A Field Guide to Your Own Back Yard [Paperback]

John Hanson Mitchell (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0881504742 | ISBN-13: 978-0881504743 | Publication Date: June 1, 1999 | Edition: Second Edition

A wise and poetic field guide to the lives, habits, and quirks of the natural world awaiting just beyond your doorstep .

"If there is grass and a few scraggling trees, there will be wildlife," suggests John Hanson Mitchell, an internationally recognized naturalist and advocate for tuning your senses to the wonders that await in your own backyard. Whether your yard consists of a small patch of grass or a rambling mix of forest and field, Mitchell will introduce you to the wealth of plants, insects, and animals that share your patch of the planet.

You'll learn how the behavior at the birdfeeder mirrors that of the deepest woods. You'll get a gander at the rich ecology of the woodpile. You'll get to know the neighbors you never knew you had who make their homes under the bark and in the holes of the trees. You'll learn why you might want to welcome a skunk into your garden. With wisdom and gentle humor, this book reacquaints you with the denizens of your own local habitat. 53 black & white illustrations

Editorial Reviews

Review

Mitchell is one of a rising band of nature writers who will be heard from, thank goodness, in our fin de millennium." -- Edward Hoagland, author of "Tigers and Ice"

From the Inside Flap

Here is a book to enhance our appreciation of the small citizens of the world and to introduce us to the neighbors we never knew we had-from spotted salamanders to meadow voles, from snowy tree crickets to ambrosia beetles. The author blends his wisdom about the natural; world with gentle humor and instructive advice as he describes the songs of sparrows and the habits of skunks, tells how to pick morel mushrooms and how to avoid poison ivy, and considers the traditional uses of pokeweed and the origin of purslane.

Mitchell's vivid nature journal follows the seasons and observes the subtle changes throughout the year. Detailed illustrations by Laurel Molk help you identify the denizens of your local habitat. A field guide to the familiar yet often overlooked, this book reacquaints us with the rewards and the resilience of the natural world wherever it is found.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Countryman Press; Second Edition edition (June 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881504742
• ISBN-13: 978-0881504743
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,706,039 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Hanson Mitchell's earlier work is focused on a square mile tract of land known as Scratch Flat, located about thirty-five miles north-west of Boston. Mitchell has used this anomalous landscape of rolling hills, farms, forests and encroaching suburbs to explore his continuing interest in natural and human history and the whole question of place in human cultures,both native and European. Best known of this series of books is the first, Ceremonial Time:Fifteen Thousand Years on One Square Mile.

Later books explore the relationship between culture, nature, and place. These works deal with such disparate subjects as the relationship between Italian gardens and the American wilderness and the role of the sun in various cultures, outlined in the book Following the Sun, a 1500 mile bicycle journey he made from Cadiz in Spain, north to the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. His latest book, The Paradise of all These Parts, is a natural history of the little peninsula that became the city of Boston.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I wish I had written this one!, May 30, 2000

By 

Grace Liggett - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Field Guide to Your Own Back Yard (Paperback)

John Hanson Mitchell obviously, truly loves this subject (as well as his land). He lovingly explores all parts of a small plot of land & the myriad creatures that live & interact there to create a whole ecosystem. He pulls together all the parts in a very entertaining & readable field guide to observing nature.