Children’s author Phyllis Root and illustrator and Grand Marais native Betsy Bowen will be signing copies of their new children’s book Big Belching Bog at Northern Lights Books & Gifts on Saturday, Dec. 4, from 1-2 pm.

In Big Belching Bog, Phyllis Root lets us in on the secrets of the mysterious bog, describing such special inhabitants as plants that eat insects, bog lemmings, and frogs that stay frozen through the winter and thaw out in the spring. This book will stir the imagination of young readers and teach them about the landscape and environment of these fascinating places.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR:
Phyllis Root is the author of more than thirty books for children, including If You Want to See a Caribou and Big Momma Makes the World (winner of the Boston Globe Horn Book Award).

Betsy Bowen is a Minnesota woodcut printmaker who illustrated Borealis, Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman, and Antler, Bear, Canoe: A Northwoods Alphabet Year, which she also wrote.

PRAISE FOR BIG BELCHING BOG:
“A beautiful thing. Big Belching Bog is a science book, really, but a science book wrapped in Root’s poetic words and Bowen’s unmistakable illustrations.” –Star Tribune

“Phyllis Root does a bang-up job of conveying pond-loads of information in short stanzas, walking readers comfortably through the flora, fauna, and science of bogs. The illustrations by Betsy Bowen reflect the tone and mystique of these oft-overlooked portions of our north woods. More detailed descriptions of plants, animals and bugs make this a wonderful teaching tool plus give older readers even more to sink their teeth into. . . . A great book to have on a north woods shelf.” –Lake Superior Magazine

“[Root’s] spare and beautiful writing pulls us into this spare and beautiful place we didn’t even know existed. Or if we did, we didn’t know we’d care. . . . Betsy Bowen’s woodcut illustrations are a perfect match for the text. This book reminds us of a magical place we can visit when the weather turns warm again and will be a favorite for the days when we’d like to hike in the quiet bog but can’t get out the door.” –Cedar Rapids Gazette

“Couching the adaptations of plants, insects, and animals that live in the Big Bog in Minnesota as secrets of survival, this oversize picture book becomes a real page-turner. . . . The stunning full-color woodblocks, many full spread, are beautiful enough to frame.” –School Library Journal

For more information, including the table of contents, visit the book’s webpage:
http://www.upress.umn.edu/Books/R/root_belching.html

Northern Lights Books & Gifts
307 Canal Park Drive
Duluth, MN 55802
(218) 722-5267