Nature's Ambassador: The Legacy of Thornton W. Burgess

by Christie Palmer Lowrance

For over 100 years, the animal books and stories of beloved children’s author Thornton W. Burgess have delighted millions of children and their parents; more than of half his seventy books remain in print today. However, there was much more to Burgess, the man, than just a writer of children’s he was a dedicated naturalist who was honored by prestigious scientific institutions for his advocacy of wildlife and conservation practices that resonate today. His books, syndicated columns, and radio programs both entertained and educated children, introducing them to wildlife habitat, species extinction, and roadside litter. Some books became the basis of Fables of the Green Forest, an internationally popular children’s 1970s television cartoon. Nature’s Ambassador explores Burgess’s life and legacy, from his Cape Cod childhood to the present. With engaging text and historical pictures, this new biography will be a valuable addition to collections of historians, environmentalists, educators, librarians, and parents.

320 pages, Hardcover

First published June 28, 2013

About the author

Christie Palmer Lowrance is the author of Nature’s Ambassador: The Legacy of Thornton Burgess, a literary biography of 20th century children’s writer and naturalist Thornton W. Burgess (Schiffer Publications, 2013).

A freelance writer/editor for over thirty years, Ms. Lowrance has taught writing at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Cape Cod Community College, and the Cape Cod Writers Conference. For 15 years, she worked as a travel writer on Insider's Guide to Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard (Insider’s Guide, Inc.), Fodor’s Cape Cod (Random House), and Cape Cod Travel Guide. Her articles have appeared in Boston Globe, Cape Cod Times, Good Housekeeping, Oceans, Country Journal, Americana, and Cape Cod Life.

Her master’s thesis work, A Study of Issues: Shipwreck Preservation and Management, utilized extensive interviews with Dr. George Bass, “the father of underwater archaeology,” Dr. Robert Ballard, ocean explorer and pioneer in use of deep-sea submersibles, as well as Dr. Barto Arnold, Dr. Kevin Crisman, Warren Reiss, Giovanna Peebles, Art Cohn, Victor Mastone, Brian Skerry and other maritime science, exploration, and historical authorities.

Reviews

[Adelaide Walton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't let the cover of this book fool you; within lies the fascinating biography of Thornton Burgess, arguably the father of the modern conservation movement. While the cover illustration brings to mind Burgess's wonderful Mother West Wind stories I enjoyed in my childhood, this thoroughly researched book delves into the life beyond, to the man well-respected by scientists of the day for his ideas, his actions and his outreach to educate children and the broader community on issues of conservation and the environment. Want to know where the conservation movement in this country began? Read this book; you will be well rewarded.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent insight into Thornton Burgess' life! We read his stories to our kids and through this book I got to see how he created his world. I loved every minute of it and began rereading his stories because of it.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a quibble or two about the way this book is organized, but Lowrance provides a much-needed overview of Thornton W. Burgess’ career. She addresses his work habits, time on the road signing books and making lectures, correspondence with readers, and longstanding collaboration with illustrator Harrison Cady. Importantly, Lowrance also profiles Burgess’ lesser-known work: organizing thousands of acres of wildlife sanctuaries, hosting the Radio Nature League, and filming the world’s last heath hen.

[Loraine Strait · Rating 5 out of 5]

A welcoming breath of fresh air, this book felt like going home. The world that was introduced to me by reading Burgess’ stories (clipped from the newspaper by my grandmother) is reopened here in this marvelous book by author Christie Lowrance who is clearly in touch with Burgess’ sensibilities and intentions. The writing is clear, direct and lively and succeeds in bringing to life her subject (faults and all), the world he lived in, the things he loved – all the furry, feathered, scaly creatures - and those who surrounded him. Burgess’ little known efforts in the field of conservation are fascinating and could prove useful in finding a way forward in the future.

[Carrie Laben · Rating 3 out of 5]

That Burgess should be so forgotten in the land of his birth that an American child would need to discover him through a Canadian rebroadcast of a Japanese television program would have seemed stunning to an observer in, say, 1917, a year when he published a dozen of his acclaimed short children’s books. So it is pleasing to report that a new biography, Nature’s Ambassador: The Legacy of Thornton W. Burgess, is now out from Schiffer Publishing.

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[Joy Kidney · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Not many writers' work survives one hundred years," notes Carol Chittenden.

From Leora's Early Years: Guthrie County Roots: "After Leora put the twins to bed, Doris was next, in a room just off the dining area. Leora left her door ajar so little Doris could hear her mother reading Mother Westwind stories to Delbert and Donald, at the round table with an oil lamp aglow. Doris, in the dark room, could picture each character–Sammy Jay, Jimmy Fox, Jerry Muskrat, and all the many others."

Doris was my mother. What were these stories that she'd remembered from the 1920s? Stories of common animals, revealing their natures with charm and fascination, are the imagination of Thornton W. Burgess. "Nature's Ambassador" is a complete biography and legacy of the man, including several photos, comments by others, notes, a bibliography, and an index. A treasure about an prolific author.

[Scott Osborne · Rating 3 out of 5]

love the topic. book is not terribly well written or organized

[Pat Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Being from Cape Cod I found his life fascinating beyond his children's books that we read to our girls right from he start. I actually got interested more in his life when I visited his childhood home on a home tour of Sandwich where the author of this biography actually signed my book.She now lives in his childhood home. We certainly have much to be thankful for Thornton Burgess!!