A Weird and Wild Beauty

January 11, 2016
This thorough and insightful history of Yellowstone chronicles an 1871 scientific expedition to—and the eventual creation of—what would become the first U.S. National Park. Peabody, a former ranger who has worked at several national parks, explores how shifting views of nature—and support from the likes of Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and John Muir—contributed to the region’s preservation. Vivid descriptions, numerous sidebars, and color photographs highlight Yellowstone’s dramatic geological features, including hot springs, waterfalls, and canyons; in fact, when explorers wrote about the terrain they encountered, “Yellowstone’s turquoise pools, mud puffs, and jetting geysers” helped earn it the nickname Wonderland, after Lewis Carroll’s recently published book. At its core, Peabody’s narrative explores how wilderness became an integral part of the American identity. Ages 12–up. Agent: Carrie Pestritto, Prospect Agency.

January 15, 2016
If Peabody's impassioned, vividly written chronicle of how Yellowstone became a national park does not make readers want to visit, nothing will. After introducing the Yellowstone area as the homeland and hunting ground of Plains American Indians, Peabody's narrative begins in the summer of 1871, when a team of men led by Ferdinand Hayden set out on the first scientific expedition across the uncharted territory of Yellowstone. The dramatic, picturesque descriptions of the expedition read very much like an adventure story. These scientists and artists explored, sampled, and photographed the extraordinary wonders they found. Their dispatches, describing boiling springs, burping mud pots, pools of molten magma, huge mountains of sulfur, and erupting geysers, confirmed earlier reports of the region's distinctiveness. As proof was offered, would-be entrepreneurs schemed of ways to exploit these natural wonders. Peabody describes how, with the support of such conservationists and naturalists as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Frederick Law Olmstead, and John Muir, the surveyors were able to convince Congress to preserve the land from commercial development and set aside over 2 million acres as a national park. Peabody packs a lot of information into this narrative, somewhat to its detriment. She has a large cast to juggle, and frequent fact boxes on topics ranging from grizzly biology to profiles of specific features break up her account. A lively, richly detailed account of exploration, conservation, and natural history. (photos, maps, endnotes, bibliography) (Nonfiction. 12-18)

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March 1, 2016

Gr 7 Up-Peabody tells the story of one of the first scientific expeditions into the vast Western wilderness surrounding the Yellowstone River. In 1871, Ferdinand Hayden led an expedition of geologists, naturalists, artists, photographers, soldiers, and adventurers into a remote corner of what was then the Montana Territory. The expedition's documentation of the fantastic natural wonders found there ultimately culminated in the passage of the Yellowstone Park Bill, which protected the wilderness from business interests that sought to exploit it and created America's first national park. Peabody does a fine job of conveying the awe-inspiring aspects of Yellowstone without resorting to cliched descriptions, and her explanations of the science behind the wonders of the wilderness are easy to understand without being overly simplistic. Peabody's narrative is thin in regard to her treatment of native peoples in the Yellowstone region. However, since the purpose of her text is to relate the history and legacy of the expedition, her focus on the reports of the expedition members makes narrative sense. The carefully selected and well-organized photographs, maps, and other illustrations draw the eye and keep the copious text from becoming dry or tedious. VERDICT This excellent title is recommended for any collection in need of quality creative nonfiction in the area of natural history.-Kelly Kingrey-Edwards, Blinn Junior College, Brenham, TX

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