Weather Books

If you're sniffing around for a wonderful book don't miss this one! It takes place in a mountain town populated by moose in ski caps, bears in aprons, and one special hound dog in a red houndstooth jacket named Carl.

Carl predicts the weather with his amazing nose. Since in Grimsville it's always snowing or raining or "the wind is whipping the clouds into a terrible fury", Carl has an exciting job. That is, until the sun comes out and every day is exactly like the one before it! What could Carl use his nose for now?

Carl's sad eyes pulled at my heart. Carl flopped on the couch, lumberjack-socked-paws over the arm, made me chuckle. I laughed out loud at the picture of Carl's nose picking up a new scent - but I can't tell you what his amazing nose sniffed this time!

Karen Lee Schmidt's unique visual perspectives and rich colors draw the reader in. The expressions on the animals of Grimsville are delightful. (Big Marie, the hippo in pink, looks a lot like my auntie.) I've been a fan of Ms. Schmidt's beautifully illustrated books for years -- but this one is the best!

Even if you don't have children (but especially if you do), go buy this book right away. As a 53 year-old father with grown kids, I must confess that "Carl's Nose" is the one book that I keep by my night-stand, and the book I read every evening to put the day to bed and my mind at rest. Carl rises above adversity to create a new life for himself... he's a true survivor and an inspiration for people of all ages. Ms. Schmidt's illustrations are simply spectacular... her talent as an artist shouts from every page. And she has that rare gift of being able both to illustrate a page and turn a phrase in a marvelous way. Carl's Nose is a beautiful book and a heroic tale. I can't wait for the sequel...

Andrew Demcak makes a great debut with this book. The form of the poems are all the same (2 line stanzas with 6 stanzas) but within each stanza is a smooth lexicon & solid word choice. The poems make you want to read them again as his word choice trips one up & makes one rethink the point he is trying to get across. 5 supernovas.

Catching Tigers in Red Weather
Andrew Demcak's poems make acrobatic leaps and turns that dizzy and delight me, flashing their urban wit, their old-young wisdom, and their exhilarating range of language and feeling. Demcak's ingenious invention is a compact, elegant form, repeated throughout the book as world after surprising world, under intense pressure, flares within it. This is a book of gems. --Joan Larkin, Lamba Award Winning Author of My Body: New and Selected Poems, Cold River, A Long Sound

I read this story to my kids at bedtime. They loved it. They felt like they were right up there with Clarence. There is a very nice comfort between the father and child cloud. My kids also learned a lot about one's obligations and role they fulfill. I hope this author will do an entire series on different subjects that teach as well as entertain.

Clarence is an awesome book for both children and adults. Even though it has been marketed as a children's book most adults I have had read the book have LOVED it and have gone on to read it to their children and/or their grandchildren. The book offers wonderful family values that are not campy. A must read for everyone!!!

As the author of 'Extreme Weather; A Guide and Record Book' I collected as part of my research virtually every book on the climates of individual states ever published. I was surprised that there were none on the state of Alaska, a state with one of the most varied and interesting climates of all.

'The Climate of Alaska' has mercifully and excellently filled this void. The book has comprehensive statistics and information on every aspect of Alaska's weather and climate.

A must buy for any weather aficionado's library!

If you like gardening, you might scratch Barrow off your list of places to live. Alaska's farthest north town experiences about 10 frost-free days each year. Also, you would have trouble watering your plants there, especially in 1934, when an Alaska-record low 1.4 inches of precipitation fell. All year.

In stark contrast, your broccoli would have needed an umbrella in Angoon on an October day in 1982, when 15 inches of rain fell. And you probably needed more than a shovel if you were driving through Thompson Pass at the end of December in 1955, when more than five feet of snow fell in one day.

On the bright side for Barrow, its citizens are gaining 15 minutes of sunlight every day right now, in early February, while Annette in Southeast Alaska gains just four minutes per day. And Barrow is also a great place to fly a kite; the town experiences calm conditions just 1 percent of the time.

