John Muir: America's First Environmentalist

We went to Yosemite last year with the kids. This book brought back memories of our trip and the man who explored this amazing National Park.

"I heard the storm and made haste to join it, for many of nature's finest lessons are to be found in her storms." -- John Muir, quoted in John Muir: America's First Environmentalist, which is an excellent picture book for older readers. I love how a picture book like this can provide enough inspiration to potentially change a readers perspective of the world in 32 pages of text and paintings. In portraying the life story of this great American hero, Lasky and Fellows offer a wealth of fact, memorable journal quotations, a blast of frigid Arctic blizzard conditions, and a taste of romanticism. Anyone who has experienced the majesty of Yosemite or the other national parks that were established in the wake of his advocacy for wild, public spaces, should recognize that Muir has played a role in helping create what America is today to a degree no less important than was played by its better known founding fathers.

It's a pleasure to see Kathryn Lasky's biography, John Muir: America's First Environmentalist appear for a younger audience than biographies of Muir usually writes for: Stan Fellows provides gorgeous watercolors to accompany a book which uses John Muir's own diaries as a foundation for an exploration of his life and thoughts. Students in grades 3-5 are provided with a review of his childhood dreams and early love of nature, and will find the picturebook format most accessible.