Nature's Year in the Kawarthas: A Guide to the Unfolding Seasons

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

Structure is the backbone of this detailed text. The concept is to move
month by month through the year, looking at what is happening in each
aspect of nature at that time. While nature is constantly changing,
confusion is reduced as Monkman’s organization of information follows
a pattern of repetition from month to month. The result is that specific
details are easily located and the book scores very high marks as a
usable reference work.

The information is drawn from the Kawarthas but is applicable to all of
central Ontario. For each month there are “what’s happening” notes
on eight categories of the natural environment: birds, mammals, insects,
amphibians and reptiles, plants, fish, weather, and the night sky. These
details elaborate on the “month at a glance” note, which highlights
the observable changes to the seasons and the dominant mood of the
month.

The work makes connections and points out sequences and cycles; it
makes the reader aware of continuity and progression, and alerts the
nature observer to what to anticipate, whether it’s the return of the
spring warblers, the Monarch butterfly migration, or when Pegasus will
dominate the sky. Many extras supplement the core materials; for
example, there’s an excellent chart of the fair, good, or best times
to observe 15 different natural events, including fish spawning,
dragonfly diversity, amphibian chorus, and owl calling.

Exceptional organizational skills and a strong structure spell success
for Monkman’s ambitious undertaking. He gives order to a huge mass of
information, creating a sense of understanding and opening opportunities
for increased appreciation of the world around us.