A FOREST BEGINS ANEW: FIRES VS FUTURES

 If you didn't catch my recent notes about JUST ONE OAK, feel free to read that or other posts-from-the-past in praise of books that reveal and celebrate the remarkable role of trees and forests of all types. When such essential anchors of bio-systems are left to the forces of nature, they can and do serve years, even centuries of purpose within our planet's survival and evolutionary success. 

The role of a single tree, let alone a forest full of trees, spans centuries, landscapes, and lifetimes, demonstrating impressive generative intelligence to rival anything AI might offer. (In my humble opinion, ahem). 

Fires do occur naturally, and can be launched intentionally for regenerative purposes. This has been true across cultures and time. Measurable changes in climate patterns are producing earlier and hotter seasons, more extremes in drought and rainfall, deeper and longer el niño and el niña seasons, with winds and other conditions that result in forest fires far more extensive and destructive than in recorded history. And these reoccur more frequently and severely with each passing year. 

ASTRA YOUNG READERS
2026

As the author's dedication in A FOREST BEGINS ANEW states, this book is "For EVERYONE SEARCHING FOR HOPE". I appreciated that and also a quote from youth activist Greta Thurnberg: "You are never to small to make a difference."

This is a debut from author Louise M. Aamodt and her rhymed text is effectively illustrated by Elly MacKay. 

The lyrical lines unfold in the rhythm of "this is the house..."  but don't rely on that template completely. Rather than accumulating and repeating stanzas or locking exclusively into the original pattern, occasional short phrases signal transitions and progressions, while each stanza and page spread is focused on a phase of the timeline from the assumption that readers won't need to learn what a forest is, but can be led immediately into the launch of a heat-lightning strike on a single tree. Tension is instantaneous as cloud becomes strike becomes flames. Each rapid development is illustrated with informative details that reveal the plant and animal life affected at each stage while allowing readers to predict and question throughout each anticipated page turn. 

Lightning storms in themselves can be overwhelming to young audiences, and forest fires are even more so. (Think Bambi!). The grace and strength of this narrative and visual journey is that the pages with threat and devastation all incorporate survival, while moving readers through to hopeful management and adaptation within the first third of the book. Moving forward, the means through which both nature and humans can preserve and restore a healthy habitat is less stressful and much more reassuring and promising. Animals and youth all have agency and purpose in assuring a continuation of life, concluding with this sample of the undulating text:

"New signs of life

fill the burnt trees:

Critters/ and flitters/ and creepers/ and bees.

Budding and blooming

where fire swept through, 

this is a forest--

beginning anew.

The main text deserves praise and attention, but it's the back matter that reveals the teaching background of the author, including a posed and then explored question: 

Are fires good for forests?

Also an author note addresses readers, directly posing concern for shared feelings of helplessness and overwhelming emotions that arise during natural disasters. Brief and accessible added facts follow that short message, revealing the extensive research behind a seemingly simple text. For those seeking sources and validation of content or added information, multiple pages of references conclude this wonderful addition to any school, classroom, home, or nature collection.

We are currently immersed in a trajectory of global climate change that, in the scope of our planet's timeline, is barely a blink of the eye. And yet, we live our lives in his comparatively slo-mo space in which we can and should take actions. This remarkable picture book provides reassurance for all (yes, for worried young folks, but for older folks like me, as well). Fires, even those accelerated by human-caused environmental extremes, are recoverable, can even be beneficial, when we give nature time (and a hand) to regenerate and restore itself. That helps to know, and offers some science-based initiatives to suggest for young activists. Fire season, especially in western north America, is already upon us. Hurry to obtain a copy and read this, then share it with young people in your life.

All the Ice Cream In the WORLD: A Parable

 I'm a fan of ice cream, so this picture book had me at the title: 

ALL THE ICE CREAM IN THE WORLD, written and illustrated by Masoud Gharebaghi.

CLAVIS BOOKS, 2024

After all, it's SUMMER, and it's HOT, and it's ICE CREAM!

