Reading The River

Frogs, fish, a turtle, and other creatures who live in or around a river state their need for the river, making a plea for protecting this natural resource.

“John Hildebrand sets out in a canoe . . . to explore the great riverway of northwestern Canada and Alaska. . . . The geography is closely rendered and the characters especially sharply drawn. The country is filled with mad dropouts at river fish camps, good-hearted girls in the towns, sullen natives in tumbledown villages, cranky old-timers, terrible drunks and worse moralizers who live off the wild landscape and its abundant resources. . . . This is a fine work, and Hildebrand is a fine writer.”—Charles E. Little, Wilderness

A NATIONAL BESTSELLER "A fiery tour de force... I could not put this book down. It truly was terrifying and unutterably beautiful." -Alison Borden, The Denver Post From the best-selling author of The Dog Stars, the story of two college students on a wilderness canoe trip--a gripping tale of a friendship tested by fire, white water, and violence Wynn and Jack have been best friends since freshman orientation, bonded by their shared love of mountains, books, and fishing. Wynn is a gentle giant, a Vermont kid never happier than when his feet are in the water. Jack is more rugged, raised on a ranch in Colorado where sleeping under the stars and cooking on a fire came as naturally to him as breathing. When they decide to canoe the Maskwa River in northern Canada, they anticipate long days of leisurely paddling and picking blueberries, and nights of stargazing and reading paperback Westerns. But a wildfire making its way across the forest adds unexpected urgency to the journey. When they hear a man and woman arguing on the fog-shrouded riverbank and decide to warn them about the fire, their search for the pair turns up nothing and no one. But: The next day a man appears on the river, paddling alone. Is this the man they heard? And, if he is, where is the woman? From this charged beginning, master storyteller Peter Heller unspools a headlong, heart-pounding story of desperate wilderness survival.

Little cub wants to be big and strong like all the other bears because there's nothing bigger or stronger than a bear... or is there? Join this curious bear cub as it learns from its mother how to hunt, fish, scratch and be patient in this beautiful debut picture book from Sarah Noble. Touching on themes of nature, nurture, and the importance of family, this is the perfect story for any curious young reader starting to question the world around them. In the vein of a classical animal picture book, As Strong as the River is designed to be the perfect bedtime story reading for parents and children.

A river is a thread, embroidering our world. This non-fiction picture book brings attention to the rivers that stitch and thread our world together.

“This stunningly illustrated book, rendered in deep blues and greens, charts a river’s meandering course through cities, farms and jungles.” —Entertainment Weekly A Winner of the New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Books Award There’s a river outside my window. Where will it take me? So begins the imaginary journey of a child inspired by the view outside her bedroom window: a vast river winding through a towering city. A small boat with a single white sail floats down the river and takes her from factories to farmlands, freeways to forests, out to the stormy and teeming depths of the ocean, and finally back to the comforts—and inspirations—of home. This lush, immersive book by award-winning picture book creator Marc Martin will delight readers of all ages by taking them on a transcendent and aspirational journey through an imaginative landscape. “A subtle study of how imagination allows children to safely explore the unknown without ever leaving home.” —Publishers Weekly

2002 FINALIST, FOREWORD INDIE Nature Book of the Year " [A] seasoned depiction of the nomadic culture, empty canyons, and wild western rivers that define and haunt her. Honest in her assessment of the psychological costs of a gypsy life, artful in her understanding of currents and seasons, Lawton depicts the rivers taking away as well as giving . . . " - David James Duncan, author, The River Why and My Story as Told by Water You've read about famed explorers and early boatmen whose legendary strength fills book after book. Now dive into this classic about an early woman river guide whose love of reading water and quest for understanding the underlying science took her all over the West. For those who have navigated America's great rivers by boat-and for those who wish they could-this book shares deep knowledge from a writer who not only guided on rivers in the 1970s and 80s but also trained and worked as a fluvial geologist. As Lawton writes, "The river taught me instinctive responses in an unparalleled mentorship that led me throughout the American West every day for more than a decade. Being on the river taught me to read water-to psyche out where rocks hid in riffles, find safe passage in inscrutable rapids, and keep moving in flatwater sections." Living in the river community, allying with water, Lawton became part of an enduring subculture of people changed forever by rivers. In this tenth anniversary edition, her insight learned from other guides and from her own observations of rivers and currents is more timely than ever. "Reading Water is both mirror and map, a reminder that a life can take the shape of the river itself-fierce and tender, restless and serene, asking us only for our unwavering fidelity to living, moving water." -Ellen Meloy, author, Eating Stone and The Anthropology of Turquoise Rebecca Lawton begins this literary float trip: "My first view of the river looked like this-a long, blue being at the bottom of a steep canyon." Jump in the raft and join this "whitewater gypsy" and naturalist as she rows you down some of the American West's greatest rivers. With her, you'll come to understand rivers and their impact on the human emotional landscape in a deeper sense. Reading Water offers seekers not only the thrill rides of our rivers, but also their rich ecosystems and spiritual wellsprings. Lawton views river life through various lenses: the hydrological, spiritual, and personal. Even armchair river runners will find much to love about this book-its affection, adventure, wisdom, and sense of place. "Rebecca Lawton doesn't just read water, she understands it, speaks it, lives it, and loves it. The finely crafted chapters in Reading Water reflect the wisdom and sharply tuned senses that a life spent on the water can nurture. Lawton's book examines everything from the loss of her mother to marriage, friendship, and work through a shimmering, water lens that reveals remarkable depth." -Pamela Michael, cofounder of River of Words and The Gift of Rivers

Follow a little fish on her epic journey downriver as she travels out into the unknown. With stunning artwork from Hanako Clulow, a lyrical narrative and a magical 'swimming fish' on every page, this is a book to treasure and revisit time and again.