I know these things because I own a copy of "The Climate of Alaska," by Martha Shulski and Gerd Wendler, two climatologists who work for the Alaska Climate Research Center. The University of Alaska Press just published their new book, which is packed with cool facts about Alaska for weather nerds like me and anyone else who wants to learn more about this "large peninsula" we call home.

Shulski and Wendler have gathered all the reliable weather records--most of which are younger than a century old in Alaska--and have written about trends and oddities, like the fact that the farthest north tornado swept through the village of Kiana in August, 1976.

The Climate of Alaska exposes the extremes of Alaska, including the facts that it didn't snow or rain in Gulkana for two months straight in 1950, and in 1999 it didn't stop raining for 49 consecutive days in Juneau. Gah.

As the Juneau example illustrates, the book gives you a decent feeling of what it might be like to live in different areas of the state. People in Anchorage, for example, can see 39 miles on an average day. Fairbanks has a daily average of 35 miles visibility, but it might be tough to be a Cessna pilot in St. Paul, where the average visibility is six miles.

The state capitol of bluebird sunny days is Kotzebue, which features an average of 100 days each year with clear skies. If you're into clouds, Cold Bay would be the place, with an average of just 13 clear days each year. That includes an average of zero clear days in June, July, August, and September.

If you get the chills thinking about Cold Bay, Southeast's Annette is the state's warmest town, based on its yearly average of about 46 degrees F (which is due to its stable, maritime climate. If you really want heat, the town with the warmest average high temperature in July is Fairbanks, at 73). The coldest town with long-term weather records is Barrow, with an average yearly temp of 10.4.

We all hear that Alaska's climate is changing, and no one can tally that up with more certainty than a couple climatologists. Shulski and Wendler found that from 1949 to 2005, the state warmed 6.3 degrees in winter, 4 degrees in spring, 2.3 degrees in summer, and just 0.9 degrees in autumn. Every major town and city in Alaska with a dependable weather record for that half century got warmer during every season, except Bethel, Delta, and Fairbanks, which cooled ever so slightly in the fall.

This book is a great reference for an Alaska writer like me, and now sits within reach of my desk. Climatology is a young science in Alaska, and I trust this book.

Colorado is known for its mountains, but it could be easily famous for its high-drama weather. This book explains the relationship between the mountains and weather phenomenon such as Colorado's wild hail storms and its towering thunder clouds. It offers scientific explanations that don't require a science degree to follow, as well as lots of history and great weather stories. It's topped off with truly awesome photography.

It's a great book for anyone whose curiousity about weather extends past tomorrows forcast.

This book is very fascinating and informative.
My boyfriend are relocating to the Denver area, and this book really caught our eye. We found it VERY helpful to know what type of weather to expect in Colorado.
This book has beautiful pictures of the different types of weather which occurs in Colorado: lightning, hail, tornadoes, blizzards, avalanches, floods, and etc...
It even gives historical pictures of extreme weather phenomena which occured in Colorado's past.
The chapters are broken down into these categories:
Chapter 1: Colorado Spring
Chapter 2: Colorado Summer
Chapter 3: Colorado Autumn
Chapter 4: Colorado Winter
Chapter 5: Weather of the Century
Chapter 6: Storm Chasing
Chapter 7: Meteorology or Media-rology?
Chapter 8: Photographing weather
Chapter 9: The Fragile Planet

Every page features spectacular color photos of various weather patterns. In the back of the book are various weather-related websites.
I am originally from Kansas, which is part of "Tornado Alley" - and I amazed that Colorado also has tornadoes--which I never knew- (although they are more likely to occur on the far eastern plains).
I had no idea that the eastern plains of Colorado are also one of the hail capitols of the world.
This book is truly captivating for anyone who is fascinated by weather. I highly recommend it.

I've always been fascinated by weather and its changes. However, having spent my whole life on the West Coast (and almost all of it in California), I can't say I'm that much of a "weather expert." I remember living in San Diego in the late 1970s and having a weatherman describe a passing storm front as a series of "squall lines." I always wondered what exactly that meant. While this book may not define "squall lines" specifically, it does go a long way in explaining our weather. And after reading this book I still may not be a weather expert, but I'm definitely much more knowledgeable about it.

