5 BOOK PICKS

The weather is finally cooling off enough to get outside and enjoy the beauty fall has to offer. Pelham Library Director Mary Campbell recommends these five great outdoor adventure stories that will get you excited about nature, conservation and exploration. If you love hiking, camping and other outdoor pursuits, or just love a good story, these books are for you. All can be checked out at the Pelham Public Library with a Shelby County Library card.

Untamed 
by Will Harlan | Adult Nonfiction

This is the story of Carol Ruckdeschel, “the wildest woman in America and the fight for Cumberland Island.” Carol moved to the Georgia barrier island as a young woman, where she fell in love with the wildlife and the wilderness. She has spent her life studying the sea turtles, alligators and birds that make their home there. She has fought the Carnegie family that owns much of the island as well as the National Park Service to ensure that the island be designated wilderness, and is still fighting now in her old age. This is a fascinating look at an amazing woman and what can be accomplished through grit, determination and passion.

Mother of God 
by Paul Rosolie | Adult Nonfiction

This is “an extraordinary journey into the uncharted tributaries of the Western Amazon.”  This is Rosolie’s story of how he went from a problematic high school student to a dedicated environmentalist through his adventures in the Amazon. The Madre de Dios region of Peru is the most bio-diverse area of the planet. There, Rosolie goes on a solo adventure to find never-before-seen floating forests and the largest snakes ever recorded.  Follow Rosolie on Facebook to see some of his amazing photos.

Grandma Gatewood’s Walk 
by Ben Montgomery | Adult Nonfiction

In 1955, 67-year-old Emma Gatewood walked the Appalachian Trail. Most modern through hikers carry hundreds of dollars in state-of-the-art gear, but Mrs. Gatewood walked the 2,050-mile trail in Keds sneakers and carrying a shower curtain and a little food. The AT was not the well-maintained trail we know today either. She complained in interviews about how terrible certain parts were. The publicity she brought to the trail in no small part helped save it. This is a quick read about a tough-as-nails grandma sure to inspire dreams of hiking the AT in any who read it.

Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage 
by Alfred Lansing | Adult Nonfiction

Probably the greatest expedition story ever put to paper, Shackleton’s failed attempt to cross Antarctica will make you wish you had lived during the age of exploration. Lansing does an excellent job of allowing the reader to live amongst the men of the expedition, and experience their fear, courage and perseverance.

Soul of an Octopus 
by Sy Montgomery | Adult Nonfiction

This is not a typical adventure story. Rather than exploring a wild part of the world, Sy Montgomery takes the reader on an exploration into the consciousness of octopuses. These fascinating deep water creatures are capable of advanced problem solving, incredible camouflaging and appear capable of recognizing (and sometimes disliking) individual people. If dogs have individual personalities, well, maybe octopuses do too.