My Nature Book [Paperback]

Linda Kranz (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

My Nature Book is a place for kids to draw and write about their experiences with nature. It is also full of projects and ideas to help kids get started. There are lined pages for writing, blank pages for drawing, activity pages, and ideas and recipes for making projects or yummy treats to take on the trail! For kids who love exploring the great outdoors, or just hanging out in their own backyard, My Nature Book the perfect gift!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Linda Kranz is the author of NorthWord's Let's Rock! Rock Painting for Kids and the author of the wildly popular series of journals for kids and teens: All About Me: A Keepsake Journal for Kids; More About Me: Another Keepsake Journal for Kids; and Through My Eyes: A Journal for Teens. Ms. Kranz lives in Arizona.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Cooper Square Publishing Llc (September 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559718935
• ISBN-13: 978-1559718936
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,793,078 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

" When our children were born I began to appreciate so many wonderful children's books. Oh, how books have changed since my childhood. Treasured books that I have on my bookshelf still have a special meaning to me although the art isn't anywhere near as vibrant as art in children's books today."

Linda was born in Georgia and moved many times when she was growing up. "I have always loved art and journaling. Being creative kept me grounded. As young child I would draw and color for hours. As a teen I painted on canvas or blank walls and I wrote.

"Since my husband and I have been married, we've spent a lot of time outdoors, hiking and enjoying the natural world. It seems to me that when you are an artist you notice opportunities to create. Years and years ago I came across a rock that was perfect for painting."

"My love for art and children's books is what inspires me to write and illustrate books. This is a great quote, "If there's a book you really want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it. ~ Toni Morrison. We all have stories inside us waiting to be released. It is a joy to bring a story to life. Set aside time to read your favorite book today or discover a new book. I know you will smile and be inspired."

Linda has written 11 books. Eight journals with guided prompts that are combined with various artists' illustrations, unique graphics or beautiful photography which encourages the writer to fill up the empty pages with their own life stories, Let's Rock: Rock Painting for Kids which won a Children's Choices award and Only One You which focuses on the love between parents and their child, Adri. Her latest book You Be You continues where Only One You left off and now Adri is discovering the world for himself. These books speak to readers of all ages.

Please visit my website www.lindakranz.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!, October 28, 2004

By 

Lydia D. Mckerchie "l_stork" (Arizona) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My Nature Book (Paperback)

This journal is full of inspiration! Beginning with a few helpful tips on journal writing, it goes on to encourage close observation of the incredible wonders we are surrounded by.

Ms. Kranz's "thought-starters" are truly intriguing. They motivate the writer to delve into their imagination and discover nature right outside their door when they can't go further.

Fascinating facts, included in the margins, help foster respect for the natural world around us. For instance, do you know why lightning bugs glow, or how long it takes for a glass bottle to decompose? Fun projects, like making a "water window", will keep your kids running outside to test new ideas.

What an amazing asset for parents who would like to share the sights, sounds, and smells of the natural world with their children. John Ruskin is quoted, in one of the margins, as saying, "Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of infinite beauty if we only have the eyes to see them." This journal will help your children, and you, to develop those eyes. What a gift to give!

Highly recommended for any child old enough to write. Also, see Linda's other journals listed on this site.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unlocking the Magic, September 27, 2004

By 

George Boyce "Old Two-Horses" (Pena Blanca, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My Nature Book (Paperback)

Nature...pure magic! This author has very capably crafted the keys that allow the reader to unlock doors to a magnificent world too many of us have never explored. My Nature Book is a privately guided journey, a magical journey to places that each of us should make a part of our lives forever. Congratulations, Linda Kranz, you have created an amazing map for the fountain of youth.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Author and A Great Nature Journal, September 23, 2004

By 

Jerry Flack (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: My Nature Book (Paperback)

MY NATURE BOOK: A JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK FOR KIDS

Fantastic Author and A Great Nature Journal

By Jerry Flack, Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado and children's literature consultant, Denver, CO.

In a short time span Linda Kranz has become the master creator of journals. Kranz has created a minimum of seven journals for such diverse groups as young students (ALL ABOUT ME: A KEEPSAKE JOURNAL FOR KIDS), teenagers (THROUGH MY EYES: A JOURNAL FOR TEENS) as well as exceptionally fine journals for both mothers and fathers to create and later share with their children. Now, the very imaginative Kranz has branched out into subject matter disciplines with her newest journal, MY NATURE BOOK: A JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK FOR KIDS (NorthWord Press, 2004).

MY NATURE BOOK: A JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK FOR KIDS opens with an excellent example of a nature-based journal entry penned by Kranz after a weekend family trip into the wild. Next, she provides useful hints (but never stifling restrictions) on how to best create a nature journal. Some of her hints include always dating journal entries and describing sounds and smells as well as things seen. Kranz utilizes what she refers to as "thought starters" to help young naturalists begin writing in their journals. One example of such a prompt is to write about firsts: first fish caught, first climbing of a tree, and the first swim in a lake. Excellent quotations are also utilized as inspirations for journal writing. One such example is Dorothy Thomson's lovely verse, "I am inclined to think that the flowers we most love are those we knew when were very young." Nature facts also are intended to inspire writing. For example, Kranz provides fascinating information on such creatures as the hummingbird, namely that it lays the smallest eggs of any bird and consumes half its weight in sugar every day! MY NATURE BOOK contains more than journal prompts, however. It is also filled with fun, stimulating, and delicious activities. The author gives directions for creating an imaginative Nature Box plus a recipe for banana bread muffins and bread so that no naturalists will go hungry on an excursion into the woods.

The full-color illustrations by Linda Garrow and John F. McGee are extremely vibrant and most fitting for a nature journal. They are extremely appealing and will draw young writers quickly into the joy of this extraordinary journal.

Parents, grandparents, and aunts and uncles seeking the perfect gift for beloved younger family member need look no further. MY NATURE BOOK: A JOURNAL AND ACTIVITY BOOK FOR KIDS is the perfect send off gift for any child venturing off on a nature expedition. Enjoy!