The cover illustration confirmed my assumption that this would be a romp through the glorious possibilities of ICE CREAM. Perhaps with a sampling of world-cultural takes on it, or ways ice cream makes its way to our mouths (that's what the cover suggested to me), or even a story about some ice-cream-crazed kiddo who could never get enough to satisfy. Even the end papers echoed this brilliant array of ice cream options, revealing the creator's background in design.

While the title of this post suited the story between the covers, I was wrong about the plot. I found absolutely no sense of greediness or self-indulgence. In fact, this story is a parable about the innocence and empathy of children.

The story line is simple, but beautifully and heart-tuggingly rendered in soft-edged, stylized art that makes the story universally recognizable and lifts it from the specific to the human level. That's especially appropriate because it is a story of global crisis and the need for a global effort to resolve it. All the effort in the world.

The very individual and specific problem sets a baby polar bear at risk when its snowy den becomes an ice floe set adrift by global warming. Currents take the bear into an overwhelmingly large city, one oblivious to his presence (the first metaphor). Adults hurry past wearing earphones, staring at screens, or blankly tunnel-visioned on their seemingly important missions. enormous structures suggest massive consumption of energy and time and attention. the central double spread reveals the collaborative nature of problem solving and presents a wide diversity of young faces, all focused forward, directly to the reader. From that point forward the images of countless kids loses its individuality and shows the power of numbers and unified effort.

It took a few moments of examining the art before I felt its affinity to Dan Santat's THE ADVENTURES OF BEEKLE, the little imaginary friend who roams unseen throughout many pages of its journey. Until...

LIttle, Brown Books
 for Young Readers
2014

In that gentle but deep story only a dog notices the seeking and longing of another creature in need.

In this story, one child with ice cream sees the small bear, senses need, and shares her sweet cold relief. The resolution is both satisfying and alarming. With a call to all the children in then world to bring their ice creams, they provide an icy island to send back to sea, returning the baby bear to its mother. 

That happy ending is deeply poignant, with not-at-all-subtle final lines:

"The small humans gave up something they loved to help me.

Maybe one day, everyone will do the same to save our home."

Under the dedication that opens the book there is an even more direct message from the author about this crisis. The story does what the best parables do. It entertains, elecits smiles, has a sympathetic character in need and a surprisingly clever and courageous hero. The art is both charming and powerful, the colors and canvas textures draw the eye for closer looks. And the concept of an icy floating mass of ice cream provides a cool, chill, delicious image. But the undertow of adults (or humankind, more generally) unable to even notice need due to preoccupation with their own driven natures strikes very close to home. 

It's not long past the time of graduation speeches and adults advocating for young people to take leadership in a challenged world. Fair enough. Every "next generation" has been charged with "doing better" or fixing the world. But the current state of conditions, the self-centered destruction that generated disastrous threats to the survival of the future generations, have wreaked havoc on the planet and make those requests immeasurably unfair. I have great faith in YOUTH, in their care and creativity and commitment to doing better. But I wish and hope that those of us who are older would shake loose of our preoccupations and contribute to solutions now, and forever forward. To put our shoulders into helping turn this ship around.

On a side note, I reflected on my own greedy reaction to the title before reading this book. It turns out there are many books about ice cream and its allure, and I refuse to think that having some fun and funny reactions to the prospect of mountains of ice cream is "wrong". Even so, I was grateful for this lovely reminder that such pleasures, in stories or in scoops on cones, should  close my eyes to "big picture" stories such as ALL THE ICE CREAM IN THE WORLD. If this subtle misdirection gets others to open and read, I'm happy to know it. And I hope you'll "save room" for this one among your lighter and more distracting choices. 

ANGELA'S GLACIER: Don't Miss This!

