Everglades

by Jean Craighead George

Book Overview

A lyrical creation tale of the Florida Everglades with stunning landscapes by Wendell Minor. Supports the Common Core State Standards

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0064461947
• ISBN13: 9780064461948
• Release Date: March 1997
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.1" x 8.7" x 10.2"
• Age Range: 4 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Grades 1 to 3

Customer Reviews

EXCELLENT RESOURCE

Purchased to have children who participated in a 3 day educational venture in the everglades donate to the library at the Everglades. Book very informative to children (grade 5) and as additional resource on premises.

Preserving the Past to Save the Future

As the book's narrator, a Seminole Indian storyteller, poles a canoe filled with children, he begins by saying, "It's a story about a river... this river, the miraculous Everglades of Florida." In language rich in texture and color and metaphor (Lake Okeechobee was "a slow river that gleamed like quicksilver"), he tells the history of the Everglades from pristine past to precarious present. And while there is no denying the environmental focus of the book - illustrations and text both point to the impending destruction of the priceless habitat - the narrative never falls to sermonizing; it instead fosters genuine respect for the Everglades, and empowers its young readers to preserve and conserve. Equal to the text, and at times surpassing it, Wendall Minor's rich and detailed paintings speak volumes in this beautifully illustrated book: Minor has taken a page from Audubon, carefully studying his subjects, and rendering them with fine attention to detail, all the while making it look effortless. Ultimately, this carefully choreographed dance between illustration and story gives readers, young and old, hope that they are the key to saving the Everglades for future generations. A truly beautiful book.

A 5th Grade's Class Review

We just finished reading EVERGLADES by Jean Craighead George. The storyteller was a great idea. His words really caught our attention. This book, even though it was about real life, read like a fictional story. We especially liked the way Ms. Craighead George used various synonyms to express just how many creatures were in the Everglades in the beginning. In addition to the colorful language, the incredible illustrations by Wendell Miner made the book come to life. Above all, we learned we should respect nature. A great reading experience!

A spectacular environmental story

Another spectacular picture book from one of today's greatest writing/illustrating teams, EVERGLADES isn't just a story--it's an epic, one begun thousands of years ago, when water carved this spectacular ecosystem in Florida. Jean Craighead George, author of over eighty remarkable nature books for young readers, lends awe-inspiring power to the pages of the book, while Wendell Minor's lush, colorful illustrations beautifully depict this environment, full of wildlife and vitality. The book, like Ms. George's many others, also has an important lesson to tell. In JULIE OF THE WOLVES, we see the importance of Alaska's North Slope to the animals that inhabit this seemingly bleak, barren landscape (this area is now in danger of more oil line construction). In FRIGHTFUL'S MOUNTAIN (third in the MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN trilogy), we come to know the threatened peregrine falcon, and the many threats humans have posed to it. In EVERGLADES, one feels a strong admiration toward this magnificent, but, sadly, endangered environment, and those who, like me, have never visited it, will surely long to see it for themselves. The narration is moving and fascinating, as a Seminole Indian describes to a group of children the evolution of the Florida Everglades, and inspires them to fight to help it survive. When one visits the Everglades, they will want to see the alligators, wetlands, and panthers of Mr. Minor's paintings. If you enjoy EVERGLADES, you'll fall in love with other spectacular George/ Minor collaborations, such as ARCTIC SON, the story of Ms. George's grandson who lives at the northernmost point in Alaska. As he grows up, he learns about the Inupiat Eskimos who make their home there and the tundra land around him. Mr. Minor's illustrations are quite lovely, and there's as much snow and ice in ARCTIC SON as there was grass and water in EVERGLADES. There's also MORNING, NOON, AND NIGHT, which focuses on the day-to-day lives of different animals throughout the U.S. The text it written very poetically, and Mr. Minor's illustrations of raccoons, seals, antelope, and birds are full of warmth and inspiration. And next year, a new book entitled LONESOME GEORGE will be published. This is about the famous, oldest Galapagos tortoise. Ms. George has also written a new young adult book about the Okefenokee Swamp, which is sure to be as full of environmental splendor as EVERGLADES. I can't wait to see them.

The Everglades

Jean Craighead George has done it again! What a wonderful perspective and simple telling of the history of the Everglades. As told by a Seminole Indian to the children, this story (and wonderful illustrations) produces a profound respect for the "River of Grass" and its future. As a teacher in Florida, this book was a fantastic read-aloud to my students during our unit on the Everglades. I also used George's other ecological mystery, Missing Gator of Gumbo Limbo, to study Florida's ecology.