Photos are taken with a Polaroid 300 Classic Instant Camera. Typewriter captions are produced on an Olympia Electronic Compact 2.

Photos are taken with a Polaroid 300 Classic Instant Camera. Typewriter captions are produced on an Olympia Electronic Compact 2.

Dear Readers,

I apologize for my absence. For the last two months Erin and I have been on tour promoting our newest book, Bear Has a Story to Tell. As it turns out, I’m not very good at multi-tasking (Is anyone, really?) so the blog here has suffered a bit. I promise though that all your regular favorites will be back now—Tuesday Bird Watching, Real Polaroid Friday, etc.

For now I would like to share this wonderful essay published recently in The Horn Book Magazine, written by one of the children’s authors I most admire, Charlotte Zolotow.

Just perfect…

http://www.hbook.com/2012/11/creating-books/making-picture-books-the-words/

Red-Capped Blue Loon, North America

This exceedingly rare species was caught on film at Seney National Wildlife Refuge in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, surprisingly far outside of its typical migratory range. The Blue Loon, shy around humans, is often sighted at dawn and at dusk in the lightly wooded areas of Southeast Michigan, walking its dog.