Wilderness Discoveries

August 1, 2011

From Lake Michigan's dunes through transition forests to the boreal forests and wetlands in the region's north, a television host introduces inhabitants of three Great Lakes ecosystems from an intelligent-design perspective.

"Within every ecosystem, each plant and animal is designed to serve a specific purpose in God's creation." While this proposition is not accepted by the great majority of scientists, it is repeatedly put forth, through examples and Biblical quotations, in this appreciation of the Great Lakes' natural world. Schriemer defines his terms, introduces "HOMES" as a mnemonic to remember the five lake names and provides a map showing Michigan at their heart. He then introduces each ecosystem, with examples of characteristic animals and a plant for each. Each creature has a page with an explanation of its name, a short description of its appearance and behavior, a "crazy cool fact" and several color photographs. The images are not large, and a few are difficult to see—as are the animals themselves—but most will give young readers a good idea of what to look for. A DVD (not seen) is packaged with books in this series, which also includes the less well-written Ocean Adventures, about habitats of Hawaii. There are no sources or index in either book.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

October 1, 2011

Gr 4-6-These religious-centered introductions to some of the ecosystems and habitats in Hawaii and Michigan are written in a chatty, informal style. Superlatives abound in a text filled with exclamation points, e.g., "Hawaii has one of the most unique coral reef systems on the planet!" (Ocean Adventures) and expressions of wonder at the creatures being described: "God designed most owls to be nighttime hunters!" (Wilderness Discoveries). Some species are singled out in text boxes-"Hello, My Name Is: " and "Crazy Cool FACT!"-that highlight interesting information about them. Pronunciation guides appear sporadically, but they're not very helpful; e.g., "'cetaceans' (si-ta-tions)," and there is no help for other names such as "nene." The illustrations are a combination of color photographs and drawings, but many seem to be stuck on the page, with an amateurish cut-and-paste look. Without a table of contents, the specific chapters on the areas of these states are difficult to find, and with no index (even to the many biblical quotations), the books are strictly for browsing. Marginal purchases.-Frances E. Millhouser, formerly at Chantilly Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2012
Readers are invited to explore "God's creations" in the ocean and wilderness. Both books include attractive photos and some kid-friendly factual information about a variety of animals. However, the science is buried under intelligent-design-type descriptions: "God designed most owls to be nighttime hunters." Difficult-to-follow page design further confuses things.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)