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    Our Great Big Backyard
    Our Great Big Backyard
    Our Great Big Backyard
    Audiobook7 minutes

    Our Great Big Backyard

    Written by Laura Bush and Jenna Bush Hager

    Narrated by Jenna Bush Hager

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    #1 New York Times bestseller!

    To help commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the National Park Service, #1 New York Times bestselling authors former First Lady Laura Bush and her daughter Jenna Bush Hager have created an exuberant tribute to our national parks and the importance and fun of connecting with nature.

    Our Great Big Backyard follows Jane, whose plans of spending the summer playing video games with her friends are dashed when her parents announce that her family is going on a road trip to national parks around the country.

    Somewhere between the Everglades and Big Bend National Park, things begin to change. Jane starts paying attention to the magnificent sights and spends less time looking at her screen.

    The stunning views open up her imagination as she and her brother see everything that nature has to offer. And the more Jane discovers, the more she realizes how much there is to love about the outdoors—whether she’s in a national park across the country or right in her own backyard.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateMay 8, 2018
    ISBN9780062842022
    Our Great Big Backyard
    Author

    Laura Bush

    Laura Bush was First Lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009. She founded both the National Book Festival and the Texas Book Festival.

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    Reviews for Our Great Big Backyard

    3.5/5

    15 ratings4 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      This book celebrates the centennial of the National Park Service by telling the story of reluctant tweens whose parents drag them to five different national parks across the country, where they discover an appreciation for the outdoors. The idea is admirable and the range of parks included covers both the obvious (Grand Canyon) and some of the less recognised (Everglades, Big Bend). References to modern technology may seem dated in a few years, but hopefully this is a book that captures the imagination of those at the right age to read it now. My favourite part was the extensive list at the end of parks "in your own backyard" that showcases the many national parks children can visit in their own states and territories.
    • 4/5
      Jane and Sam's summer plans change when their parents inform them they are going on "The Great American Road Trip." Their disappointment extends into their first stop at the Everglades where they would rather be consumed by their misery. Sam begins to warm up, waving to a riverboat captain as they cross the Mississippi River while Jane hides behind her iPad. Finally when their father got Jane to put down her iPad and look through the telescope at Big Bend National Park in Texas, she began to enjoy the trip. From there, they went to the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite. When they got home, the kids even wanted to share their experience with their friends by having a backyard sleepover. I was a little disappointed in the choice of parks. They drove through an area that looked like it might have been Great Smoky Mountains National Park before reaching the Everglades, and it is a shame they didn't use the opportunity to include it. The book encourages kids to explore the outdoors instead of spending all their time behind a screen. The illustrations by Jacqueline Rogers are nice but not Caldecott-worthy.
    • 3/5
      Traveling themed book with a girl who starts off the story stuck on her ipad in rebellion against the family roadtrip because it takes her away from her plans to hangout with friends. She starts becoming involved with all the cool places she gets to see and forgets about her electronics. Great for a program for school age.
    • 3/5
      2016 marks the centennial year of the The National Park Service here in the United States, and in honor of that anniversary, and to draw attention to the many wonderful parks across the country, former First Lady Laura Bush and her daughter Jenna Bush Hager have collaborated with illustrator Jacqueline Rogers to produce this entertaining tale of a young girl who embarks (reluctantly!) on a 'Great American Road Trip' with her family. Initially disappointed that she won't be able to spend the summer online, Jane is eventually won over by the natural beauties the she encounters in various national parks. Her family visit the Florida Everglades, Big Bend, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite. By the end of the trip, Jane has a better appreciation of the natural world around her, and an awareness that she doesn't have to be in front of a screen to have fun.As someone who has a long list of US sites, both natural and historical, that I would like to see some day, I really appreciated the theme of Our Great Big Backyard. I know a number of people who have taken extended cross-country trips, precisely to see more of our vast country, and have often thought I'd like to do the same. There are so many amazing parks out there, waiting to be explored, and this engaging book gets that message across in a fun way. As someone raised without a television until I was an older child, I also appreciated the fact that the story here emphasizes the pleasures of being outdoors, away from computers, tablets and TVs. Of course, not everyone has a backyard, but we all have parks we could visit - which reminds me that I've been meaning to start going up to Fort Tryon Park on my days off, to spend some time reading while enjoying the views of the Hudson below. I know some people who might be put off reading this, because of the identity of the authors, but this really is a book with wide appeal, for people of all political persuasions, so I hope that people will judge it on its own merits. Although not an outstanding title, it is a solidly engaging one, which presents some important ideas. Recommended to young nature and geography lovers, who should be sure to check out the map on the end-papers!