Great Resources

Every now and then you find a really practical book that is executed in such a pleasurable way that it makes you smile while reading it.  Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the Natural World puts a smile on your face, while explaining such concepts as “Field Succession” – the natural process by which an abandoned field turns into a woodland, and “The Ecosystem of a Pond” and the “party of plant and animal life” hosted by a rotting log.

If you want to learn some useful tidbits about nature and have fun while doing it, pick up a copy of this book.  Julia Rothman, the author and illustrator, is the person we can thank for this terrific work, along with John Niekrasz, the “green voice” who helped guide Rothman and showed her ”some cool stuff I might not have found myself.”

Rothman’s simple yet incredibly useful descriptions are accompanied by wonderful illustrations – naturalistic but with a fun, cartoon vibe.  There are more than 700 original color drawings.  My favorite drawing in the book may be the opossum featured with her trio of babies lined up in a tidy row across her back.  But, then the “Colorful Moths” and the illustrations of wildflowers are fantastic, too.  Don’t make me choose!

Want some basic information about flower anatomy with some illustrated examples?  Here they are. How about some information on leaf identification with examples of leaf shapes, leaf margins, leaf venation, and leaf parts?  Rothman’s illustrations are so much fun that you barely notice that you are actually learning something.

Nature Anatomy covers many topics including: “Animals in the Neighborhood,” “Intriguing Bird Behavior,” “North American Landscapes,” and “Anatomy of a Bee.”  This is a great book to use to teach your kids about nature, too.   Whether you are 8 or 80 you will have fun reading this book and learn a few things you didn’t know along the way.

Julia Rothman’s Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the Natural World was published in 2015 by Storey Publishing and is available on Amazon.  And, while you are shopping, check out her book, Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life.

From Kim Eierman at EcoBeneficial!