Book Description

This stunning nature alphabet book explores the fascinating ecosystem of the Pacific west coast — a magnificent area that combines an ancient rainforest, a rugged beach and a vast, open ocean, and where whales, bears, wolves, eagles and a rich variety of marine species thrive in an interconnected web of life.

Author Deborah Hodge has spent more than forty years on the west coast, frequently visiting the Pacific Rim region, and she knows it intimately. From A to Z she describes in vivid language the rainforest, ocean and beach, and a great variety of animals that a child might see walking along the shore — from tiny sea jellies to inquisitive sandpipers to leaping orcas. Illustrator Karen Reczuch brings her remarkable talent to the book, and has created image after image that is simply breathtaking. The text and art have been carefully checked for scientific accuracy.

Includes a note about the Pacific west coast and suggestions for exploring the region and further reading.

About the Author

Deborah Hodge is an award-winning author of more than twenty-five books for children. Her honors include the Information Book Award of Canada and the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature, and she was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature. Her work has also appeared on ALA’s Top Ten Best Environmental Books for Youth and IBBY’s Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities. Deborah is a former teacher and curriculum writer who lives in Vancouver.Karen Reczuch has illustrated many children's books, including The Auction by Jan Andrews, a Governor General's Award Finalist, Just Like New by Ainslie Manson, which was shortlisted for the IODE (National Chapter) Award, the Mr. Christie's Book Award and which won the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Award, The Story of Life on Earth, which was shortlisted for the Science in Society Children's Book Award and Salmon Creek, winner of the BC Book Prize for illustrated children's literature. She lives in Acton, Ontario.