Most readers will find much with which to agree in this carefully selected and handsomely presented 9 2 x 10 1/4" assemblage expressing many values of and dangers to the Earth. The sum of Allen's many parts supplies energy rather than despair. The 92 anthology entries are placed within a highly visual and extremely varied design. The contents have a largely Western perspective, while a majority of the written and visual sources are connected to the United Kingdom. Thirty artists are represented by one or more works accompanying the writings, including Nicola Bayley, Quentin Blake, Reg Cartwright, Michael Foreman, John Lawrence, Flora McDonnell, Clare Melinsky, and Peter Sís. The 44 author biographies will be helpful despite their brevity. The authors represented by short writings include Douglas Adams, David Attenborough, Daisy Bates, John Bierhorst, Joseph Bruchac, Willa Cather, Anton Chekhov, Walter de la Mare, Gerald Durrell, Thomas Hardy, Rudyard Kipling, Aldo Leopold, Konrad Lorenz, John Muir, Alice Nannup, Ovid, Alan Paton, Albert Schweitzer, John Steinbeck, and Leo Tolstoy. The final excerpt attributed to Frances Bacon is illustrated by Bayley's tiny image of a weed growing between a bit of rubble one can see in any part of this planet: Nature is often hidden, sometimes overcome, seldom extinguished. (Age 9 and older)

In this wise and valuable volume, award-winning author Judy Allen gathers the voices of people from many cultures and times who have spoken in defense of the earth, including a Kayapo Indian and an Australian Aboriginal woman. More than 40 poems and stories by such authors as John Steinbeck, Ovid, John Muir, Willa Cather, Anton Chekhov, and Albert Schweitzer form a chorus that will illuminate, inspire, and empower. Full color.