Synopses & Reviews
Frightful, the pelegrine falcon, could not see. A falconer's hood covered her head and eyes. She remained quiet and clam, like all daytime birds in the dark. She would hear, however. She listened t the wind whistling through the pine needles. The wind-music conjured up images of a strange woods and unknown flowers. The sound was foreign. It was not the soft song of wind humming through the hemlock needles of home. Frightful was a long way from her familiar forest. Suddenly an all-invading passion filled her. She must go. She must find one mountain among thousands, one hemlock tree among millions,. And the one boy who called himself Sam Gribley. The one mountain was her territory, the one tree was Sam's house, the perch beside it, her place. And Sam Gribley was life. So begins the third book in the wilderness series that has lifted imaginations around the worlds. Readers last head from Sam Gribley a decade ago , when he kept the hardest resolution of his life and let his falcon partner go free. Now at last we pick up the sotry?but this time, the narrative continues through Frightful's keen-sighted eyes. Raised by Sam, Frightful is an imprinted bird. She has no idea how to migrate, mate, or be a mother. She can barely even feed herself, for although she is a skilled hunter, it was always Sam who signaled permission to partake of the kill. Sam, so patient and kind, will support her from afar, and so will bird activists Jon and Susan wood and conservationist Leon Longbridge. But despite a letter-writing campaign by local schoolchildren, other would despoil her Catskill home?designing fatal electrical wires and disturbing good nesting areas with jackhammers and paint trucks. With evolution and a proud natural intelligence on her side, Frightful may yet beat the odds of famine, winter, and human encroachment. But her terrible longing for that one mountain among thousands, her first home?a longing so noble and generous yet so dangerous?will govern her to either heartbreaking failure or hart-aching triumph, a triumph so right and so natural that readers will want to take to the skies in celebration. Jean Craighead George published My Side of the mountain in 1959, a Newbery Honor Book and coming-of-age story that has enthralled and entertained generations of would-be Sams. This third book in the series shares?in exquisite, elegantly flowing prose?Frightful's own passage into adulthood, taking readers on a journey into the mind and spirit of one of the wild's most magnificent creations and proving once again why the author is considered the most gifted nature writer of her time.
Review
"A satisfying family story that will appeal to animal lovers everywhere."
—Booklist
Review
"A fitting envoi for a writer whose most enduring tales of nature and survival are required childhood reading." - Kirkus Reviews
Review
Praise for Ice Whale:
* "Jean Craighead George's knowledge of and talent for depicting the natural world are in full evidence in this immersive epic that combines themes of conservation and native mysticism."—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A fitting envoi for a writer whose most enduring tales of nature and survival are required childhood reading."—Kirkus Reviews
"George packs in detail about Eskimo traditions—from whale hunting to spirituality—and bowhead behaviors, including communication...this quiet story offers a compelling glimpse into the history of a way of life."—Booklist
"A bold, wistful, and heartfelt coda to a distinguished career."—School Library Journal
Synopsis
Terribly unhappy in his family's crowded New York City apartment, Sam Gribley runs away to the solitude-and danger-of the mountains, where he finds a side of himself he never knew.
Synopsis
Rachet was thrown into a river to drown. But she claws up the riverbank and finds a home with the feral cats living by the Roxville train station. Amid foxes, raccoons, owls, and hostile humans, the cats fight for territory, hunt, and are hunted. Mike, a foster child, lives near the station. He spots Rachet and sets his heart on befriending her. But Mike must learn to ?speak? the language of cats to gain wily Rachet?s trust. This gorgeous novel from two-time Newbery medalist Jean Craighead George offers insight into feline behavior as it explores the wonder of friendship and the natural world hiding among us.
Synopsis
The buffalo, an American icon once nearly extinct, has made a comeback. This stirring picture book tells the dramatic story, following bison from the Plains Indians to the cowboys, Teddy Roosevelt to the Dust Bowl, and from the brink of extinction to the majestic herds that now roam our national parks. Paired with gorgeous paintings by landscape artist Wendell Minor, Jean Craighead Georges engaging text will inspire a new generation to understand and protect natures delicate balance.
Synopsis
Two years ago, Sam ran away from New York City to live in the Catskill Mountains. Now his younger sister Alice has joined him and is quietly living in a tree house of her own nearby. Their peaceful life is shattered when a conservation officer confiscates Sam’s falcon, Frightful, and Alice suddenly vanishes. Sam leaves his home to search for Alice, hoping to find Frightful, too. But the trail to the far side of the mountain may lead Sam into great danger.
“Surpasses the original in style and substance . . . This story [is] a jewel.”
—Booklist
“George has outdone herself here.”
—Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
Generations of readers have escaped into the woods with
My Side of the Mountain, the story of a city boy named Sam who learns to live in the wild. Now, Newbery winner Jean Craighead George offers an easy-to-follow guide for fans who want to live the adventure?just like Sam. Learn how to start a fire, build a shelter, catch a fish, identify useful plants, and much more. Hands-on activities are perfect for backyard campers or an afternoon stroll through the park. Illustrated with black-and-white drawings and packed with activities, naturalist trivia, and practical wilderness tips, this entertaining and informative handbook is your guide to outdoor fun.
Synopsis
Can frightful survive alone?
Sam Gribley has been told that it is illegal to harbor an endangered bird, so when his beloved falcon, Frightful, comes home, he has to let her go. But Frightful doesnt know how to live alone in the wild. She cant feed herself, mate, brood chicks, or migrate. Frightful struggles to survive and learns to enjoy her new freedom. But she feels a bond with Sam that can never be broken, and more than anything else, she wants to return to him.
The sequel to My Side of the Mountain and On the Far Side of the Mountain from Newbery Medal-winning author Jean Craighead George.
Fans of My Side of the Mountain will be glad to revisit Sam Gribley in this sequel.” The Horn Book
Frightfuls Mountain is a novel that will change the way you look at the world.” The New York Times Book Review
"Frightful's story is filled with excitement and adventure." School Library Journal
Synopsis
Two renowned childrens book creators teamed up to make this stirring picture book that tells the story of how, over a century, wolves were persecuted in the United States and nearly became extinct. Gradually reintroduced, they are thriving again in the West, much to the benefit of the ecosystem. This book will teach a new generation to appreciate the grace, dignity, and value of wolves as it promotes awareness of the environments delicate balance. Paired with gorgeous paintings by landscape artist Wendell Minor, Jean Craighead Georges engaging text will inspire people of all ages to care about the protection of endangered species.
Synopsis
So Charlie brings home Blue Sky, a baby raven with a big personality. Blue Sky imprints on Charlie and becomes a great friend and a source of amazement to the whole family. Granddad, an old naturalist, is intrigued, and he does seem to get better-at least for a while. But caring for a wild creature is very demanding, and as Blue Sky grows, Charlie must find a way to protect him from the many dangers-both natural and human-made-in the rugged Teton Mountains where they live. Weaving natural history, myth, and a family narrative about life and death, Jean Craighead George demonstrates once again why she is one of the most admired children's writers today. Blue Sky will take his place in readers' hearts beside Frightful of My Side of the Mountain as one of this author's most compelling animal characters.
Synopsis
"Should appeal to all rugged individualists who dream of escape to the forest."The New York Times Book Review
Sam Gribley is terribly unhappy living in New York City with his family, so he runs away to the Catskill Mountains to live in the woodsall by himself. With only a penknife, a ball of cord, forty dollars, and some flint and steel, he intends to survive on his own. Sam learns about courage, danger, and independence during his year in the wilderness, a year that changes his life forever.
An extraordinary book . . . It will be read year after year.”
The Horn Book
Synopsis
From the most celebrated childrens nature writer of our time comes a posthumous new novel in the tradition of her Newbery award-winning Julie of the Wolves In 1848 in Barrow, Alaska, a young Eskimo boy witnesses a rare sightthe birth of a bowhead, or ice whale, that he calls Siku. But when he unwittingly guides Yankee whalers to a pod of bowhead whales, all the whales are killed. For this act, the boy receives a curse of banishment. Through the generations, this curse is handed down. Siku, the ice whale, returns year after year, in reality and dreams, to haunt each descendant. The curse is finally broken when a daughter recognizes and saves the whale, and he in turn saves her. Told in alternating voices, both human and whale, Jean Craighead Georges last novel is an ambitious and touching take on the interconnectedness of humans, animals, and the earth they depend on.
Synopsis
It is illegal to harbor an endangered bird, so when Frightful returns to Sam, the boy who raised her, he has to chase her away. Frightful doesn’t know how to live alone in the wild, and she can’t feed herself, mate, brood chicks, or migrate. She struggles to survive and gradually learns to enjoy her new freedom. But Frightful feels a bond with Sam that can never be broken, and more than anything else, she wants to return to him.
“Fans of My Side of the Mountain will be glad to revisit Sam Gribley in this sequel.”
—The Horn Book
“Frightful’s Mountain is a novel that will change the way you look at the world.”
—The New York Times Book Review
About the Author
"I write for children. Children are still in love with the wonders of nature, and I am too. So I tell them stories about a boy and a falcon, a girl and an elegant wolf pack, about owls, weasels, foxes, prairie dogs, the alpine tundra, the tropical rain forest. And when the telling is done, I hope they will want to protect all the beautiful creatures and places." Jean Craighead George (19192012) was the author of more than 100 beloved books for young people, including the Newbery Awardwinning Julie of the Wolves , the Newbery Honorwinning My Side of the Mountain, On the Far Side of the Mountain, and Frightful's Mountain . She was a lifetime naturalist and a household name. Her website can be found at www.jeancraigheadgeorge.com.