YA Eco Mysteries, Memoirs, Novels & Travel
Claire Datnow
Travel Inspires Writing
27/08/17 16:32 Filed in: Travel
“Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends.” – Maya Angelou
Writers have felt the creative benefits of travel. Ernest Hemingway, for example, drew inspiration from his time in Spain and France. Aldous Huxley, the author of Brave New World, moved from the U.K. to the U.S. in his 40s. Mark Twain, after sailing around the Mediterranean in 1869, wrote in his travelogue Innocents Abroad that travel is “fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness. Read More...
UAB Scientists Explore Antarctica
03/11/15 11:56 Filed in: Environment
Margaret Amsler Antarctic Researcher
Claire: How fortunate for me to have attended two of your thought-provoking presentations in one week! Thank you for taking the time to share your work with us, Maggie. As the author of an Eco mystery series, I am fascinated by the intricate research you do to solve the Antarctic’s ecological mysteries. It’s my sincere hope that your work will inspire the next generation to follow in your footsteps. What first sparked your interest in Antartica?
Dr. Margaret Amsler at Palmer Station (photo credit: C. Amsler)
With a declared major of marine biology I was assigned an academic advisor who studied both freshwater and marine crustaceans. Research on the latter was conducted in Antarctica. I had to meet with her once a term to review coursework progress. Each meeting she shared enthralling stories about the remarkable organisms of Antarctica and their various adaptations to the frigid south polar waters. My junior year I volunteered in her laboratory on campus and during my senior year was asked to be a participant in her field work in Antarctica after I graduated. Read More...
Claire: How fortunate for me to have attended two of your thought-provoking presentations in one week! Thank you for taking the time to share your work with us, Maggie. As the author of an Eco mystery series, I am fascinated by the intricate research you do to solve the Antarctic’s ecological mysteries. It’s my sincere hope that your work will inspire the next generation to follow in your footsteps. What first sparked your interest in Antartica?
Dr. Margaret Amsler at Palmer Station (photo credit: C. Amsler)
With a declared major of marine biology I was assigned an academic advisor who studied both freshwater and marine crustaceans. Research on the latter was conducted in Antarctica. I had to meet with her once a term to review coursework progress. Each meeting she shared enthralling stories about the remarkable organisms of Antarctica and their various adaptations to the frigid south polar waters. My junior year I volunteered in her laboratory on campus and during my senior year was asked to be a participant in her field work in Antarctica after I graduated. Read More...
Women's Hall of Fame
09/07/15 16:21 Filed in: Historical Novels
Alabama Women's Hall of Fame
Our midsummer jaunt with friends of the Cosmos Club began with a visit to The Alabama Women's Hall of Fame in Marion, Alabama, located on the historic campus of Judson College.
Visit to Judson College, Alabama
As we stepped into the beautifully restored A. Howard Bean Hall, rows of gleaming bronze plaques, honoring Alabama’s most outstanding women, welcomed us in. Pausing before the inscriptions on the plaques, we discovered the significant contributions each one of them have made to our state and nation. Read More...
Our midsummer jaunt with friends of the Cosmos Club began with a visit to The Alabama Women's Hall of Fame in Marion, Alabama, located on the historic campus of Judson College.
Visit to Judson College, Alabama
As we stepped into the beautifully restored A. Howard Bean Hall, rows of gleaming bronze plaques, honoring Alabama’s most outstanding women, welcomed us in. Pausing before the inscriptions on the plaques, we discovered the significant contributions each one of them have made to our state and nation. Read More...
Butterfly Awareness Botanical Gardens
14/06/15 14:43 Filed in: Environment
Butterfly Education and Awareness Day
Kids Enjoyed Coloring the Poster Created by Ellie Usdan
We were delighted to join the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, on a perfect summer day, to celebrate Butterfly Education and Awareness Day, and also to share the newest book in the eco mystery series for middle grades, The Adventures of The Sizzling Six: Monarch Mysteries (book 6 in the series).
