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A Rattler's Tale

By Nancy Hicks Marshall
A Rattler's Tale by Nancy Hicks Marshall digital book - Fable

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Publisher Description

With the national forest as a backdrop, one of its important creatures, the Arizona Black Rattlesnake narrates many short stories about the surprising and creative interaction between wild animals who call this place home and humans who are only visitors. This humorous, action-packed, and wonderfully informative, this science and nature book brings adventure to young readers. Captivatingly illustrated by a fisheries biologist, discover what happens when a skunk meets Mom in the shed and when the mountain lion lands on the family car.


A full compilation of detailed animal descriptions, taxonomy charts, suggested resources for further exploration, plus questions and projects to expand the learning makes this book valuable for classroom, library and homeschool. It teaches respect for all life and that all creatures have a place in the tapestry of life. A great stepping off point for discussion about how we treat the world around us.


1 Review

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“I will be honest. I could not bring myself to finish this after the first two stories demonstrate behaviors on the parts of the humans that have a negative impact on wildlife & the habitat (blazing your own trail & leaving food out). I have a bachelor's degree in wildlife biology & I'm a reptile enthusiast, so I was super interested in the concept of this and I'm incredibly disappointed. As a former wildlife educator & a former science teacher, I would never endorse this in a classroom or education environment. 1) the formatting does not follow the proper capitalization conventions for scientific names. Scientific names are made up of two parts - the genus & the specific epithet (sometimes shortened to just species but technically the species name is the combo of the genus & specific epithet). The genus should always be capitalized, the specific epithet should never be capitalized (even when it contains a name/proper noun that would otherwise be capitalized). - this may sound nit picky but considering the book's marketing is targeted at schools, libraries & other wildlife outreach organizations, it's important to get it right. 2) Rattlesnakes are venomous, not poisonous. See point 1 for why this bothers me. 3) the scientific name for the Arizona Black Rattlesnake is misspelled during the intro. 4) as previously mentioned, the first 2 stories exhibit behavior on the part of the humans that have a negative impact on wildlife & these actions (while common) are not examined deeper or revealed to be detrimental & they should be 5) we can absolutely talk about the delicate, almost magical feeling, balance of an ecosystem without talking about intelligent design 6) the vocabulary, narration & tone flops between stories for younger (6-10 year old) children & young teens. It doesn't make it feel cohesive & it feels as though it was written without a true concept for who the ideal audience is. I almost feel as though it would benefit from a complete rewrite while the author keeps their ideal audience in mind. 7) please communicate with an actual wildlife educator or outreach specialist before, during & after writing something like this - again, absolutely love the concept but the execution FLOPPED horribly. As a science enthusiast with young nephews, I was excited to potentially have an age appropriate book that centers a reptile as the narrator & talks about our natural world, but ultimately I'm incredibly disappointed. I feel as though with my background & interests that I am the kind of person that they're attempting to market too - the concept, the name, the art, they all drew me in! - and it completely missed the mark. I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.”

About Nancy Hicks Marshall

Nancy Hicks Marshall grew up near the tidal marshes of southern Long Island, New York. She attended summer camp on a lake in western Maine for several years. When living in New York City, she hiked in New York and New England. She moved to Arizona in 1975 and has frequently visited the National Forests in Yavapai and Coconino Counties. She and her husband and children often visited their cabin in the Prescott National Forest, a location where these stories are based. Ms. Marshall's professional career includes time as a public school teacher (K-12), Project Coordinator of affordable housing, Executive Director of the Arizona Civil Liberties Union, and work as an attorney in the Juvenile Court. She has authored several books including fiction, non-fiction, and embellished fact. She lives in Arizona with her husband and their dog, Chelly

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