Sad Animal Facts

Sad Animal Facts

YA nonfiction
The day Brooke Barker was born her grandmother gave her an
animal book in the hope she would become "a friend to every
creature". That was to be quite a challenge. She wasn't allowed to
have pets. So she read voraciously about animals. She learned about
the sad aspects of their lives. In third grade when she was stung by
a bunch of bees what she was upset about was the death of the bees.
When Barker became a reference librarian she had a lot of time
on her hands. She recycled old card catalog slips by drawing animals
on their backs. Her coworkers suggested critters.
Barker's Sad Animal Facts combines both interests. Each page
combines a fact with a drawing. An appendix expands on all the
facts. Did you know that:
*An alligator's brain weighs less than an Oreo;
*Hippos attract mates by peeing;
and *Shark pregnancies can last for years?
Those are only a few of the over 150 gems you'll discover in Sad
Animal Facts. Try it. I think you'll like it.
On a purrrsonal note, Joey cat is still very much in the game. He's
loving his baby food. He gets cat food in the day and his jar of baby
food at night. I'm worried for him though. We're supposed to get
brutal temps this weekend. They wilted him even before he had
cancer. Adam dropped off 2 window mounted air conditioners that could
really help him survive. Eugene won't set them up. I guess he thinks
they're a waste of electricity or something like that. As for me, I
can't lift one. I tried. I feel so frustrated because I just want to
keep Joey as happy and comfortable as possible.
A great big shout out goes out to Adam for his thoughtfulness and the
best little cat in the world whom I hope and pray I won't lose to heat
and humidity.
jules hathaway

Thank You, Earth

Picture book
Kids aren't spending enough time in nature. And they tend, when
outside, to be swooped from place to place by parents and other
adults. The ponds, streams, and woodsy places kids used to claim as
their own, even good sledding hills, stand empty.
April Pulley Sayre's Thank You Earth: A Love Letter To Our
Planet is a psalm of tribute to the beauty of our created world.
Concise verse accompanies gorgeous photographs, many of beings and
places children can see in their own neighborhoods. On a two page
spread "Thank you for tiny" shows a lady bug crawling across a leaf
while "and towering." gives an upward view through the leaves of a
towering tree. Text ranges from the profound "Thank you for
beginnings, for endings, for lifetimes." to the playful "even fishy
whale breath."
Share this beautiful book with the children in your life. Then
go outside and discover what you are personally thankful for. You
could even create a book that will become a family treasure.
On a personal note, yesterday I bussed to Bangor to get more baby food
for Joey cat (stopping on the way at Goodwill where I found two
awesome cat shirts). At Hannaford I ran into a friend from my writing
class whom I hadn't seen in ages. We went to her house and caught up
over an excellent lunch. Then she gave me a ride home. Today I
volunteered an hour at Orono Public Library when I went to pick up my
ILLs. On the way back I was rewarded by seeing a beautiful monarch
butterfly.
Great big shout outs go out to Sandra for being the hostess with the
mostesss on such short notice and the best little cat in the world for
loving me.
jules hathaway


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