New Releases by Douglas Wood

Perhaps you''d like to know a secret, one of the happiest ones of all. You will surely find it for yourself one day. You''ll discover it all on your own, maybe when you least expect it. If you''ve not yet discovered the secret of saying thanks, it''s waiting for you. The secret can be found in the sunrise that offers promises full for the day ahead, or in the gentle shade of a tree sheltering you from the hot rays of the sun, or on the rock that offers rest from a long walk. In the inspirational text that made him a bestselling, internationally acclaimed author, Douglas Wood offers a spiritual homage to nature and the world. Greg Shed''s stunning portraits of the natural world tenderly portray all of the many ways in which we can say thanks for the wonders we sometimes take granted in life.

For best-selling author Douglas Wood, trees have always been teachers and sources of inspiration. They have bared witness to so much and have weathered so many storms. In The Things Trees Know, through insightful text and lovely pen and ink illustrations, Doug presents a whispering grove full of wisdom. His brief meditations portray the parallels between trees'' lives and ours, as well as the knowledge we can gain from them. Walk this wooded trail and find a shaft of sunlight, a ray of hope, a living landmark, and perhaps the answer to a question or two. The Things Trees Know could change your outlook on life.

There are lots of things regular people can do, but grandmas can''t. Grandmas can''t bake your favorite cookies by themselves. And sometimes they can''t laugh without tears coming out of their eyes. Grandmas can''t let you go to bed without reading you a story -- or six. But of all the many things grandmas can''t do, there''s one thing that they can''t do best of all; they can''t possibly love you more than they already do!

Simple text and pictures describe the wonders available through reading.

Although Santa is wonderful, there are quite a few things he can''t do, such as remember a grocery list, wear Bermuda shorts, or enter a house in the usual way.

Publisher Description

This retelling of a Native American folktale presents the Cree legend of a rabbit who wished to go to the moon, the crane who helped him, and the legacy of their journey. Full-color illustrations.

Fawn Island is a place where crows serve as alarm clocks, white-throated sparrows leave the tracks of their songs upon the evening hush, and chickadees help a woodsman learn to whistle. The island is also a jumping-off place for journeys large and small, earthly and spiritual-to nearby Mallard Island, Gull Island, or Bald Rock, by sea kayak into the wild recesses of sprawling Voyageurs National Park, or on a midnight paddle in which the paddler can reach the silent wilderness of the stars themselves. In his latest book, best-selling author Douglas Wood guides the reader on a deep journey into the heart of the North Woods. For Wood, Fawn Island is not merely a charming wilderness hideaway; it is the entry to realms of thought and meaning as well. From its pine-clad shores he probes for insights into the nature of neighborliness and independence, of community and solitude. Out of an ancient Ojibwe legend comes an exploration of personal loss and life after death. Wood questions the notion of being a “force of nature” and the concept of the passage of time in the context of seemingly eternal trees, lakes, rock ledges, and stars. From beneath the ascending trunks of pines comes an inquiry into the principles of optimism and, finally, a personal response to the eternal question: Is the universe a friendly place? Embedded in the text like roots of the island’s pines is Wood’s gentle, self-effacing humor and the author’s own original pen-and-ink drawings that superbly evoke the poetry and mystery of this “small bit of rock and tree,” this “lucky place” in the wilderness.

No wonder they need someone to look after them, I mean, after all, they''re just moms!

Book and cassette.

Because Grandad has explained how all things in the natural world pray and make a gift to the beauty of life, his grandson is comforted when Grandad dies.

The Annenberg Rural Challenge represents a large national effort to transform rural schools and communities. Among its dominant themes are that students should come to know their local communities well, that communities should see schools and students as critical assets, and that communities and schools need to become more integrated. As part of a 4-year longitudinal evaluation, this report focuses on student work in schools receiving Rural Challenge grants and the connection of student work to local communities. The first section conceptualizes a pedagogy of place and examines the range and diversity of student work seen in Rural Challenge sites. This range and diversity is defined around the following characteristics: connection to place; complexity; students'' development of expertise as technologists, as environmental scientists, and as genuine citizens; and importance to the community in terms of response to community needs, development of student leadership, work with enduring qualities, and changes in community expectations of schools. A section on mutuality describes how diverse groups in Rural Challenge communities are coming together around common goals and working to enhance quality of life and a local future for young people. A section on expanding the "work of place," discusses barriers to expanding the role of local context in the curriculum and the ways in which some sites have changed these constraints into opportunities. Appendices include the evaluation plan, methodology, and a list of Rural Challenge sites. (SV)

In this poetic adaptation of a Native American lullaby, a mother sings her little warrior to sleep by describing the natural world around them. The whisper of the night winds, the call of the whippoorwill, and the silken wings of the moths all come together to lull her little one. Full color.

"This is an enjoyably readable and generally illuminating look at the more intimate side of Toraja life and relationships.... [It is] an innovative approach to ethnography, valuable in its attempt to deal with aspects of life that are often passed over in more conventional ethnographic writing." --Journal of Asian Studies.

Hit the road with Voyageur Press. From sea to shining sea, Voyageur has the illustrated travel and regional interest titles your customers want, whether for travel planning or keepsake. So plan ahead and create a travel showcase and promotion--including our books--geared towards the traveler; and you won''t be disappointed with the results.

Contentment and Suffering, a psychocultural ethnography of the Toraja wet-rice farmers of Indonesia, provides a rich portrait of Torajan life and contributes to debates on the relationship between culture and individual psychology. Hollan and Wellenkamp describe the central aspects of Torajan personal experience -emotion, identity, and sense of self- and a variety of fascinating cultural practices, including possession trance, kickfights, elaborate mortuary customs, dream interpretation, and buffalo sacrifice. Presenting exceptionally detailed ethnographic data through a person-centered perspective and extensive use of open-ended interviews, Contentment and Suffering engagingly expresses how the Toraja understand their lives.

A young son teaches his busy father a lesson about spending time together.