Lost in the Woods: A Photographic Fantasy Book

Carl and Jean's new children's book weaves a delightful tale with a message: most fawns found alone in the woods are rarely lost or abandoned. Newborn fawns spend their first weeks without mom because her scent will attract predators to her babe. She instinctively knows to stay only briefly to nurse and care for her fawn. He will travel with her when he is older and stronger.

Publishers Weekly

The creators of Stranger in the Woods, a bestselling photoessay spotlighting animals in a wintry forest, set this impressive follow-up in springtime. The primary focus is on a newborn fawn, first seen sleeping "in the tall grass on the north edge of the meadow where the trees start the forest." Other animals, photographed in stunning close-ups, wonder if the fawn is lost, but the creature responds, "Mama said to wait, to wait right here.... She will come back." A brilliantly hued cardinal, downy goslings, a well-camouflaged tree frog, a dragonfly perched atop a turtle, a meadowlark and a baby raccoon (hanging precariously by its front paws from a log) are among the crisply photographed critters offering comments and encouragement to the fawn. The doe does indeed return to check on her offspring-and eventually to take him with her. (The back flap copy explains that newborn fawns spend most of the first two weeks of life without their mothers, since her scent will attract predators to her young.) The animals' conversation is often endearing and lends itself to reading aloud-but it is the book's breathtaking photography that will cast a spell, not just on children but wildlife aficionados of any age. Ages 6-10. (June) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.