Song Of The Spring Peepers

Jacob and Tyler have been best friends since first grade at William Dawes Elementary in Litchfield, Massachusetts. They've gone to each other's birthday parties and played at recess. But the summer after fourth grade, Tyler changes and will now be known as Brianna. He'd always been a girl inside, just not on the outside. Jacob understands fifth grade will be interesting for both of them. It's not going to be easy. He worries about the class tough guy and a teacher who makes everybody miserable. He thinks about the girl he secretly loves and if he'll have the courage to talk to her. Jacob wonders how he'll protect his best friend when Brianna's secret is revealed. Can Jacob use the power of his words to unite the gang and get the grown-ups on their side? A fiction book for kids, Song of the Spring Peepers follows ordinary students as they deal with questions of identity, bullying, prejudice, love, and loyalty. It will be a year the students at William Dawes will remember.

Describes the physical characteristics and habits of tree frogs, particularly the peeper whose song is a harbinger of spring.

A collection of poems that provide a look at some of the animals, insects, and plants that are found in ponds, with accompanying information about each.

Ecoactivist Testament is written for those who are now at the front lines of discipleship in this era of planetary emergency, especially for those who sometimes feel spiritually isolated or exhausted. In this forthright and plainspoken book, longtime Christian ecojustice activist and well-known ecological theologian H. Paul Santmire, inspired by the witness of Saint Francis of Assisi, tells a powerful personal story as he explores the riches of a biblically informed theological vision of God's love for the whole creation. This engaging first-person narrative will appeal both to faith-based ecoactivists of long standing and to those who are pondering this calling for the first time.

In this natural history and guidebook, Choukas-Bradley presents a fascinating blend of local, natural, and historical detail that transports readers simultaneously onto the slopes of today's mountain and into the region's past. 26 illustrations.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

"Explore the gentle unfurling of spring and reflect on how nature celebrates birth and renewal in this collection of reflections by our greatest writers" --back cover.

Finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction and the 2023 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award Winner of the Acoustical Society of America's 2023 Science Communication Award “[A] glorious guide to the miracle of life’s sound.” —The New York Times Book Review A lyrical exploration of the diverse sounds of our planet, the creative processes that produced these marvels, and the perils that sonic diversity now faces We live on a planet alive with song, music, and speech. David Haskell explores how these wonders came to be. In rain forests shimmering with insect sound and swamps pulsing with frog calls we learn about evolution’s creative powers. From birds in the Rocky Mountains and on the streets of Paris, we discover how animals learn their songs and adapt to new environments. Below the waves, we hear our kinship to beings as different as snapping shrimp, toadfish, and whales. In the startlingly divergent sonic vibes of the animals of different continents, we experience the legacies of plate tectonics, the deep history of animal groups and their movements around the world, and the quirks of aesthetic evolution. Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth history, Haskell illuminates and celebrates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. In mammoth ivory flutes from Paleolithic caves, violins in modern concert halls, and electronic music in earbuds, we learn that human music and language belong within this story of ecology and evolution. Yet we are also destroyers, now silencing or smothering many of the sounds of the living Earth. Haskell takes us to threatened forests, noise-filled oceans, and loud city streets, and shows that sonic crises are not mere losses of sensory ornament. Sound is a generative force, and so the erasure of sonic diversity makes the world less creative, just, and beautiful. The appreciation of the beauty and brokenness of sound is therefore an important guide in today’s convulsions and crises of change and inequity. Sounds Wild and Broken is an invitation to listen, wonder, belong, and act.

In the tale of Danny Malloy and His Mississippi River Samurai, Danny discovers there's lots to learn on the river. He adopts an owl that doesn't hoot, earns money harvesting morel mushrooms, buys river pearls and silver-toed boots, learns to fish using Willowcats for bait, discovers frog sex and goes clamming with an old river man who tells tales of flooded towns and donnybrooks. Danny learns to problem-solve with a foster dad, and to accept the loving ways of a foster mom. Ultimately, he stows away on a river boat, and meets the beautiful Elizabeth. In St. Paul they swing-dance to the music of a jazz band in the ghost and gangster-haunted caves along the river. Danny Malloy is a story about the internal conflict of a teenager. Should he follow his survival instinct and run away or lower his defenses, trust his foster parents and stick around long enough to let them care for him? Danny realizes it is up to him to decide what sort of person he wants to be. Danny Malloy and His Mississippi River Samurai is a fun read about life on the Mississippi River and about the power of caring people.