Spotlight

Usually, I don't pick out books I have not personally read yet, but today I want to highlight a book from Sterling, written and illustrated by an 11-year old conservationist with an inspirational intent and focus.  Other than the synopsis and bio provided by the publisher (below), I don't have any other exposure to this, but I am very intrigued and tracking down this book as soon as possible.  It looks like a great pick for inspiring and enabling young readers.

Olivia's Birds

Saving the Gulf

Olivia Bouler

Publisher: Sterling
Published: April 2011
Age range: from 3 to 9
32 pages
ISBN: 1-4027-8665-4
ISBN13: 9781402786655
$14.95 US
Hardcover with Jacket

One 11 year-old girl can make a difference-as budding ornithologist and artist Olivia Bouler has proven, single-handedly raising over $175,000 for the Gulf oil spill recovery. Devastated by the disaster and eager to do her part, Olivia wrote a letter to Audubon, promising to send every single donor to the cause one of her own bird paintings. The idea took flight, and Olivia proceeded to send out over 500 paintings, many of which are captured in this lavish picture book that recaps her valiant campaign to save birds affected by the spill.

Written in her own words, this unique introduction to backyard and endangered birds features Olivia's hand-drawn illustrations, bird facts, and full-color photos celebrating Olivia's campaign. Olivia's Birds is printed on FSC eco-friendly paper and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Audubon's Gulf Coast clean up efforts.

Olivia Bouler is eleven years old and lives in Long Island with her parents and little brother Jackson. An avid bird lover, aspiring ornithologist, artist, and saxophone player, Olivia spends most vacations visiting her cousins and grandparents in Alabama and Louisiana. She currently spends much of her time working on various recovery efforts and attending speaking engagements across the country on behalf of bird and wildlife advocacy. To date, she has drawn over 100 different species of birds and created over 500 paintings for her Save the Gulf campaign.

“I want to help. I can draw. And I want to really make a difference to help out those birds.”- Olivia Bouler