Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

We all know the expression, "When pigs fly," meaning never, but how about when beavers fly? We know beavers don't naturally fly. However back in 1948, 76 of them did fly. Today I get to share a newly released picture book that shares this piece of history. The book is When Beavers Flew by Kristen Tracy and illustrated by Luisa Uribe. It is recommended for ages 4 to 8.

From the Publisher:

This fascinating picture book tells the unique, quirky, and true story of how one man in Idaho saved 76 beavers from destroying a town by parachuting them into uninhabited wetlands.

In 1948, the town of McCall, Idaho was growing rapidly. World War II was over, and the little town tucked away in the mountains began to boom. There was only one problem. As the town expanded, they found beavers everywhere. A beaver here, a beaver there, and it didn’t take long to realize that humans and beavers weren’t great cohabitators. But one clever and resourceful Fish and Game Warden named Elmo Heter had an idea.

Heter knew that the beavers were integral to the wetlands, so keeping the well-being of the beavers in mind he set out to find a way to relocate them. After a few failed attempts, he finally landed on a wild idea… parachutes. Using a surplus of parachutes left over from WWII and creating a special box with air holes designed to pop open when it hit the ground, Heter devised a way to parachute the beavers into Idaho’s backcountry, an area that beavers hadn’t inhabited in decades.

Kirsten Tracy’s fascinating and playful nonfiction text pairs beautifully with Luisa Uribe’s detailed illustrations to bring this compelling true story to life.

From Me:

What an amazing story!! It is a piece of history that most do not know. It tells the story of Elmo Heter and his brilliant idea to relocate the bothersome beavers from McCall, Idaho. Elmo's understanding of the importance of beavers to the world and ecosystems and his idea was so future facing. This book shares the story so well. It allows young readers to understand the problem and Elmo's amazing idea as well as some of the struggles he had in execution of the idea. The words are easy to understand, and the illustrations are accurate.

At the end of the book in the Author's Note we learn about how amazing, and the foresight Elmo's plan was. Not only did he relieve McCall from its beaver overpopulation problem, but he helped balance the ecosystem of the Chamberlain Basin and brought back the wetlands. The ecosystem had become unbalanced due to hunting the beavers to near extinction in the region. So, Elmo not only helped his town, but he also brought back the ecosystem and population of beavers and other animals in the largest unbroken wilderness in the lower forty-eight states. It is part of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Area. I love that there is a book sharing this piece of history with the world. I hope our society can learn from Elmo and help bring back the various ecosystems on Earth that are endangered by humans. What a wonderful book for starting a discussion about our environmental issues as well as ecosystems. I hope you will check it out.

Beaver Craft Round-Up

Now there are a few different beaver craft ideas out there. There are also many groundhog crafts that can be used as beaver crafts. There are some round-ups like this one over at Artsy Craftsy Mom and this one for toddlers at Crafts 4 Toddlers. Here are a few for you!!