvo-Ryan's warm text is enhanced by her soft pencil-and-watercolor illustrations depicting a diverse neighborhood drawn together by a community project."--Booklist.

Customer Reviews:

city Green By Kyle F.......2007-03-23

City Green
By: DyAnne DisSalvo-Ryan

This is my advice helping people is very nice. This story takes place
outside in an empty lot in a city. The characters are Old Man Hammer, Miss. Rosa, and a little girl. The girl and Miss Rosa start a garden in the lot, plant flowers, and pick up trash. The lot was empty but Old Man Hammer wouldn't let them lease it. In the end they end up starting the garden and planting flowers. Also in the end some sunflowers grew but none of them planted the sunflowers. I think that Old Man Hammer planted them. I liked this book. I recommend this book to people who like helping other people. I like this because it shows that you can help your community. I would give this book four stars. The message of this book is never stop trying. If you like doing
good things for your community than read this book.

By: Kyle

Great Story for a Community or Garden Unit.......2001-03-16

This is a wonderful story about a little girl who works with her neighbors to turn a vacant lot into a garden. Over the course of the story the grumpy old man changes because of the garden. It's a great story, high readability for middle to end third grade students on grade level.

An Episode of Sparrows (New York Review Children's Collection)

Average customer rating:

High school memory a bit blurred.
A gem of a book
Rumer Godden at her Best!
Another Rumer Godden book worth tracking down
A mexican reads An Episode of Sparrows

An Episode of Sparrows (New York Review Children's Collection)
Rumer Godden
Manufacturer: NYR Children's Collection
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1590171241
Release Date: 2004-10-31

Book Description

A much-loved English novel reminiscent of The Secret Garden

Someone has dug up the private garden in the square and taken buckets of dirt, and Miss Angela Chesney of the Garden Committee is sure that a gang of boys from run-down Catford Street must be to blame. But Angela's sister Olivia isn't so sure. Olivia wonders why the neighborhood children—the “sparrows” she sometimes watches from the window of her house —have to be locked out of the garden. Don't they have a right to enjoy the place, too? But neither Angela nor Olivia has any idea what sent the neighborhood waif Lovejoy Mason and her few friends in search of “good, garden earth.” Still less do they imagine where their investigation of the incident will lead them—to a struggling restaurant, a bombed-out church, and at the heart of it all, a hidden garden.

Customer Reviews:

High school memory a bit blurred........2007-07-04

I wanted my teenage daughter to read this, remembering it fondly from HS English class. I see now that Ms. Godden was really writing to that age, as I found it a little less interesting at 46 than I remembered. Still much better reading than a good deal of teenage books.

A gem of a book.......2005-09-25

This tiny little book is an absolute gem of simplicity, love and hope. A precociously aware, yet innocent little girl has been left with the owner of a struggling restuarant and his wife, to raise, by her mother, a woman on the fringes of show business, who cares for no one but herself. The child, Lovejoy, becomes obsessed with the idea of creating a garden in the ruins of a bombed out church, and enlists the aid of a local boy, Tip Malone. When they remove earth from a nearby enclosed garden, they are prosecuted by Miss Angela Chesney, an opinionated, domineering woman who can see no other path in life except her own, and who rules even her elder, more compassionate sister with the iron fist of mockery. It's a short story but one which made me laugh and cry because I could feel the sheer frustration, as well as the determination of Lovejoy as she battles the inexorable might of the adult world, a world which can not, or will not, see things from a child's perspective. I'm sorry that I've missed this beautiful book until now, but am grateful to have found it in an op-shop.

Rumer Godden at her Best!.......2004-08-23

This book along with "The Battle of Villa Forita," The Greengage Summer," "In this House of Brede.", and "China Court" are forgotten treasures. I wish everyone had a chance to experience these books.

"An Episode of Sparrows" is my favorite book of Miss Godden's. She writes with amazing sensitivity about children -- almost as if she were one of them. But this is not a children's book. Rumer Godden understands the passions which drive people. She has a true author's ability to get beneath the superficiality of people's daily lives and expose their true hopes and fears.

"An Epsisode of Sparrows" is set in post-war London. It concerns the plight of Lovejoy Mason, one of the "sparrows" (slum children on Catford Street) who has been abandoned by her mother; Lovejoy finds solace and escape in planting a garden in that most unexpected of places, Catford Street. Catford Street is teeming with the raw lives of slum people.

In contrast, Olivia and her sister Angela, elderly spinsters live on the other side of Catford Street--the respectable side. Olivia especially yearns to experience the joy of being needed.

How these people and other rich characters such as the Irish Malone family and Vincent, the restaurant owner-- interact is wonderful to behold.

I own very few books; this is one of them. I'm sorry that "An Episode of Sparrows" is out-of-print.