Does the name of author Jordan Scott call to mind his prior picture book titles, or at least catch your ear and remind you that this is someone who makes brilliant and heart-rich stories? If not, please make it a point to remember the name now and develop that response. After his debut picture book, I TALK LIKE THE RIVER, illustrated by Sydney Smith, I have been in awe. You can check my review of that original piece HERE. You'll  see that my caption for that post said the same as this one- DO. NOT. MISS. -- his book(s). When a title captures my unconditional respect, I'll admit a quiver of concern that subsequent works might disappoint. In fact, this talented duo then produced another unforgettable picture book, MY BABA'S GARDEN,  just a few years later. It, too, evokes many layers of love, memory, and resonance while fully immersing readers in the immediate experiences depicted. 

NEAL PORTER BOOKS, 2024

What strikes me about both of these gorgeous and eloquent stories is how specific yet universal they are, presenting characters and situations that may be distant from individual readers yet provide seemingly lived connections to the events and emotions within the literal stories.

The lyrical narrative of ANGELA'S GLACIER, is written by Jordan Scott but, in this case, illustrated by Diana Sudyka. This story, too, depicts an  isolated experience, and also involves a massive geographic/geologic land mass. In Iceland. With an unfamiliar language playing a critical role in the storytelling. Add this: the premise is unusual, to say the least. Any one of these could have doomed it to limited audiences or weak interests.

And yet, my reading left me feeling that I lived this story with Angela from the first word and gorgeous spread to the last. I'm certain many readers (of many ages) will finish their first reads with a deep longing to walk in Angela's footsteps and follow her example. Picture books rarely succeed at stories that span long periods of time, unless they involve a chronologic biography, but this one does. It was also useful that the page facing the title page provided a reader-friendly translation and practice text for the name of the mountain: SNAEFELLSJOKULL:  Snow Mountain's Glacier.

Once that four syllable word becomes familiar, the narrative opens at the foggy/shadowy base of the massive mountain. A new father warmly wraps and embraces his newborn daughter, Angela,  lifting her to see and sense the heart of the distant mountain just as the fog lifts. Page by page, year by year, father and daughter travel across the lava fields, lichen beds, among the snow foxes, to the blue heart of the glacier. As Angela grows, she walks alone onto glacier, repeating her father's rhythmic chanting, each syllable matching each stride, taking her closer to a place of secrets and wonder. She presses her hands, her cheek, her heart against the ice of the glacier, feeling and hearing the life within it-- rushing rivers, cracking shifts, and melting tunnels "breathing" its story to her. When the cold sends her home, she resumes daily life--  school, violin, friends, and soccer, carrying the glacier's story in her own heart. With age and added time demands, Angela feels a loss in her heart, one that can only be filled by spending time with the glacier. Again, she connects and confirms her love, making a promise-- "I will listen, I will listen, I will listen."

In the author note Scott reveals, as with earlier works, his capacity to draw on personal experiences to inspire this account. In this case, it was his meeting with the real-life Angela in Canada. Angela began listening to nature as a child, and she offers an extended essay in back pages to recount her adult trip to this Icelandic location, describing the physical and emotional connection she has with Iceland's SNAEFELLSJOKULL in more detail. Based on current climate patterns, this particular glacier may survive only a fee more decades, likely less than than two decades.Given that tragic reality, this story is an even more valuable gift to readers, and to the glacier itself.

Perhaps the connection readers will experience when reading such a very specific story, so distant from their own lives, comes from a more familiar experience. Many of us have our own particular nature-place, one that speaks to us, in the moment and in memory. This book is both a call to vicarious caring and a link to whatever our own lived experiences in nature may have provided through a similar sense of belonging and validation. At the risk of repeating myself, DO NOT MISS IT!

WATER: How We Can Protect Our Freshwater

 

Candlewick Books. 2023

Some very impressive new nonfiction picture books have captured my attention in recent weeks and will be featured in this coming posts. The first, perhaps because it occurred to me that without freshwater in the lives of Earthlings like us are, nothing else would matter, is WATER: How We Can Protect Our Freshwater is written by Catherine Barr and illustrated by Christine Engel. 

