Salamander Rain: A Lake and Pond Journal 

Take a close look at your local lake, pond or woodland pool. Don't mind the mud - see it from a kid's eye view. Here is the journal and scrapbook of Klint, a young Planet Scout who kept notes for a year on his discoveries and became engrossed by the daily drama of turtles, crayfish dragonflies and water skimmers. After writing and illustrating three best-selling nature books as a teenager, Kristin Joy Pratt-Serafini has now created a model nature journal. Based on her cousin Klint, she portrays an inquisitive boy who keeps a journal/scrapbook as he explores lakes and ponds. The result is both fun and informative. David Sobel, co-director of the Center for Environmental Education, raves about this book as "...“a gift to the place-based education movement in North America. This lusciously illustrated picture book/field guide/treasure hunt is just the invitation teachers, parents and children need to get them exploring the ponds and lakes in their neighborhoods." The journal format creates a text that is easily accessible, but deep in information and intrigue.