Another Rumer Godden book worth tracking down.......2001-10-18

This book, along with The Greengage Summer, The River, and the Battle of the Villa Fiorita are four of her books that are the sort of book you will want to read over and over. Godden has a way of making children's voices be heard quite clearly, loudly, and a way of having their words resonate in your mind for a long long time. And they are honest words, from the heart. She is a British treasure that most Americans do not know about. i can't say enough about her books. for children age nine or ten and older and adults.

A mexican reads An Episode of Sparrows.......2001-08-31

I must confess that I have not read this novel. But as a librarian I just received a donation of books and among them I found the spanish translation of "An episode of sparrows". As I was cataloguing it I noticed at the last pages, with a clear handwriting the notes that I'll try to translate for you:

"I really enjoy this novel.
Unless I missed some details I think I could ubicate the plot of the novel in a humble neighborhood of England after Second World War.
The way the author shows all what a child can feel and think about adults is something I have to take in consideration on my work as a teacher and in my relationship with the kids around me.

Good feelings, being noble, honest and simple, and to show concern about the others, are in contrast with petulance, pride and not worryng for one's fellow man.
In the story there are some aspects that took my attention:

Sometimes those who offer help to people in disgrace dont do it because they are charitable, but as a way to be recognized at their own social and economic status. On the other side, those who leave their children on the hands of strangers dont have the right to do it, and I dont see them as humans.Even animals take care of their own cubs.

The novel left a deep mark in me."

This notes are dated September 2 1987. and signed "Prof. Luis Rogelio Gutierrez.

I will include An episode of sparrows in my next readings.

Customer Reviews:

nice format with lots of misinformation.......2007-01-23

I have owned this book for several years and read it cover to cover, most parts more than once. It is a good read and I like the way it is set up, and the author's enthusiasm is appreciated. There is much good information inside, but unfortunately, there is misinformation to a degree that I think is inexcusable. For example, the drawings of "evening primrose" actually show primrose, which is a totally different plant in an entirely different family. But the text clearly describes eating the root of evening primrose. So it seems like he didn't even know what evening primrose was, had never tried it, but copied his information on how to use it, even the description of its flavor, from another book. The text sure makes it sound like he's had experience from the plant. I think its disingenuous and a disservice to the reader. This is the most glaring example of many errors. Otherwise, it is a good book.

A must have book!.......2002-12-31

This book is wonderful. I paid full price for it and would gladly do so again in order to give it as a gift to others. I highly recomend it.

Fresh and Fun.......2000-12-17

I haven't met many people who can point out at least ten different plants in the average yard and can tell you how to cook them. Mr. Henderson does an outstanding job of identifying wild, and not-so-wild, edibles common to almost every neighborhood. His recipes are easy to follow and delicious.

Even if you are not planning to run right out to the nearest shrub and harvest its leaves for dinner, I recommend this book. Mr. Henderson's prose is worth reading, whatever the content. His witty, humorous style enlivens a book full of excellent information.

Don't Know What to Do With That Weed? Eat It!.......2000-10-11

The Neighborhood Forager is a very informative and enjoyable book. It not only tells about the plants in our backyards and by-ways but gives historical information, recipes, warnings and dyer's tips.

Mr. Henderson writes with humor and personal anecdotes which makes the book a good read even if you're not into foraging.

Amazing!.......2000-10-11

I was amazed at all the information this book gave me. I have learned so many things, to see all the bounty we can have in our own backyard! Practical and easy to read. I recommend this book to all nature and food lovers.

Nature in the Neighborhood (Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 (Awards))

Average customer rating:

Best Morrison book to date!

Nature in the Neighborhood (Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 (Awards))
Gordon Morrison
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin/Walter Lorraine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science, Nature & How It Works | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0618352155

Book Description

Take a stroll through the seasons with naturalist Gordon Morrison as he reveals all of the many plants and animals to be found around one's own neighborhood. Beautiful detailed watercolors paired with clear text and captions for additional information make this a book that will be enjoyed by readers young and old.

Customer Reviews:

Best Morrison book to date!.......2004-12-16

Gordon Morrison has outdone himself with this most recent edition to his childrens' book collection. Nature in the Neighborhood is a wonderful book. The illustrations and text are supurb. Morrison's book brings to life the nature all around us, every day. Children of all ages will love this book and can take it with them on walks through their own neighborhood.

Sustainable Living: For Home, Neighborhood and Community

Average customer rating:

Covers Basics and provides the links you need

Sustainable Living: For Home, Neighborhood and Community
Mick Winter
Manufacturer: Westsong Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0965900053
Release Date: 2007-03-14

Product Description

Sustainable Living for Your Home, Neighborhood and Community is about your home-inside and outside-and how you can use less energy, spend less money, and enjoy it more. It's about your neighborhood and how you and your neighbors can benefit from working and sharing together. And it's about your community and how all of its neighborhoods and residents can benefit from cooperative effort. Filled with free or low-cost ideas that will save you money and help the planet at the same time.

