The Canadian Children's Book Centre Choice.

During a visit to Vancouver Island to spend the summer with her relatives, eleven-year-old Samantha, trying to get away from her teasing cousins, spends most of her time watching a cougar and her two cubs in the wilderness.

The first book to cover the history and current status of the mysterious big cat Investigates the controversial question of whether wild cougars still inhabit the eastern United States Collects written accounts from the settlers who first encountered the animals and includes contributions from leading figures in the field When European settlers first reached the shores of North America, eastern cougars were plentiful, ranging up and down the coast of the present-day United States. By the beginning of the twentieth century, they had been almost entirely wiped out, victims of the same rapacity and ignorance that decimated wolf and bison numbers elsewhere in the country. Today, the continued existence of wild cougars remains hotly disputed, as do proposals to reintroduce cougars to the East. This groundbreaking anthology brings together accounts of early settlers and explorers, presents pro and con arguments on the wild cougar question, and examines the social and environmental implications of reintroduction. More than just a study of a single animal, this fascinating anthology probes America's troubled history with large predators and makes a vital contribution to the wildlife management debates of today.

Will-a major character in the author's last book, The Bear-is once again presented with serious challenges deep in a Pacific Northwest forest. He has returned to his grandparents' resort, Bridal Veil Falls Lodge, for the summer. He and two cousins take a backpack trip up a dilapidated and highly dangerous mountain trail. The trail takes them to Lake Serene, a small mountain lake and potential state park. They spend a number of days at the lake site. During their stay, they are confronted with a number of challenges: crossing rushing mountain streams, scaling a nearly perpendicular cliff, and encountering a variety of wild animals, including a cougar. The boys learn valuable lessons in woodsmanship, self-reliance, cooperation, and the power of nature. Most importantly, they learn to work together during times of stress and danger.

Utah toponyms, or place names. Where are they? What istheir history? Their importance? Over thousand toponyms are listed alphabetically, marking the passagesof peoples and cultures from earliest times.