One Day on Beetle Rock

Yeah - this did not work for me. The preface burbles over about what wonderful naturalist observations are in the book - but the actual story has some observations and a heck of a lot of anthropomorphism. What they do, cool - why they do it and what they're thinking while they do it is...well, silly. And cutesy, despite several hunts and deaths. It also pretends to be "one day", but misses on some of the interactions - when did the cubs go up the tree, from the bear's point of view? Eh. I'd have enjoyed it more if it were truly about the long observations she clearly did.

Based on several summers' observations of wildlife in Sequoia National Park, One Day on Beetle Rock describes the lives of nine different animals, crossing paths and spanning twenty-four hours on a singular location. Each chapter outlines events of the same day through the experience of a different animal: weasel, Sierra grouse, chickadee, black bear, lizard, coyote, deer mouse, stellar jay and mule deer. Written like a novel and full of detailed information on each species, this is one of my favorite pieces of nature writing. If you've ever wondered what the business of day-to-day life is like for another species, this book is an excellent read. It gives a strong picture of what each creature's sensations, concerns and consciousness show more might be like, without over-anthropomorphizing them.

Dog Ear Diary show less

This is a lovely book, which I really enjoyed. Some folks have a problem with anthropomorphizing but it doesn't bother me. What was really intriguing is that Beetle Rock is in Sequoia National Park, just down the road from me. I'm having daydreams about letting my grandson read this book (it's written for adults, but he reads well above his grade level) and then we could go find Beetle Rock, and sit quietly and see what we can see for ourselves!