Customer Reviews:

Covers Basics and provides the links you need.......2007-08-13

I bought this with Mike's other book Peak Oil Prep and both books cover a lot of the same ideas and links because the response to peak oil is of course to have a sustainable community and environment. While you may not need both books, either one will help you prepare for peak oil and help make your community sustainable.

Average customer rating:

Lovely book about friendship and compassion
Everything else is just gravy...

Nora's Ark
Natalie Kinsey-warnock
Manufacturer: HarperCollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 068817244X
Release Date: 2005-06-28

Book Description

A flood is coming! When the water climbs to the rooftops, where will everybody go? To Grandma's house, of course, high up on a hill. Before long, the house is full ofpeople, chickens, ducks, pigs, horses, cats, and even a cow. There's only one person missing -- Grandpa!

This heartwarming story by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock is based on a real-life event: the Vermont Flood of 1927. Watercolors by Caldecott Medal-winning artist Emily Arnold McCully capture both the sweeping drama of the flood and the comfort of a cozy kitchen filled with friends, neighbors, and good cheer.

Customer Reviews:

Lovely book about friendship and compassion.......2006-08-23

While my 6 year old found this book "sad," we both enjoyed the true story of a flood in Vermont and how the community banded together to help each other. A good, gripping read aloud!

Everything else is just gravy..........2006-02-02

I picked up Nora's Ark at our local library to read to my 6 and 8 year old children. I assumed it would be a sweet little story, about a family dealing with a flood; and it is. But it is so much more than that. It is about neighbors, and the bonds we share with them. It is about bravery, strength of character, and love. It is based on a real-life event, The Vermont Flood of 1927. It snuck right up on me, and at the end of the story, my 6 year old looked up and said, "Mommy, you're crying." The watercolor illustrations by Emily Arnold McCully are very nice too.

Native to Nowhere: Sustaining Home And Community In A Global Age

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Interesting, but perhaps a bit too elitist
What elements constitute a real community?

Native to Nowhere: Sustaining Home And Community In A Global Age
Timothy Beatley
Manufacturer: Island Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1559634537

Book Description

Meaningful places offer a vital counterbalance to the forces of globalization and sameness that are overtaking our world, and are an essential element in the search for solutions to current sustainability challenges. In Native to Nowhere, author Tim Beatley draws on extensive research and travel to communities across North America and Europe to offer a practical examination of the concepts of place and place-building in contemporary life. Tim Beatley reviews the many current challenges to place, considers trends and factors that have undermined place and place commitments, and discusses in detail a number of innovative ideas and compelling visions for strengthening place.

Native to Nowhere brings together a wide range of new ideas and insights about sustainability and community, and introduces readers to a host of innovative projects and initiatives. Native to Nowhere is a compelling source of information and ideas for anyone seeking to resist place homogenization and build upon the unique qualities of their local environment and community.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting, but perhaps a bit too elitist.......2007-02-20

I am currently using this as a textbook for one of my classes, and a general consensus among the students is that the author sounds almost excessively elitist in his content. While offering some highly favorable suggestions for the development of place and space (and describing in great detail the difference between the two), much of the focus, while on developing American landscapes-- presumably-- is on Western European urban designs, some of which would not fit well with our North American context. Likewise, while many of his suggestions would work exceptionally well-- it would seem-- in suburban landscapes, he seems to overlook-- or disregard-- the urban landscapes, which are those that seem to require the MOST change. For example, the emphasis on green space is pleasant enough, but one must also stop to think what this green space would be replacing in certain areas. The consequences of such deeds and suggestions does not seem to have been considered to the extent it should be; furthermore, the discussion of "home" and what "home" should be seems greatly deterred when one finds themselves bogged down with the realization that these representations of what is "best" for "home" seem to be based on Beatley's own desire for home ... not, in other words, the greater populace's ideas or desires for the matter! Again, interesting and educational matter, but I'd suggest taking it with a grain of salt when it comes to application.

What elements constitute a real community?.......2005-05-09

What elements constitute a real community, and how is that sense of community changing in the wake of global connections? Timothy Beatley's Native To Nowhere: Sustaining Home And Community In A Global Age uses research and the author's own travels to communities across North America and Europe to examine concepts of place in modern life. Trends which have undermined these roots, new ideas set forth to maintain connections, and descriptions of designs, technological considerations, and new political structures for sustaining these modern ideas of community are all considered in chapters which will appeal to college-level students of social issues as well as concerned general-interest adult readers.

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