Ocean State Libraries

The New York Times–bestselling author of H is for Hawk explores the human relationship to the natural world in this "dazzling" essay collection (Wall Street Journal).
In Vesper Flights, Helen Macdonald brings together a collection of her best loved essays, along with new pieces on topics ranging from nostalgia for a vanishing countryside to the tribulations of farming ostriches to her own private vespers while...

A new building site in Manhattan uncovers thirty-six bodies buried since the late 1800s. The developer and the mayor are trying to overrule any attempts to delay construction on the old crime scene. But FBI agent Aloysius Pendergast notices something important: all the victims were killed by removing their spines. This exactly matches the M.O. of a serial killer the FBI are currently pursuing. What is the connection between the two cases, 130 years...

Follows the activities of two children spending their summer vacation on an island off the coast of Maine. Describes the enchanting beauty of the island in rain, fog, sunshine, and hurricane.

In one of his first books, "The Mountains of California", John Muir, famed naturalist, environmentalist, and author, recounts his travels through the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Yosemite Valley. First published in 1894, "The Mountains of California" is a captivating and vivid portrait of the raw beauty of this spectacular place. He takes the readers on a tour of the wonders that abound, writing "Go where you may within the bounds of California, mountains...

Evolutionary theory in the theme that binds together these essays on such seemingly disparate topics as the feeding habits of flamingos, flowers and snails that change from male to female and sometimes back again, and the extinction from baseball of the .400 hitter.

Explores the murky world of the shark to discover facts and dispel myths about thesee marine creatures.