Best Selling Books by Maria Mudd-Ruth

Explains the challenging and dangerous work performed by firefighters, the clothing they wear, and the special gear they use.

"Here''s somebody who is down-to-earth enough to talk to the 99.9 percent of us who walk underneath clouds all the time, but don''t have a clue about how they form, why they assume different shapes and different colors, and what makes them precipitate." -- Kitsap Sun Silver Nautilus Book Award in Science and Cosmology Written by a critically-acclaimed natural-history author Shares author’s fun journey to understanding clouds Written for the curious—but non-science—minded Author Maria Mudd Ruth fell in love with clouds the same way she stumbles into most passions: madly and unexpectedly. A Sideways Look at Clouds is the story of her quite accidental infatuation with and education about the clouds above. When she moved to the soggy Northwest a decade ago, Maria assumed that locals would know everything there was to know about clouds, in the same way they talk about salmon, tides, and the Seahawks. Yet in her first two years of living in Olympia, Washington, she never heard anyone talk about clouds—only the rain. Puzzled by this lack of cloud savvy, she decided to create a 10-question online survey and sent it to everyone she knew. Her sample size of 67 people included men and women, new friends in Olympia, family on the East Coast, outdoorsy and indoorsy types, professional scientists, and liberal arts majors like herself. The results showed that while people knew a little bit about clouds, most were like her—they had a hard time identifying clouds or remembering their names. As adults, they had lost their curiosity and sense of wonder about clouds and were, essentially, not in the habit of looking up. A Sideways Look at Clouds acknowledges the challenges of understanding clouds and so uses a very steep and bumpy learning curve—the author’s—as its plot line. The book is structured around the ten words used in most definitions of a cloud: “a visible mass of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the earth.” A captivating story teller, Maria blends science, wonder, and humor to take the scenic route through the clouds and encourages readers to chart their own rambling, idiosyncratic course. Whether you are outside under the clouds, inside planning your next adventure, or curled up anywhere with a good book, A Sideways Look at Clouds will engage, inform, and inspire.

"This is a treat for bird lovers." -- Publishers Weekly The Bird with Flaming Red Feet is a lively and heartfelt natural history of the Pigeon Guillemot, a charismatic seabird with a surprising story to tell. Found along the coast around the North Pacific and from Alaska to Southern California, this talkative and often-overlooked bird plays an outsized role in the health of marine ecosystem--earning its status as an "indicator species," especially for Washington’s Puget Sound. Author and longtime volunteer surveyor Maria Mudd Ruth weaves together science, field observation, and community storytelling in this engaging exploration of one bird’s life. Drawing from over a decade of beachside study, she dives deep into the guillemot’s behaviors, quirky traits, and ecological relationships. Along the way, readers meet the passionate citizen scientists who have built a unique community around caring for and studying this vibrant bird. Bridging the gap between field guide and memoir, The Bird with Flaming Red Feet invites readers to slow down, look closely, and reconnect with the wild places--and creatures--just outside their door. It’s a joyful call to observation, stewardship, and a deeper understanding of our coastal world.

"A fascinating avian odyssey, recounted with ferocity and grace." -- The Los Angeles Times Part naturalist detective story and part environmental inquiry, Rare Bird: Pursuing the Mystery of the Marbled Murrelet celebrates the fascinating world of an endangered seabird that depends on the contested old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest for its survival. “This chunky little seabird stole my heart.” So confesses Maria Mudd Ruth, a veteran nature writer perfectly happy to be a generalist before getting swept up in the strange story of the marbled murrelet. This curiosity of nature, which flies like a little brown bullet at up to 100 miles an hour and lives most of its life offshore, is seen onland only during breeding season, when each female lays a single egg high on a mossy tree limb in the ancient coastal forest. Ruth traces reports of the bird back to Captain Cook’s ill-fated voyage of discovery on the Pacific Ocean in 1778, and explores the mindset of 19th- and 20th-century naturalists who — despite their best efforts — failed to piece together clues to the whereabouts of the bird’s nest. Ruth ventures to coastal meadows before dawn and onto the ocean at midnight to learn firsthand how scientists observe nature. She interviews all the major players in the drama: timber company executives and fishing fleet operators whose businesses are threatened by conservation measures, as well as the so-called cowboy scientists who are devoted to saving the marbled murrelet from extinction. And, ultimately, Ruth puts her curiosity and passion for this rare bird onto the page for readers to savor.

Describes the course of the largest river in North America, the Mississippi and the connections between the plant and animal species that live in and around it. Explores the delicate balance of life in and around the Mississippi River.

An introduction to an animal that's been with us since the time of the dinosaurs--the snake.

Examines the tides, plants, animals, and ecosystems found along the Pacific coast from the icy waters of Alaska to the tropical waters of Mexico.

Examines the deserts of the Southwest, their ecosystems, and their responses to temperature and weather.

Describes the life cycle of butterflies, and depicts several species.