Nature Journaling: Learning to Observe and Connect With the World Around You [Hardcover]

Charles E. Roth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 9, 1998

No one could describe NATURE JOURNAL as a blank book. Clare Walker Leslie has transformed what could have been an ordinary diary into something truly unique. The text and illustrations offer just the right amount of inspiration and guidance to help the journal-keeper begin and succeed at making this book his or her own.

First Clare explains to the budding journal-keeper how to get started and suggests some possible formats to follow. She even includes a few sample pages from her own journal as inspiration.

Then come the journal pages themselves. The left-hand page has ghosted-back lines for those who prefer a sense of structure. The right-hand pages are left blank for sketching or writing. Short, inspir ational quotes and exercises to help guide the journaling process are scattered among the pages.

At the back of the journal is Clare's mini-field guide, packed with essential information on how to recognize (and draw!) basic families of birds, insects, and trees, thus sparing the journal-keeper the trouble of lugging multiple field guides into the wild. An elastic band keeps paper from flapping while you're writing, holds specimens, and acts as a bookmark. Drop it in the mud. Get trail mix stuck between the pages. This journal can take it! Printed on recycled, acid-free paper with a lay-flat binding.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Get back in touch with the world around you by keeping a nature journal--it's not as hard as you might think, and you may find hidden reservoirs of peaceful creativity lurking beneath your busy, harried life. Nature Journaling is an excellent resource to get you started, with tips on how to really see weather, animals, plants, and seasons. Even if you live in the city, there's plenty to watch, sketch, and write about. As renowned naturalist E.O. Wilson writes in his foreword, "What is natural history? It is virtually the whole world around you. It is the vista of a great forest from a mountaintop, and a swath of weeds growing along a city sidewalk."

Nature Journaling is filled with words and pictures from the diaries of the authors' students. Some are polished and professional, others honestly amateur--no artistic talent is required to keep a beautiful record of your surroundings. Nature isn't somewhere else, it's all around you, and a scrapbook of ideas, maps, drawings, and clippings can help you appreciate it year round. END

Review

“All with tips from … Mary Beth Janssen, a celebrated voice for the integration of beauty and wellness … give your hair healthy flair!” — Naturally Healthy Hair

 

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC (January 9, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580170889
• ISBN-13: 978-1580170888
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,519,569 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully illustrated, practical, educational & inspiring!, June 7, 1999

By 

Debi ([e-mail]) (Washington State, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nature Journaling: Learning to Observe and Connect With the World Around You (Hardcover)

For people interested in trying out the Nature Notebook or Nature Journal idea (it's a great activity for both children and adults), I highly recommend this book. Nature Journaling is written and illustrated by college-level science educators who use Nature Journals as their primary method of teaching people to learn about nature firsthand. A beautiful, inspiring book! I was first introduced to the idea of Nature Notebooks by reading the works of Charlotte Mason, an educator in England during the last century. Taking regular Nature Walks and keeping individual Nature Notebooks has been a happy and fulfilling family activity in our home for several years.

After purchasing Nature Journaling, the book totally changed the way our family approached our own Nature Journals -- this book provided us with so many new ideas and creative uses for our notebooks. The first day we read through the Nature Journaling book, my 12-year-old daughter and I spent two hours at the local beaver pond sketching red-winged blackbirds, Canada geese, rough-skinned newts, turtles, lily pads and wildflowers. My husband has even decided to start keeping a Nature Journal of his own after seeing the newly inspired work in my personal Nature Notebook. To anyone reading this review who has an active interest in enjoying and learning about nature, I hope you'll seriously consider adding a bit of nature journaling to your family's summertime activities. You may even find yourself starting a rewarding and educational life-long hobby.

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I was inspired!, September 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nature Journaling: Learning to Observe and Connect With the World Around You (Hardcover)

This book was recommended in our homeschool loop. I bought the book hoping for some ideas to get me started, always wanted to start but felt uncomfortable about just doing it. The book will end all your worries! I was very impressed by the books contents and how easy it was to get started. My 5 1/2 year old daughter and I have started with the very basics as part of our daily school lessons and I plan to add more as we progress. You do not have to be an artist to do this! This is your journal and you do what you want in it, nobody needs to see it unless you want to share it. It will make you become more observant to your surroundings and the way things are constantly changing. A great base for any homeschool program.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Go on. Be an explorer!, September 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Nature Journaling: Learning to Observe and Connect With the World Around You (Hardcover)

If you're into nature and you haven't lost touch with a child's wonder, you will enjoy Nature Journaling. A great book for families who like to wander together or for adults who want to reconnect with their natural surroundings.