Friday, April 20, 2012

Celebrating Earth Day Reads

As many of you may know, animal and nature conservation is important to me.

It was part of the reason I wrote Untraceable and The Nature of Grace Series. It is also the reason my Heaven (Cirrus) in my tween book, On The Bright Side, is so environmentally-conscious. It is an underlying theme in all my books.

So here some books (old and new) that celebrates the Earth in various ways:





Untraceable (Book 1, The Nature of Grace series)

This book shows the true beauty of the Smoky Mountains and allows you to feel as if you are experiencing it yourself. Untraceable also touches on the illegal poaching issues we have, black bear parts trafficking, and overall animal conservation. It also talks about wilderness survival.





Gone Wild by James Patterson

This adult thriller book inspired by writing and the Nature of Grace series. I am a huge fan of James Hall and this is one of my favorite books. I loved how he took his popular Thorn series, made it from a woman's perspective all while informing the reader about the plight of the orangutan.

If you are looking for a series that talks about conservation while keeping you on the edge of your seat, try the Thorn books by James Hall. This is my goal for the Grace series.


Flush by Carl Hiaasen  
(along with his other conservation themed books Hoot, Chomp, and Scat)

Carl Hiassen runs an environmental theme through his books. Whether it is illegal sewage dumping, exotic animals or eco-avengers, his books teach kids about some of the issues our environment faces today, yet keep them interested.


Hatchet by Gary Paulson

Even though this book is about a boy trapped in the wilderness, it celebrates a boy getting back to nature and finding his own way. It shows how we underestimate nature and how we can still survive if we get back to the basics.







Lost in the River of Grass by Ginny Rorby


This book is set in the Everglades (secret: so is my third Nature of Grace series :) It is about two teenagers who get lost in the Everglades and have to find their way back. Alive.














What about you? What other books have you read that would be great for Earth Day?

6 comments:

  1. I love Gary Paulsen's books and my students devour them! Carl Hiassen is another great example. Nice post, Shelli. :-)

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  2. Great suggestions, SHelli!

    We need to keep the Earth clean! It's not Uranus...

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  3. I recently finished reading Hatchet to my class! Such a great story! :)

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  4. Great suggestions Shelli. Thanks for sharing.

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  5. Love knowing these nature books are being read :)

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  6. Ooh, I would love to add my friend Pat Lichen's book, Kidnapping the Lorax. A great read! http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=kidnapping+the+lorax&x=10&y=19

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