I like the Idiot books because they explain a subject in some depth without going overboard, but at the same time don't "dumb down" to the point of telling cutesy jokes to get a point across. This book is no exception. Taking on weather topics from wind and rain, how violent storms (thunderstorms, tornadoes and hurricanes) develop, how air pollution affects us, "global warming," even how a day to day forecast is put together and how to become a TV weatherman are done in a light but still informative style. There's also some excellent reference material (weather glossary, weather maps, etc.) at the back of the book too.

An excellent introductory book about weather and one that I can refer to time and time again.

This book was very interesting. It is great for people of all ages. It answers any question you ever had about the weather, and you don't even have to be a scientist to understand it! It would make a great gift too!

This is a book I read and return to, its poems like pearls, crafted and luminous. Walton's resonant voice recalls at times August Kleinzahler's, Wallace Stevens', and A.R. Ammons', but is maturely individual as well. Whether he pays homage to Etta James, draws in the natural rhythms of Maine, or evokes characters from a Midwestern night shift, the poet guides his material (and indeed this reader) where it is already inclined to go, namely towards the spirit of survival as it runs a footrace with the ordinary and extraordinary elements of life. Walton delicately but deliberately shapes a kind of comfort out of the discomfort of mortality. To me, it is a book about quiet resilience, and Walton deftly fingers creative production as a means both to make sense of and form that stunning characteristic.

Cricket Weather is a collection of poems and prints of the specific. The poems range in subject from music to nature to the study of the human mind, each full of details that engage the reader. Walton's sense of timing and sound in the lines of his poetry is clever and concise. This is a small book of carefully constructed poems that the reader can enjoy on the first read, or with more study, can understand the layers of their construction. I highly recommend it.

This is one of our favorite books. The drawings are warm and clever. The writing is easy to understand but not condescending to children, and I love that they enjoy learning about nature. We read it over and over.

I especially like this one because it goes through all four seasons of the year. He includes puzzles, hidden pictures, quizzes and activities. His illustrations are beautiful!

I also like his "Guide to Knowing..." series.

And "Drawing from Nature" and "Drawing Life in Motion" (I think that's the title).

Then there is "All about Deer", "Rabbits & Raindrops", etc.. Just click on his name and check out all of his titles (some unfornately have gone out of print). Check your library for those or try to find them used.

Just chalk me up as being a HUGE fan of Mr. Arnosky. Bet you couldn't tell! : )

One would think that after sailing for over 50 years one would have learned almost all sailng tips and techniques.

Sailing With Class presents a few very simple concepts that many sailors tend to ignore or forget.

If you cannot attend Stan Zimmerman's seminars, do yourself a favor and buy the book.

Bob Lucas
S/V Aquitaine
Morgan OI30

Great lecture style easy read. The book is full of simple practical information on cruising with your sailboat. The book is written about cruising the Florida coast but much of the information can be applied to sailing anywhere.

It's too bad the All-Star reader series is no longer being published. This line of books is one the best tools I have found to help my children when they are starting to read. They have interesting story lines, but with enough easy "sight" words to encourage the new reader to keep going. The star stickers they get to put in the front of the book each time they read it, is a great incentive, and gives them a feeling of accomplishment. What a great idea to put the reward chart right in the book! Then in the back every time they know a new word from the story, they can color in an empty star beside the word (every word is there). Can't beat this series for giving a child positive feedback and interesting beginning stories they can read. Good colorful illustrations help to keep their interest in the story too!

I have searched and searched for the just the right books for my kindergartner. This series of books have been perfect. This book has a very good story, which has been hard to find in beginning reader books. It also has a reward for reading the book, evey time you read it you put a gold star (which are provided with the book) on the inside front cover. This has been a great incentive for my son to read the book and read it again. The words are just on the level of a beginning reader but it also has a very good story.