Following the Water

March 30, 2009
In this sensuous nature journal, MacArthur “genius” award winner Carroll (The Year of the Turtle
) follows the inhabitants of his local New Hampshire wetlands through a season of turtle life from March thaw, when the turtles wake from hibernation, to November, when ice puts them back to sleep, along the way celebrating such personal “holy days” as “the Return of the Red-winged Blackbird.” Wearing camouflage and waders, he meets wildlife on its own terms. At the sudden appearance of a red doe, he wonders, “to have those senses—would I trade my thinking, dreaming, imagining mind for them for one full day... would I ever want to come back?” He watches a thirsty turtle hatchling encountering water for the first time: he “extends his neck full length, immerses his head, closes his eyes” and drinks for 21 minutes. Accompanied by Carroll's own exquisite drawings, this poetic recording of his season of loving observation is subdued by Carroll's dread of habitat destruction and nostalgia for a boyhood when “I entered waters that, if not alive themselves, were so filled with light and life that my binding with them was as much metaphysical as physical.”

July 1, 2009
Every spring thaw, Carroll follows a stream to see whats stirring in the New England wetland mosaic he has been exploring for 25 years. A naturalist, writer, artist, and MacArthur fellow, Carroll has a particular passion for turtles, and as he begins his chronicle of a year in the life of this arena for lush biological diversity, his fears about its future are slowly confirmed. While watching for the first turtles to emerge after their long winter sleep, he is devastated to find one maimed old friend after another. What has caused this surge in the predation of otters? As Carroll seeks consolation in thoughts of natures impartiality, his lucid prose flows like water patterned with spangles and shadows, while his exquisite drawings capture the fine textures of this intricate ecosystem. Here are living mats of mayfly larvae, the perfect camouflage of a ribbon snake, and all the beautiful wetland plants. A master of stillness and attention enthralled by the quiet drama of this natural theater, Carroll calls for the preservation of delicately balanced, pristine places, before theyre trampled and lost.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)