With direct but accurate and easy to understand text, the amazing importance of WATER on Earth is explained with kid-friendly language, lively and globally informative illustrations, and occasional and unintyrusive image labels. Also valuable are small inserts in which "FACE THE FACTS" sidebars effectively extend and enhance the main narrative with brief bullseye facts related to that page.

The distinction between "BLUE WATER" and "GREEN WATER" was particularly significant, indicating that the first term refers to water that is essential for human survival on the surface of our planet. GREEN WATER refers to water captured within the layers of the earth that is equally essential to the survival of plants, from the tiniest of fern or foliage to the mightiest of sequoias. These two kinds of freshwater survival water sources are not the most common water on our planet. Salt water is. But even such simple statements become awe-inspiring as this vibrant and very human story reveals how magically/scientifically wondrous freshwater is. We also encounter examples of ways it is polluted, wasted, controlled, and harming people (and every other living thing) by carelessness, bad habits, and even intentional efforts in order to obtain power, money, and more.

The credentials of the author are well-established and there are many action-ideas incorporated within some spreads, especially in the final double spread. A sense of helplessness is paralyzing, but this presentation is an empowering effort and might well "launch" many young activists. This decade, the 2020s, is designated the "WATER ACTION DECADE". That means getting your hands on this important book and sharing it widely is an important first step in making smart actions part of our daily lives.

ICE CYCLES in Springtime? Poetry Power!

 Since this 22nd day of April included a few massive swirls of giant snowflakes outside my window, I'll celebrate a picture book of poems that explore the science of ICE. As this EARTH WEEK draws to a close, we still can find time to consider both the glory of POETRY MONTH and climate awareness.

 Ice Cycle: Poems about the Life of Ice is written by Maria Gianferrari and is illustrated by Jieting Chen. Gianferrari is  also the creator of a very popular picture book series, Penny and Jelly. for early readers.

Lerner/Milbrook Books, 2022

Poetry features a scarcity of words, aiming for ones that are "just right" in every way. Science, though, relies on precision of language, often requiring elaboration or definition  to accurately clarify complex topics and subject matter.

This remarkable book (including the lush layers of language with informative images) combines those two seemingly contrary approaches with effective balance and compelling appeal.

The detailed accuracy and investigation of types of ice will surprise many adults, but kids will soak  up such nuance like sponges. In the process they will experience superior poetry.

Here's a link to a terrific interview with the author of this this offering. With indicators of climate change finding us across the globe, helping kids to better understand the underlying science of ice and itsmrole in our world, in our own lives, is a priceless benefit. The fact that this information's these science facts, are expressed in such concise, clear poems and engaging illustrations invites more reading, and even writing, from those audiences.

If you missed this prior post, here's another poetry picture book with fascinating science!

Animals Adapting... Or Not! Nonfiction At Its Best

Take a look at two remarkably powerful (and gorgeous) nonfiction picture book nominees that combine huge visual and content appeal with horrifying truths about the harm we humans are doing to the natural environment. Each title blends specific details about a particular species that is, or is not, succeeding at adapting to our rapidly changing environment. Each uses the intensity of nearly poetic text in books that are oversized and so richly illustrated that the saturated double page spreads capture our natural world and also the imagination of what is possible. 

Bloomsbury, 2019

The first is MOTH: An Evolution Story, written by Isabel Thomas and illustrated by Daniel Egneus. You need to trust me on this (or hustle to a library or bookstore to see for yourselves) that the image posted here DOES NOT do justice to the shimmering book jacket for this book. The interior magic shifts the sparkle and shine to a blend of the spare-but-compelling text and sweeping scenes. They make the adaptability of the delicate little peppered moth is a prime example of the destruction of pollution and also a beacon of hope in the face of dangerous environmental damage. 
First words, with an image of a child reading in an oversized armchair say this: 

"This is a story of light and dark.

Of change and adaptation,

of survival and hope."

