The Sense of Wonder: A Celebration of Nature for Parents and Children
4.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
First published a half-century ago, Rachel Carson's award-winning The Sense of Wonder remains the classic guide to introducing children to the marvels of nature
In 1955, acclaimed conservationist Rachel Carson—author of Silent Spring—began work on an essay that she would come to consider one of her life’s most important projects. Her grandnephew, Roger Christie, had visited Carson that summer at her cottage in Maine, and together they had wandered the surrounding woods and tide pools. Teaching Roger about the natural wonders around them, Carson began to see them anew herself, and wanted to relate that same magical feeling to others who might hope to introduce a child to the beauty of nature. “If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder,” writes Carson, “he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.”
Now available in paperback, The Sense of Wonder is a timeless volume that will be passed on from generation to generation, as treasured as the memory of an early-morning walk when the song of a whippoorwill was heard as if for the first time. Featuring serene color photographs from renowned photographer Nick Kelsh, “this beautifully illustrated edition makes a fine gift for new and prospective mothers and fathers” (Gregory McNamee), and helps us all to tap into the extraordinary power of the natural world.
Rachel Carson
Rachel Carson (1907-1964) was an American marine biologist, conservationist, and author. After pursuing writing full-time, she was awarded the U.S. National Book Award and helped to inspire a reversal of national pesticide policy, leading to the ban of DTT and other pesticides. She was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Jimmy Carter and is credited with beginning the environmental movement that led to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Read more from Rachel Carson
Silent Spring Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Under the Sea Wind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sea Around Us Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Edge of the Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sense of Wonder: A Celebration of Nature for Parents and Children Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAlways, Rachel: The Letters of Rachel Carson and Dorothy Freeman, 1952–1964 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Sense of Wonder
Related ebooks
Wild Spectacle: Seeking Wonders in a World beyond Humans Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5To Whom the Wilderness Speaks Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Web of Life: Weaving the Values That Sustain Us Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWinter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Heartbeat of Trees: Embracing Our Ancient Bond with Forests and Nature Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Naturalist 25th Anniversary Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sacred Earth: Writers on Nature & Spirit Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Naturalist at Large: The Best Essays of Bernd Heinrich Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My First Summer in the Sierra Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tree: A Life Story Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsYour Guide to Forest Bathing (Expanded Edition): Experience the Healing Power of Nature Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pilgrim at Tinker Creek Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Search of Nature Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dancing with Bees: A Journey Back to Nature Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Being Salmon, Being Human: Encountering the Wild in Us and Us in the Wild Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Aldo Leopold's Odyssey, Tenth Anniversary Edition: Rediscovering the Author of A Sand County Almanac Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summer World: A Season of Bounty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Power of Trees: How Ancient Forests Can Save Us if We Let Them Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCrossing Open Ground Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wildwood: A Journey Through Trees Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Catch a Mole: Wisdom from a Life Lived in Nature Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wilderness Essays Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Taking Root: The Nature Writing of William and Adam Summer of Pomaria Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5One Wild Bird at a Time: Portraits of Individual Lives Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Poetic Species: A Conversation with Edward O. Wilson and Robert Hass Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Talking on the Water: Conversations about Nature and Creativity Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTeaching the Trees: Lessons from the Forest Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Arctic Dreams Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Nature For You
Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Family and Other Animals Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Under the Henfluence: Inside the World of Backyard Chickens and the People Who Love Them Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSAS Survival Handbook, Third Edition: The Ultimate Guide to Surviving Anywhere Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Foraging for Survival: Edible Wild Plants of North America Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEncyclopedia of 5,000 Spells Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5H Is for Hawk Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lucky Dog Lessons: From Renowned Expert Dog Trainer and Host of Lucky Dog: Reunions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Floriography: An Illustrated Guide to the Victorian Language of Flowers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Well-Gardened Mind: The Restorative Power of Nature Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Solace of Open Spaces: Essays Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The God Delusion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hunt for the Skinwalker: Science Confronts the Unexplained at a Remote Ranch in Utah Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Summary of Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Beyond Coffee: A Sustainable Guide to Nootropics, Adaptogens, and Mushrooms Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Edible Wild Plants Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Norwegian Wood: Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Language of Flowers: A Definitive and Illustrated History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On Trails: An Exploration Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Complete Kitchen Garden: An Inspired Collection of Garden Designs & 100 Seasonal Recipes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Forager's Handbook: A Seasonal Guide to Harvesting Wild, Edible & Medicinal Plants Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFantastic Fungi: How Mushrooms Can Heal, Shift Consciousness, and Save the Planet Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for The Sense of Wonder
65 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5In 1956, Rachel Carson published an essay titled "Help Your Child Wonder." More than 50 years later this article is even more timely. Focusing on the important role that adults have in the lives of young children, the book combines the original article with new photographs. Carson relates experiences with her three-year old nephew to illustrate the need to help young people develop a passion for learning through inquiry, senses, and exploration of nature. This is a wonderful companion to Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is written to/about her nephew & the sense of wonder she enjoyed with him exploring nature when he was a child. According to the forward, she intended to expand on it, but I'm glad she didn't. She repeated herself a bit as it was. Excellent advice on introducing a child to nature, though. Something every adult who guides a child should read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This book, or rather the text from Carson within it, is a well organized summary of how to introduce very young people to the natural world so that they will be interested in it. Once interested, they will continue to the nest step, learning the details, mechanisms and species and behaviors of its components, and the interdependency and value of the natural communities to both themselves and to people.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sense of Wonder is an essay by Rachel Carson encouraging adults to help kids maintain their sense of wonder and curiosity about the natural world as they grow into adults. She recounts some adventures she has outdoors exploring with her young nephew, the questions he asks, the things they observe, and the things they try to understand. In the edition I read, the essay was accompanied by photographs (from the 60s) of the natural world.I absolutely loved this book. Carson is an incredible writer and really captures her ideas well. I liked the idea that it isn’t really necessary to teach kids things about nature, what is more important is to encourage curiosity, reverence, and awe, and knowledge will naturally follow. A few quotes I really liked, although I feel like I could practically quote the whole essay:“It is possible to compile extensive lists of creatures seen and identified without ever once having caught a breath-taking glimpse of the wonder of life. If a child asked me a question that suggested even a faint awareness of the mystery behind the arrival of a migrant sandpiper on the beach of an August morning, I would be far more pleased than by the mere fact that he knew it was a sandpiper and not a plover.”“What is the value of preserving and strengthening this sense of awe and wonder, this recognition of something beyond the boundaries of human existence? Is the exploration of the natural world just a pleasant way to pass the golden hours of childhood or is there something deeper? I am sure there is something much deeper, something lasting and significant. Those who dwell, as scientists or laymen, among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life. Whatever the vexations or concerns of their personal lives, their thoughts can find paths that lead to inner contentment and to renewed excitement in living. Those who contemplate the beauty of earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.”