Books in Families of the World series

Summer on the Steppe: A Family in Mongolia is a nonfiction book describing one day in the life of a family in Mongolia . Through the eyes of the author, we learn of a nomadic way of life for the Sereeteriin children (including two girls and two boys) and their parents, social and cultural customs of the family, and many other aspects of life in Mongolia. The book also includes maps, geographical information, and cultural and social facts. Written for children in grades 4 to 6. Both readers and non-readers of all ages will also find the book interesting and informative.

Room Enough to Share: A Family in Colombia is a nonfiction book describing one day in the life of a family in Neiva, Colombia. Through the eyes of John Walter’s family (including his parents, an older sister, a younger sister, and little boy who came to stay with them) we learn of life in a small city, family relations, cultural customs of the family and many other aspects of life in Colombia. The book also includes maps, geographical information, and cultural and social facts. Written for children in grades 4 to 6. Both readers and non-readers of all ages will also find the book interesting and informative.

Human interest in lizards is not new. These reptiles have been the subject of superstition and speculation for thousands of years, and their remarkably diverse forms, colors, and behavior continue to fascinate us today. We know comparatively little aboutlizards, however, and the data produced by increasing scientific study is often impenetrable or inaccessible to the interested general reader. Written as an introduction to the natural history of lizards, this book helps to answer the many questions thatboth amateur and professional naturalists ask about these animals. The first seven chapters cover the origins, form, function and color, environment, feeding, defense, reproduction, movement, and distribution of lizards -- from tiny tropical geckos to the huge Komodo dragon. The author also discusses lizards in captivity and their relationship to humans and describes the entire range of the lizard families. The book concludes with a chapter on the curious group of burrowing "worm lizards," the amphisbaenians. The highly readable and informative text is beautifully illustrated with line drawings and superb black-and-white color photographs of the spectacularly varied lizard families.