Journey Inward

Rating:
Summary: A story of self-discovery from a wonderful nature writer
Review: Best-loved children's nature writer Jean Craighead George generously lends her most dedicated fans and admirers a look into her personal life in this dramatic autobiography. She covers her life from the shaky beginnings of co-writing with a dominant husband, to the proud winning of the Pulitzer Prize of children's books, the Newbery Medal. Struggling to achieve independence and recognition for her work, Ms. George does a good job of portraying her feelings toward her life as a parent, writer, and naturalist. Throughout her life Ms. George constantly compares herself with the animals she studies and writes about--from the song sparrow couples who befriend her and her husband, to the matriarchal nanny leaders of rocky mountain goats and the magnificent black alpha male wolf of a Mt. McKinley pack. In doing this she forms an increasingly powerful bond with the natural world and her words build more meaning throughout her long career. Ms. George covers the turbulent and problematic events leading up to, and following, her separation from an unsympathetic husband, the joys and troubles of raising three children, and the constant struggle to deal with her femininity in a time when men were often more highly regarded than women. When times are hard--when teenage drug dealers and little money threaten--Ms. George always finds strength in the natural world both inside and outside her home. Her pets, besides the usual dogs and cats, often included a menagerie of wild beasts--raccoons, bats, skunks, crows, owls, and frogs--providing humor and warmth both to Ms. George's life and to the book. Outdoors, Ms. George spent hours observing the characters in her books--the goats of GOING TO THE SUN, the gulls of GULL NUMBER 737. She dreamed of living off the land and surviving among nature like Sam Gribley in MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. There is a long, fascinating lead up to Ms. George's greatest work, JULIE OF THE WOLVES, in which she journeys to the tundra of Arctic Alaska to observe and communicate with wolves and befriend the efficient Eskimo people. JOURNEY INWARD was published in 1982, and since then Ms. George has written dozens more marvelous children's books and continues to write in her home in Chappaqua, New York. This is a fascinating glimpse into the life of our finest children's nature writer, an author of over eighty books, and a spectacular person.

Rating:
Summary: A story of self-discovery from a wonderful nature writer
Review: Best-loved children's nature writer Jean Craighead George generously lends her most dedicated fans and admirers a look into her personal life in this dramatic autobiography. She covers her life from the shaky beginnings of co-writing with a dominant husband, to the proud winning of the Pulitzer Prize of children's books, the Newbery Medal. Struggling to achieve independence and recognition for her work, Ms. George does a good job of portraying her feelings toward her life as a parent, writer, and naturalist. Throughout her life Ms. George constantly compares herself with the animals she studies and writes about--from the song sparrow couples who befriend her and her husband, to the matriarchal nanny leaders of rocky mountain goats and the magnificent black alpha male wolf of a Mt. McKinley pack. In doing this she forms an increasingly powerful bond with the natural world and her words build more meaning throughout her long career. Ms. George covers the turbulent and problematic events leading up to, and following, her separation from an unsympathetic husband, the joys and troubles of raising three children, and the constant struggle to deal with her femininity in a time when men were often more highly regarded than women. When times are hard--when teenage drug dealers and little money threaten--Ms. George always finds strength in the natural world both inside and outside her home. Her pets, besides the usual dogs and cats, often included a menagerie of wild beasts--raccoons, bats, skunks, crows, owls, and frogs--providing humor and warmth both to Ms. George's life and to the book. Outdoors, Ms. George spent hours observing the characters in her books--the goats of GOING TO THE SUN, the gulls of GULL NUMBER 737. She dreamed of living off the land and surviving among nature like Sam Gribley in MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. There is a long, fascinating lead up to Ms. George's greatest work, JULIE OF THE WOLVES, in which she journeys to the tundra of Arctic Alaska to observe and communicate with wolves and befriend the efficient Eskimo people. JOURNEY INWARD was published in 1982, and since then Ms. George has written dozens more marvelous children's books and continues to write in her home in Chappaqua, New York. This is a fascinating glimpse into the life of our finest children's nature writer, an author of over eighty books, and a spectacular person.