A KID’S GUIDE TO PLANTS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: with Cool Facts, Activities and Recipes — Review

Thought for the Day:

“I write not only what I want to read… I write all the things I should have been able to read.”

~ Alice Walker ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

We all know that a character arc is important in our novels, but how do we show the character’s growth? HERE K. M. Weiland has a great guest post by Becca Puglisi with 7 Growth Milestones to Build a Character Arc. 

Scenes are the building blocks of our stories. HERE is a great article from Writer’s Digest by James Scott Bell with 5 Easy Tips to Strengthen Your Scenes.

Clichés are something we are all warned against in our writing, but I found the article HERE on A Writer’s Path written by Michael Christiano, who works in editing and acquisitions for a publisher, about clichés particularly enlightening. It is called The 8 Worst Clichés in Fiction.

I watched a lot of the Democratic National Convention this year. I don’t usually watch conventions, but I truly believe our democracy is under attack like never before, and I am more engaged in politics than I usually have been. I had watched some of the Republican National Convention, but it was such a yawn fest, that I didn’t watch much. But no yawn fest for the Democrats this year. Holy smoke. It was a PARTY! So much joy and hope and optimism. It was interesting to see so many Republicans speaking at the DNC. I don’t remember ever seeing that before. But then young Guz Walz stole the show. I don’t know how anyone could watch his pride and love for his dad without tearing up. I had a good cry. I was astonished the next day to see so many mean tweets and posts from people who thought he was “unmanly” or even worse “stupid.” What is wrong with people? I worry for the most vulnerable among us. I think we all need to be kinder and more generous of thought. That’s it. I’m done now. Sorry for the rant.

The book I’m reviewing today is a regional book, but it has so many wonderful ideas that will get kids out the door, that I think anyone with children in the house or classroom could get a great deal out of this book. I do think kids will get excited about it and use it themselves. It’s not a parenting book, it is just a really good book. A KID’S GUIDE TO PLANTS OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST: with Cool Facts, Activities and Recipes by Phillipa Joly caught my attention when I was choosing books for review for the Seattle Book Review. Since a lot of the plants are found in many regions, I think most anyone could find this useful and fun. Here is the review I wrote for SBR.

Young people today spend far more time indoors looking at screens of one kind or another than most parents would like. But how can we get kids to spend more time in the great outdoors? For those who live in the Pacific Northwest (Alaska, Western Canada, Washington, Oregon, and Northern California), there is a new resource that not only will help get those kids out the door but may well turn them into budding botanists. Arranged by seasons, each section has a wide variety of activities as well as very detailed drawings, photographs, and text that will show young people how to identify many plants and trees in the region. There is a lot of information about uses for the different plants, which are edible, which are poisonous, how to pick things without causing damage to the biome, and so much more. Youngsters will enjoy getting their hands (and feet and faces) dirty, tasting new tastes, and seeing all there is to see in the great outdoors. The writing is conversational and friendly while never backing away from the science. This is a beautifully designed and written book that will be loved by both young readers and their parents.

Please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.