They All Rain Wild: The animals and plants that plague Australia
Interesting book, especially as it was written over 50 years ago. The feral invasion these days doesn’t seem quite as gloomy. What happened to the sparrows and the starlings? Australia has changed markedly since then, especially in terms of farming methods, which in turn has changed the composition of the fauna. It also helps that we no longer kill native wildlife for fun, or purpose-fully spread vermin like rabbits.
The Secret World of Plants
A timeless treasury of more than 100 stories from the incredible kingdom of plants, told by author and nature expert Ben Hoare.
Learn how seagrass flowers under-water, how the Venus flytrap counts to make sure it catches its prey, and why some tulips used to cost more than a house! Children can discover the secrets of more than 100 amazing plants in this treasury of fascinating flora.
A tour of a post-human Earth
In The World Without Us, Alan Weisman offers an utterly original approach to questions of humanity’s impact on the planet: he asks us to envision our Earth, without us. In this far-reaching narrative, Weisman explains how our massive infrastruc-ture would collapse and vanish with-out human presence; which every-day items may become immortalized as fossils; how copper pipes and wiring would be crushed into mere seams of reddish rock; why some of our earliest buildings might be the last architecture left; and how plastic, bronze sculpture, radio waves, and some man-made molecules may be our most lasting gifts to the universe.
Snuggled Away
by Cate Storey is a rhyming story that explores the habits of Australia’s nocturnal animals. As you go to sleep, animals all around Australia are busy caring for young and searching for food. This beautifully illustrated children’s book about Australian wildlife features: possums, sugar gliders, powerful owls, tree frogs, wombats, bandicoots, bush-stone curlews, and bilbies.
Interesting facts follow the main story and both children and parents can learn from the pictorial catalogue of the featured animals, accompanied by their scientific and common names at the back of the book. With 34 full page illustrations, this book is perfect for budding nature explorers.
Designed primarily to be read aloud to children in preschool and early primary, Snuggled Away will also delight older siblings, parents and grandparents.
MMM … Issue 36, February – March 2023
