Algonquin Souvenir.

Beryl Hamilton is a freelance writer in Thunder Bay who specializes in
home gardening.

Michael Runtz has worked as a professional naturalist in Algonquin Park for many years. He has published eight bestselling books and has received numerous awards for conservation and education efforts, including the prestigious Friends of Algonquin Park Director Award for his commitment to Algonquin Park. He currently teaches at Carleton University in Ottawa.

In his introduction to Algonquin Souvenir, Runtz explains his vivid childhood memory of visiting the park in the fall and seeing the famous fall colours as well some white-tailed deer. The experience stayed with him and shaped his life. In precise and elegant detail, Runtz goes on to share some of the things he loves most about the park, and the images that have stayed with him: a towering bull moose sways its way across a frost-kissed bog, its antlers glowing orange as they greet the rising sun; a family of otters huffs and snorts indignantly at the intrusion of your cedar-and-canvas canoe as it silently rounds the bend of a winding river; a flaming orange-and-red sea of rolling hardwood hills reveals itself as you step out onto a rocky precipice at the end of a forest-trail climb; in the silence of a snow-drenched spruce forest, under a sky so blue that it looks heavy, a flutter of feathers brings a gentle Gray Jay to your outstretched hand; while contemplating a star-dappled night sky your thoughts are stolen by the soul-stirring howls of an Algonquin wolf. In all seasons, in all habitats, and at all times of day, Algonquin breathes memories into your psyche. Convincingly, Runtz contends that the park can provide visitors with a powerful spiritual experience: when you meet Algonquin, you sense a great presence, an aura that touches you with agelessness, permanence, and nature’s wisdom.

            What follows in this 12 by 12, hard-covered book are approximately 100 exquisitely photographed, glossy colour images of Algonquin’s natural scenery. This book should delight anyone familiar with the park and intrigue anyone who has not yet come to know it. Runtz has achieved his goal here of raising awareness of the beauty of Algonquin Park through reproductions of its stunning visual imagery.