Crawdad Creek

There’s always something happening at Crawdad Creek.

That’s what Lizzie and Michael call the stream that runs behind their house. Come pan for gold, hunt for fossils, find an arrowhead in the mud or a crayfish under a stone. Watch whirligig beetles and water striders skate across the water, teasing the fish below, and count the turtles sunning themselves on moss-covered logs. Follow tracks along the bank, then sit in quiet amazement as deer, raccoons, and other animals visit the creek. There’s a wild and beautiful world here waiting to be discovered. Take the time to look!

Scott Russell Sanders is the author of more than two dozen books for children and adults, some drawn from history, some from imagination. As writer, teacher, and public speaker, he seeks to convey his wonder at the vast, marvelous, unending show we call nature, and his curiosity about the two-legged species to which he belongs.

Robert Hynes is an illustrator for the National Park Service and Smithsonian Institution, among others. He has won numerous awards from The Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts, New York Art Directors Club, and Washington Art Directors Club.