The Buffalo Are Back
The Buffalo Are Back
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Perma-Bound from Publisher's Hardcover ©2010--
Publisher's Hardcover ©2010--
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Penguin
Annotation: An illustrated story of the comeback of the buffalo from extinction in the United States, tracing their history in connection with the Plains Indians, cowboys, and Teddy Roosevelt.
Genre: [Biology]
 
Reviews: 7
Catalog Number: #44509
Format: Perma-Bound from Publisher's Hardcover
Special Formats: Inventory Sale Inventory Sale
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright Date: 2010
Edition Date: 2010 Release Date: 05/13/10
Illustrator: Minor, Wendell,
Pages: 1 volume (unpaged)
ISBN: Publisher: 0-525-42215-3 Perma-Bound: 0-605-43782-3
ISBN 13: Publisher: 978-0-525-42215-0 Perma-Bound: 978-0-605-43782-1
Dewey: 599.64
LCCN: 2009024696
Dimensions: 24 x 28 cm.
Language: English
Reviews:
ALA Booklist (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Reminiscent of George and Minor's The Wolves Are Back (2008), this handsome book discusses the history of the buffalo on the American plains. Succinctly and gracefully written, it envisions the centuries when Indians carefully managed the land, using the buffalo for food, shelter, and clothing. In the 1800s, government policies brought about the destruction of the tall-grass prairie, the shooting of the American buffalo, and the end of the Plains Indians' traditional way of life. In the early twentieth century, Teddy Roosevelt facilitated efforts to protect the few remaining buffalo. After the 1930s Dust Bowl, farming methods were changed and, eventually, some prairie lands were replanted with native grasses, enabling the return of many buffalo to prairie preserves. The book concludes with a few of the illustrator's sources as well as a list of places to visit in person or online, but no sources for the text, even for the quote from Chief Sitting Bull. Illustrated with beautiful landscape paintings and striking close-ups of people and animals, this book offers a very effective presentation of the buffalo's story.

Kirkus Reviews

Beginning and ending with the joyous birth of a calf, George describes the eradication of bison from the American plains, subsequent ecosystem damage, return of the species and restoration of the tall grass prairie in this companion to The Wolves Are Back (2008). The author makes the interconnections between the animals and the native prairie grasses clear, emphasizing her point through repetition. Explaining that the eradication of the buffalo was a strategy for wiping out the Plains Indians, George's sympathies are evident. She quotes Sioux Chief Sitting Bull's description of the buffalo's disappearance as "a death-wind for my people" and points out that the dust storms that followed were a death wind for settlers as well. Unfortunately, the book strays into fiction when a young Wichita Indian buffalo-censustaker watches a new calf at the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve, whose herd of only 13 (not 300) bison was reintroduced only in the fall of 2009 and has not yet grown. Minor's expressive and lushly detailed paintings have texture and depth, supporting and enhancing the text. Environmental good news. (sources, websites) (Informational picture book. 5-10)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

From the creators of The Wolves Are Back, this graceful story explores how the American buffalo almost became extinct. Minor%E2%80%99s striking naturalistic paintings of buffalo and a dust bowl landscape mirror George%E2%80%99s sturdy, reflective prose: %E2%80%9CWhen the buffalo lived on the prairie, their sharp hooves helped rain reach down into the earth, and the tough roots of the grass held in the wet.%E2%80%9D Theodore Roosevelt%E2%80%99s establishment of the National Bison Range offers hope for buffalo, and in a moving final spread, a Wichita Indian man counting buffalo for the census welcomes %E2%80%9CAmerica%E2%80%99s two hundred thousand and eighty-first buffalo%E2%80%9D calf. A tribute to an American icon and to the power of preservation. Ages 5%E2%80%938. (May)

School Library Journal (Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Gr 2-5 This picture book is a hybrid of nonfiction and fiction, as George tells the story of how the buffalo made a comeback in the American Midwest after being nearly decimated in the late 1800s. Beginning with the symbiotic relationship that the buffalo had with the American Indians and the land itself, she goes on to explain how westward expansion and poor decision-making on the part of the American government led to the animals&9; near extinction. As a result of those actions, the land became barren and inhospitable to any real crop growth, which contributed to the dust storms of the 1930s. With care and protection by a few key individuals, the native grasses and the buffalo were able to make a renaissance, bringing their numbers back up. Eloquent and affecting, the writing transports readers onto the plains and into the past, making the devastation sobering and real. And when the resurgence of both the buffalo and the land is described, it is with jubilation and relief. Accompanied by beautiful, single- or double-page watercolor illustrations that are rich with detail, the prairie comes to life. Excellent for sharing aloud with a group, this title provides a unique perspective on an integral time in American history. A must-have for most libraries. Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA

Reviewing Agencies: - Find Other Reviewed Titles
ALA Booklist (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)
ILA Teacher's Choice Award
Kirkus Reviews
National Science Teachers Association Outstanding Science Trade
Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)
School Library Journal (Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)
Wilson's Children's Catalog
Bibliography Index/Note: Includes bibliographical references.
Word Count: 1,633
Reading Level: 4.9
Interest Level: K-3
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 4.9 / points: 0.5 / quiz: 136710 / grade: Lower Grades
Reading Counts!: reading level:4.3 / points:2.0 / quiz:Q49477
Lexile: 800L

The buffalo, an American icon once nearly extinct, has made a comeback. This stirring picture book tells the dramatic story, following bison from the Plains Indians to the cowboys, Teddy Roosevelt to the Dust Bowl, and from the brink of extinction to the majestic herds that now roam our national parks. Paired with gorgeous paintings by landscape artist Wendell Minor, Jean Craighead George’s engaging text will inspire a new generation to understand and protect nature’s delicate balance.


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