Anthology for the Earth [Hardcover]

Judy Allen (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

An illustrated anthology of poetry and prose about the natural world, by such authors as Rudyard Kipling, Ovid, and Tolstoy.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"This anthology started in my early teens when I was given a stout hardcover notebook," writes award-winning author and editor Judy Allen. "In it I copied out extracts and poems about the natural world that seemed to me important, special, magical." The resulting collection of voices from many cultures is beautiful, as each turn of a page reveals writings from John Muir to Willa Cather to Douglas Adams, perfectly coupled on elegantly designed spreads with artwork from the likes of Quentin Blake and Caldecott winner Peter Sis.

Some of the offerings are sad (lamenting extinction and pollution) and some are glad (celebrating baby birds and rescued pandas), but each is worth more than a moment of reflection. For example, Albert Schweitzer's Civilization and Ethics is excerpted as follows: "The farmer who has mown down a thousand flowers in his meadow as fodder for his cows must be careful on his way home not to strike off in wanton pastime the head of a single flower by the roadside, for he thereby commits a wrong against life without being under the pressure of necessity." More than 40 gorgeously illustrated poems, essays, and excerpts speak to the importance of protecting Earth's fragile ecosystem as well. Anthology for the Earth--a lush, powerful tribute to our planet--is a book to be discovered together and treasured by families and friends. (All ages.)

From School Library Journal

Grade 4 Up?While still in her early teens, this prolific British author began collecting the poetry and bits of prose that make up this powerful anthology about the natural world and human intervention. Many years later she chose her favorite passages to be, in her words, "illuminated" by images as varied in style as the works themselves. The result is a handsome volume, a picture book for older readers, as suitable for dipping as for reading straight through. Allen's selections range in length from a few lines to several pages. She draws from novels set in South Africa and on the U.S. plains, Buddhist scripture, the prophet Isaiah and the Talmud, Native American speeches, Australian Aboriginal recollections, philosophy and science, naturalists' observations of the past and present, a child's bird-watching experience, and poetry. The quotations are set in varying type styles mostly on two-page spreads with illustrations concretely connected to the subject. The illustrations are by 30 different artists. The variety of forms and content reinforces the theme of the incredible diversity of the world. For readers with time to reflect, Allen has assembled a chorus of voices to deliver a single message: we have done badly by our world and only we can save it.?Kathleen Isaacs, Edmund Burke School, Washington, DC
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 96 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick; 1st ed. US edition (April 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763603015
• ISBN-13: 978-0763603014
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,235,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Judy Allen is an award-winning author whose novel Awaiting Developments won the Whitbread Children's Novel Award. Judy Allen and illustrator Tudor Humphries created Kingfisher's award-winning Backyard Books series and many other successful books, including the Reading Rainbow selections Tiger and Seal.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A kid's book for grown-ups, November 18, 2007

By 

Cecil Bothwell "Author of "Whale Falls: A... (Asheville, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Anthology for the Earth (Hardcover)

I stumbled on this title in the children's section of the local library, but I'd say it's a toss-up: the excerpted text in this book includes material from a wide range of grown-up writing and the colorful illustrations aren't just for kids. This would be a terrific book to share with youngsters from about 10 years up. From single sentence aphorisms to several page long stories, the cross cultural mix is all aimed toward respect for nature, understanding inter-relatedness and the idea that we are not apart. From the story of the first interaction of Australian aborigines and whites to a Scottish hunting tale, the felling of a tree to the saving of toads crossing a road in a summer rain, the views offered are telling and panoramic. Steinbeck, Leopold, Muir, Schweitzer, Ovid, Tolstoy, Cather, Attenborough, Kipling, Hardy, Douglas Adams, Edward O. Wilson, Chekov, Lorenz, Julian Huxley and Paton are included (among others): the usual suspects but not the usual quotes. An excellent introduction to literature and ecologic thought served up in manageable bites.