Read More...
Peace and War
16/05/15 16:09 Filed in: Historical Novels
The Common Good and Common Destiny
by Carl Schinasi
It is a privilege and pleasure to share Carl Schinasi's talk with you. His thought-provoking speech about how each one us can contribute to making peace in the world is well worth reading.
Imam Um’Rani, congregants, guests, and friends, thank you for inviting me to speak here this evening. I must admit it also comes as a surprise. When Imam asked me to speak, I immediately suggested he contact someone at Temple Emanu-El. I explained to him that someone there could speak more knowledgeably about Judaism. When Imam assured me he wanted me to speak, I was thrilled. I was thrilled because I realized his invitation amounts to a great honor. Here I stand, a Jew from New York speaking in a Mosque at a pre-Ramadan banquet in the Deep South.
Arab Street Mosque, Singapore (Boris Datnow) Read More...
by Carl Schinasi
It is a privilege and pleasure to share Carl Schinasi's talk with you. His thought-provoking speech about how each one us can contribute to making peace in the world is well worth reading.
Imam Um’Rani, congregants, guests, and friends, thank you for inviting me to speak here this evening. I must admit it also comes as a surprise. When Imam asked me to speak, I immediately suggested he contact someone at Temple Emanu-El. I explained to him that someone there could speak more knowledgeably about Judaism. When Imam assured me he wanted me to speak, I was thrilled. I was thrilled because I realized his invitation amounts to a great honor. Here I stand, a Jew from New York speaking in a Mosque at a pre-Ramadan banquet in the Deep South.
Arab Street Mosque, Singapore (Boris Datnow) Read More...
Green Ribbon Schools Award
14/05/15 10:34 Filed in: Environment
Alabama Green Ribbon Schools
On a day filled with sunshine, it was my pleasure and privilege to attend the celebration recognizing the three schools and a university as Alabama Green Ribbon Schools Award Winners for 2015.
Shirley Farrell, State Dept. of Education, with Liz Ellerson of E.A.T. South (Boris Datnow)
Congratulations to the winners:
Auburn University
Bluff Park Elementary School, Hoover City Schools
Lincoln Elementary School, Talladega County Schools
Lincoln High School, Talladega County Schools Read More...
On a day filled with sunshine, it was my pleasure and privilege to attend the celebration recognizing the three schools and a university as Alabama Green Ribbon Schools Award Winners for 2015.
Shirley Farrell, State Dept. of Education, with Liz Ellerson of E.A.T. South (Boris Datnow)
Congratulations to the winners:
Auburn University
Bluff Park Elementary School, Hoover City Schools
Lincoln Elementary School, Talladega County Schools
Lincoln High School, Talladega County Schools Read More...
Environmental Project Based Learning
16/03/15 12:06 Filed in: Environment
How to Launch Environmental Project Based Learning
1. LAUNCH PARTY. To arouse the students’ curiosity, plan the event to be novel and dramatic. Design a presentation that encourages students to generate questions that plunge them into an intriguing ecological mystery that they must solve in order to help save an endangered species. You could invite an author of eco mysteries or non-fiction books with environmental themes. For example, for my school presentation I dress up as Mrs. Margarita Mariposa, a character in The Adventures of The Sizzling Six: Monarch Mysteries (Book Six). I wear a striking mask with flowers and butterflies, and send
paper monarch butterflies into the air.
Read More...
1. LAUNCH PARTY. To arouse the students’ curiosity, plan the event to be novel and dramatic. Design a presentation that encourages students to generate questions that plunge them into an intriguing ecological mystery that they must solve in order to help save an endangered species. You could invite an author of eco mysteries or non-fiction books with environmental themes. For example, for my school presentation I dress up as Mrs. Margarita Mariposa, a character in The Adventures of The Sizzling Six: Monarch Mysteries (Book Six). I wear a striking mask with flowers and butterflies, and send
paper monarch butterflies into the air.
Read More...