The daily survival story of typical peppered moths relies on their mottled appearance which allowed them to hide from their many predators on lichen-speckled tree bark in the forest. The occasional all-black moths that hatched were, naturally, located and gobbled first. That meant having little time to mate and lay more eggs. 

Eggs that would have led to MORE all-black versions in their offspring. 

It takes only a single spread and a few words to reveal dramatic survival scenes of camouflaged speckled moths unfolding over centuries. 

Until...

"People built factories and burned coal to power magnificent machines."

Machines and coal are not condemned. After all, they ARE magnificent. They warmed homes and moved people, they provided jobs and grew cities. 

And yet...

Within a few steadily blackening pages and with few words, pollution blackened the woodland lichen habitat of the peppered moths. At that point, those with speckled wings stood out, no longer protected from predators. The fewer black-winged moths had a much greater chance of surviving. Within the span of 50 years, the black-winged moths far-outnumbered the speckled varieties. 

But, as the text points out, the story didn't end there. 

Cities (meaning the people who run those pollution-spewing machines) gradually made different choices and the environment in that area became greener. Not perfect, but greener. Over another several decades, the population of peppered moths shifted again, since both  varieties could then find resting places on which they would camouflaged. 

Back matter simply but accurately describes central concepts of evolution, natural selection, and adaptation. 

What's more, the first-pages young child appears again on the final page of basic text, with a single word: HOPE.

Greenwillow Books, 2019

The second title that deserves our attention is SEA BEAR: A JOURNEY FOR SURVIVAL, whose words and images were created  by Lindsay Moore.  This depiction of a single sea bear's struggle to survive is even more dramatic than that of the moths, in part because its lifespan is (or should be) far longer than that of the moths above. 

In this case the author/illustrator gives first person voice to Sea Bear, along with a natural but penetrating direct gaze at the reader. This  approach reveals the facts about the impact of pollution on its life as facts, not as complaints. Back matter adds select details about the science of other Arctic sea creatures and the ways in which glacial melting and global warming are changing thousands of years of life and food chains. 

Here, too, spare text appears on oversized pages that are drenched in intense, nearly monochromatic color. The opening here, too, is breathtaking:

Polar bears are patient beasts, 

as patient as glaciers. 

We know how to hope and to wait. 

I learned to be patient long ago

from my polar bear mother--"

From that point Sea Bear reveals the ways in which generations of instincts and an attentive mother created an impressive survivor, one who is well-adapted to the Arctic environment. Sadly, though, natural selection and adaption, as it plays out in the book about moths, does not respect individual lives or single generations. Rapid changes, thinning sea ice, and a warming climate that is rapidly destroying those patient glaciers make those generations of survival skills less useful. The changes make it harder for patient Sea Bear to survive, as an individual or as a species.

For the sake of young readers, Sea Bear concludes on a hopeful, patient note. Older readers will recognize the bleak prospects for the future of sea bears and other Arctic life. 

The end papers merit close observation, too, revealing the wrenching impact that vanishing sea ice is having on this symbolic, individual bear, from which we can conclude the potential reduction in their total population. 

Don't let the first person voice suggest to you that this is a Disney-fied promotional distortion of the natural events unfolding, that it is propaganda and red flags about the urgency of a pending population collapse. Instead, Sea Bear stands as a sentinel of its species and a part of the Earth most of us will never see.

Just as the penetrating stare of Sea Bear rivets readers' attention, so too does this powerful picture book rivet our attention on the disappearing sea ice and it's impact on our one and only planet. It is up to readers to draw conclusions and learn more.

These two titles are must-haves in classrooms, libraries, and home reading as well. 

A Stone Sat Still: The (World) Is Lovely, Dark, and Deep...

Chronicle Books 2019

Look.

Please.

Just look at this cover. 

Really look at it.

A STONE SAT STILL is written and illustrated by award-winning Brendan Wenzel. It invites readers to do just the same, to sit still, to REALLY look at this single, very specific stone. 

To look intently, from various perspectives and points of view, over time, with all of our senses. 

