Midge Raymond 
Chad Hanson’s gorgeous book The Wild Horse Effect: Awe, Well-Being, and the Transformative Power of Nature combines beautiful imagery of the West and wild horses with reflections on mindfulness, nature, and the science of awe. Sociologist and photographer Hanson shows how “the wild horse effect”—witnessing these majestic wild animals in their natural environment—can evoke our …
In Charlotte McConaghy’s lovely new novel, Wild Dark Shore, Dominic Salt and his family—eighteen-year-old Raff, seventeen-year-old Fen, and nine-year-old Orly—moved to Shearwater Island eight years earlier, when Dominic “needed a job, and I needed it to be far away.” While formerly living among researchers, the rising seas have forced the scientists to evacuate, and the …
Christina Lynch’s Pony Confidential is a light, highly readable mystery co-narrated by murder suspect Penny and her childhood pet, Pony, who comes to her rescue despite his lingering resentment that Penny sold him when he was young. When Penny is arrested and extradited for a murder she allegedly committed in New York State when she was twelve …
In his book Why Animals Talk: The New Science of Animal Communication, Arik Kershenbaum notes that animal communication is a young science, and this addition to it, focusing on seven animals, six of them nonhuman, is a fun and fascinating read. In looking at these six nonhuman species, Kershenbaum concludes that nonhuman “animals can talk. Just …
In Fiona Warnick’s novel The Skunks, recent college graduate Isabel moves back to her hometown to housesit, babysit, work at a yoga studio, and try to avoid thinking about boys. She knows she is a bit obsessed; as her longtime friend Ellie tells her, “I can probably name more boys you’ve liked than classes you’ve taken.” …
Float author JoeAnn Hart is one of our most prolific Ashland Creek Press authors. In addition to her pre-Float novel, Addled, she is the author of a memoir and an award-winning collection of short stories, in addition to myriad essays and reviews. We’re so happy to celebrate her new novel, Arroyo Circle, now out from …
While a good many mystery novels have environmental themes, it’s rare to find a book specifically labeled “eco-mystery”—but Jann Eyrich’s new series is just that. The Rotting Whale introduces Hugo Sandoval, a San Francisco building inspector specializing (despite his aquaphobia) in port projects. Though his job in the city has an environmental angle (he hopes to …
Sharon J. Wishnow’s debut novel, The Pelican Tide—set on Grand Isle, Louisiana, in 2010, just before the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill—is both an intense environmental disaster story and a heartwarming story of a family finding their way back to one another after a series of devastating events. Josie Babineaux is a chef, mother, newly …
It was while working on a film script set in the Pacific Northwest that journalist John O’Connor began to see Bigfoot everywhere: “On CBD oil and air fresheners. On car polish and coronavirus masks. On scented candles and Nalgene bottles and maple syrup and vile, undrinkable IPA.” But is Bigfoot an “actual zoological possibility or …
In pollinator ecologist Stephen Buchmann’s What a Bee Knows: Exploring the Thoughts, Memories, and Personalities of Bees, the author makes a compelling case for why we need to pay closer attention to bees (and to protect them), offering stories and anecdotes from research and observation that highlight the fascinating lives of these extraordinary creatures.
We are thrilled to once again offer a live Zoom class for Writing for Animals, beginning March 2! We wanted to share a little bit about what you’ll be learning … as well as share some news and successes of our wonderful Writing for Animals alumni. This four-week class features lectures, discussions, writing prompts, readings, and …
