At Home On The Earth

"The physical earth is clearly under unprecedented siege—heated, toxified, scraped. But almost as if they were antibodies, the finest nature writers of any era have come forward to help in the fight. This anthology collects many of the most important, at their most eloquent. May it ring and echo and do some good!"—Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature "This is a stunning collection of vivid writing about landscapes and the people who inhabit them. The diverse narratives gathered here do more than describe hawks diving and twigs snapping, although the book has its share of moving accounts of the natural world. A concern to live responsibily in nature runs through this evocative anthology like a subterranean stream, and that moral impulse, together with the lively prose, makes this the best collection of nature writing I've seen."—Thomas A. Tweed, editor of Retelling U.S. Religious History

The first chronological presentation of U.S. nature writing by key women authors of the last two centuries.

Young children usually think of their home as the structure in which they live. In Our Big Home, the author and illustrator present a much larger vision of home as the planet Earth. Linda Glaser's beautiful poem is a wonderful way to gently lead children toward the all-important understanding of caring for our environment. In her lyrical, child-oriented style, she presents the idea that our big home is shared not only with all people but with all plants and animals as well. She shows that we share the air, the water, the soil, and other elements that affect and sustain all of us who live on Earth. Elisa Kleven's vibrant art enhances the concept as she takes young readers to an African plain, a Caribbean island, a South American mountain, and around the world to see people and animals reveling in the beauty and abundance of our shared home.

"I take care of the earth because I know I can do little things every day to make a BIG difference..." With his signature blend of playfulness and sensitiviy, Todd Parr explores the important, timely subject of environmental protection and conservation in this eco-friendly picture book. Featuing a circular die-cut Earth on the cover, and printed entirely with recycled materials and nontoxic soy inks, this book includes lots of easy, smart ideas on how we can all work together to make the Earth feel good - from planting a tree and using both sides of the paper, to saving energy and reusing old things in new ways. Best of all, the book includes an interior gatefold with a poster with tips/reminders on how kids can "go green" everyday. Equally whimsical and heartfelt, this sweet homage to our beautiful planet is sure to inspire readers of all ages to do their part in keeping the Earth happy and healthy.

A colorful discussion of conservation that will entertain and educate any child! My Earth, My Home gently guides young readers through a conversation that illuminates the concept of global connection and environmental cause and effect. An engaging text and more than forty full-color illustrations provide an opportunity for discussing and understanding not only what we can do to save our planet, but why it is so important. Also included are a Messy Planet Action Plan, as well as an Earth-Smart Dictionary. Called “the perfect children’s introduction to environmental issues” by Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund, this book encourages maturity, ownership, and problem-solving discussion among kids and their parents, teachers, or caregivers. It is a must for every school and family library.

As climate change and development pressures overwhelm the environment, our emotional relationships with Earth are also in crisis. Pessimism and distress are overwhelming people the world over. In this maelstrom of emotion, solastalgia, the homesickness you have when you are still at home, has become, writes Glenn A. Albrecht, one of the defining emotions of the twenty-first century. Earth Emotions examines our positive and negative Earth emotions. It explains the author's concept of solastalgia and other well-known eco-emotions such as biophilia and topophilia. Albrecht introduces us to the many new words needed to describe the full range of our emotional responses to the emergent state of the world. We need this creation of a hopeful vocabulary of positive emotions, argues Albrecht, so that we can extract ourselves out of environmental desolation and reignite our millennia-old biophilia—love of life—for our home planet. To do so, he proposes a dramatic change from the current human-dominated Anthropocene era to one that will be founded, materially, ethically, politically, and spiritually on the revolution in thinking being delivered by contemporary symbiotic science. Albrecht names this period the Symbiocene. With the current and coming generations, "Generation Symbiocene," Albrecht sees reason for optimism. The battle between the forces of destruction and the forces of creation will be won by Generation Symbiocene, and Earth Emotions presents an ethical and emotional odyssey for that victory.

Durning, the executive director of Northwest Environment Watch and commentator on National Public Radio, explores the environmental health of his home region and the ideas behind a sustainable way of life. From an innovative manager of public transportation in Boise, Idaho, to a Seattle shoe cobbler who is making a small stand against our disposable society, this book is filled with thought-provoking and inspiring people, ideals, and results. It shows how the intrinsic value of home can be acknowledged, valued, and preserved.