In the opening and closing endpapers we encounter the stone, recognizing hints of the passage of time and circumstances surrounding the stone. With that passing time, the story of our world has dramatically changed, but the stone remains. 

I wrote out the full text, all 233 words of it. I did that because each phrase within that short text, each perspective, unfolds its own powerful truth through Wenzel's earthy bend of media: cut paper, colored pencils, oil pastels, and computer. The rhymed but free-form text incorporates rhythm so effectively as to feel, to me, like breathing. It's the kind of breathing I do when meditating or doing yoga. Each phrase, each panel, each perspective elicits engagement, draws me into the moment portrayed. 

Is this:

 a quiet book, a reflective book, a bedtime book, a nature book, a calming book? 

Yes, to all of those.

The magic of Wenzel's creation, in my opinion, is that this book is also:

an environmental book,

a climate change book,

an endangered species book, 

a science book,

a habitat book, 

a food chain book,

a call-to-action book.

You get the idea. 

In a recent post I shared a book and message about starting our future citizens young in developing an appreciation of the natural world in which they live and expanding their awareness of their relationship with that world (HERE). 

This, too, is a must-have book for sharing, at any age. It begs readers to step outside, to transfer the experiences modeled in the book about that stone, the one  that sat still on the pages but changed at every turn. 

That exercise requires attention to all of our senses, to fine details, to surrounding conditions and creatures, to imagination, and to predictions about how nature will change that object over time- days, seasons, decade, and centuries.

Then it invites us to ask the hard questions. 

Among those- is it nature that is changing or are we changing nature? 

And, if so, how? Why?

Public and individual activism about climate change in relation to our personal choices is, in my opinion, essential. Taking time to examine what climate change actually means, right outside our doors, both natural and human-made, is even more essential.

Alladin Books

When I had my own classrooms, (again, with students of any age), I used Byrd Baylor's and Peter Parnell's  EVERYBODY NEEDS A ROCK to activate science and literature reflections, including using it as mentor text for writing in both categories.

This latest release reflects the importance of the values Baylor presented in her classic picture books about nature, and the two titles pair well. I encourage getting both books to share and compare, as well as to initiate field activities, writing, and further reading in fiction and nonfiction, (yes, at every age). 

Particularly with established readers and writers, I urge you to write out the full text of each book, to share it with students and consider how and why such spare and simple text, such ordinary word choice, such straightforward statements can achieve such power. Consider line breaks, repetition, pacing, rhythm, internal and near-rhyme. Both books are brilliant  examples of writing craft without using big words, even including run-on sentences. Struggling readers and writers can access and evaluate these books as readily and with as much (or more) success as stellar students. Often it is those speedy students who struggle most with the reflective nature of books like these.

Empowering books can empower lives- and maybe even change our world for the better.

Earth Awareness: Start 'Em Young!

This is only ONE of the countless clever, powerful, and heartfelt posters displayed during the recent and ongoing protests to demand action to deal with our corruption and destruction of the one and only planet we have. 
The fact that these protests were inspired by and are being led by youth sparks hope in a nearly hopeless situation. Along with acting like responsible adults and demanding changes through our adult options, let's be sure to make one of those actions involve the very youngest "activists", getting kids to truly engage with Mama Earth.
A recent release is exactly the kind of picture book that can become a lifelong favorite and generational sharing book to help even the youngest readers/audience notice, enjoy, and appreciate the incredible offerings of Mama Earth all year long. 

Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2019

A YEAR WITH MAMA EARTH is written by Rebecca Grabill and illustrated by Rebecca Green. If you click on that title, it will take you to a page featuring the book and providing a link to a book trailer about it.
This lovely offering spans a full year starting with fall, exactly perfect for back-to-school leaf collecting and pumpkin-collecting field trips. The visual images are delightfully diverse, active, cooperative, curious, and suitably toned to each season. Those images are inspired by text that is lightly lyrical while dense with figurative language which personifies nature as Mama Earth. From rustling autumn wings to cool Earth's hot (summer) face, her sighs invite the first frost and stir  laughing winds that spin maple leaves, seeds, and children.
Season after season passes with page turns that shift color, mood, and content as subtly and inevitably as calendar pages slip away. 
This book will work perfectly as a read-through, but invites you to return often to visit a page at a time, to explore and compare the developing changes of nature as the year unfolds. It also offers mentor text for writing with sensory detail from intense observational inspirations. More than that, as both the author and illustrator notes urge in back matter, it invites young people (all of us?) to GO OUTSIDE, to notice, to enjoy, to appreciate what a remarkable planet we are privileged to inhabit.
This four-season portrayal works anywhere in the world. For those whose lives and living spaces it mirrors, use it to launch investigations into other regional cycles and climates. For those from other climates, this presents an experiential exploration of the often-assumed four seasons, but could inspire readers to develop their own text and images of Mama Earth as they experience it. 
But, as I say at every opportunity, enjoy as every picture books meant to be read- to simply enjoy it. All the rest comes later. First time through (and often in rereads) simply experience the words and images as they were meant to be enjoyed- as a celebration of our loving Mama Earth.

And happy first day of FALL!

OVER in the WETLANDS: A Hurricane on the Bayou Story

I became a fan of the work of Caroline Starr Rose after reading her verse-novel, May B.  soon after its release in 2012. Since then I've become a fan of all of her books. I'm also an admirer of her leadership among educators and creators, and of her kind, thoughtful approach to other writers and to life in general. I'm convinced I'll have the pleasure of meeting her in person someday, and I look forward to telling her all this in real life.
Meanwhile, it's a pleasure to feature one of her more recent books here.

Schwartz & Wade Books, 2015

In  OVER IN THE WETLANDS: A Hurricane-on-the-Bayou, Rose applied her extensive writing talent and craft to a picture book that has all the hallmarks of a future classic. It is listed as an informational book for ages 3-8, but it's rhymed verse will appeal far beyond the very young and can serve as mentor text for writers of any age. 
Its lyrical, rhythmic narration is perfectly enhanced by the illustrations of Rob Dunlavey. His website is worth a visit, offering a glimpse of his multi-faceted techniques and his mastery of nature illustration. You can view several spreads of his fluid, dense, and moody art from this book, depicting bayou scenes in various weather conditions and moods, here. 
I've lived all my life in the part of the country often referred to as "tornado alley", but have no first-hand experiences with hurricanes. Nevertheless, I found the ebb and flow of each page turn provided immersive and emotional insights into the often-described process of hurricane development, destruction, "eye", resumption, and eventual resolution.

"Gentle as a whisper too soft to hear,

a faint breeze hints that a storm draws near."

...

"Wind-whipped waves

smash up debris. 

Turtles swim for safer seas."

...

"Pounding,

wailing,

hours endless.

Blasting, 

breaking, 

storm's relentless."

The author's note in the back matter includes a map of Gulf wetlands, a simple introduction to issues surrounding the value and disappearance of wetlands, and suggested websites for exploring and finding answers to questions. Details about the animals in the narrative text are described in the "More about" page, providing immediate answers for younger readers and for the adults who will read this book to them- again and again. 

This book is a perfect example of why I proclaim the POWER of picture books for readers of any/many ages. In one of my earliest posts I summarized that power as "3 C's": 

COMPLETE, COMPACT, and COMPELLING.

That post was written five years ago. At that time the ubiquitous digital media was well established, but it was still several years before the current climate in which algorithms filter what we find on searches and what we see and read in social media. A picture book, especially one like this, invites and nearly demands that we PAUSE, peruse, and become mindful of the content. That includes its purpose, its validity, and its effect on our emotional and intellectual lives. It doesn't need to be "bookmarked", it refuses to be scanned or skimmed, and it expects us to return to it multiple times. Joyfully. Mindfully.

In this case, I know I will.

Please do.