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helpfulsnowman's review against another edition
5.0
I've come up with the definitive answer for the question: If you could time travel to any place, any time, where would you go?
I'd go to late 1940's America.
Why?
Well, for one thing, I probably wouldn't die of plague or some shit. But also, it kinda seems like any crackpot idea that a person could come up with was on the table. Want to raise a baby by terrifying it with loud sounds? Seems reasonable. Wanna dose a bunch of people with LSD, just see what happens? No problem.
Want to relocate beavers that are annoying the shit out of everyone in an Idaho settlement by putting them in boxes with parachutes and air-dropping them in a remote area? Why the hell not? Give me ONE good reason why not.
I can't decide which part of this story is more funny to me. First, there's Geronimo, a beaver who went on multiple test drops to make sure the contraption worked, that he'd be safe and able to escape the box after he landed. Apparently, Geronimo would run willingly back into the box, which was interpreted as him not minding the repeated drops. I cannot claim to know much about beaver behavior, but it does pose a great dillemma for PETA and the like: If we discover that beavers enjoy skydiving, should we give them the opportunity? I mean, obviously it's not natural for them to do that, but now that we're presented with the information that beavers may very much enjoy dropping out of planes, so...? I don't even know, man.
The other is that 75 of the 76 beavers dropped made a successful landing. Apparently one beaver was in a box where some strapping got caught up, he crawled out a little early, and plummeted. But hey, 75 out of 76 beavers is a MUCH higher survival rate than I would've expected from an era where it seems like they did A LOT of injecting people with hepatitis because...I don't know, they could? I suppose it's a more humane treatment to drop them from a plane that it would've been to blast em. So that's something.
Was this the first truly environmentalist action? It HAS to be the first one that involved parachuting animals into a better environment. And probably the only one until that Operation Dumbo Drop. By the way, if you roll over to ODD's IMDB page, the first review is from a guy who took part in the real-life version, which I had NO IDEA was even a thing.
I'd go to late 1940's America.
Why?
Well, for one thing, I probably wouldn't die of plague or some shit. But also, it kinda seems like any crackpot idea that a person could come up with was on the table. Want to raise a baby by terrifying it with loud sounds? Seems reasonable. Wanna dose a bunch of people with LSD, just see what happens? No problem.
Want to relocate beavers that are annoying the shit out of everyone in an Idaho settlement by putting them in boxes with parachutes and air-dropping them in a remote area? Why the hell not? Give me ONE good reason why not.
I can't decide which part of this story is more funny to me. First, there's Geronimo, a beaver who went on multiple test drops to make sure the contraption worked, that he'd be safe and able to escape the box after he landed. Apparently, Geronimo would run willingly back into the box, which was interpreted as him not minding the repeated drops. I cannot claim to know much about beaver behavior, but it does pose a great dillemma for PETA and the like: If we discover that beavers enjoy skydiving, should we give them the opportunity? I mean, obviously it's not natural for them to do that, but now that we're presented with the information that beavers may very much enjoy dropping out of planes, so...? I don't even know, man.
The other is that 75 of the 76 beavers dropped made a successful landing. Apparently one beaver was in a box where some strapping got caught up, he crawled out a little early, and plummeted. But hey, 75 out of 76 beavers is a MUCH higher survival rate than I would've expected from an era where it seems like they did A LOT of injecting people with hepatitis because...I don't know, they could? I suppose it's a more humane treatment to drop them from a plane that it would've been to blast em. So that's something.
Was this the first truly environmentalist action? It HAS to be the first one that involved parachuting animals into a better environment. And probably the only one until that Operation Dumbo Drop. By the way, if you roll over to ODD's IMDB page, the first review is from a guy who took part in the real-life version, which I had NO IDEA was even a thing.
wordnerd153's review against another edition
4.0
Skydiving beavers?! So absurd that it must be true! Kids and adults will be fascinated by this story.
erine's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting, but not as much about the beavers themselves. Would do as a fun and humorous introduction to the animals, or as a way to introduce a project on parachutes, gravity, or innovation.
tashrow's review
4.0
When people start to move into McCall, Idaho in the 1940’s, they encroach on the beavers who were already living there. Soon the new human homes and roads are flooded as the beavers build their dams. In this sort of struggle, it is always the humans who win. But a unique conservation effort is undertaken by the Idaho Fish and Game Department to move the beavers to a safer and more sheltered habitat. The problem is how to get the beavers into the pristine wilderness where there are no airports and no roads. Perhaps the solution can come from World War II parachutes and one brave beaver named Geronimo.
Wood takes care with the amount of prose she has on each page, offering just the right amount of detail and action for young readers. Her prose is also playful, as she describes both the beauty of Idaho and the damage that the beavers can do. The tone serves the book well with the whimsical use of parachutes and boxes that can open when they hit the ground. The story is a fascinating one and the book makes sure to explain that this sort of solution would not be done today where it is expected that humans and nature find a way to co-exist.
The illustrations are a mix of workshop images and desks where plans are made and then the Idaho landscape and horizons. The images settle the book deeply into the wilderness and the setting in which the book takes place. There is a sense of isolation and beauty in the images where the beavers land in their new habitat.
Fascinating and fun, this nonfiction picture book tells the story of a unique solution to a wildlife issue. Appropriate for ages 6-9.
Wood takes care with the amount of prose she has on each page, offering just the right amount of detail and action for young readers. Her prose is also playful, as she describes both the beauty of Idaho and the damage that the beavers can do. The tone serves the book well with the whimsical use of parachutes and boxes that can open when they hit the ground. The story is a fascinating one and the book makes sure to explain that this sort of solution would not be done today where it is expected that humans and nature find a way to co-exist.
The illustrations are a mix of workshop images and desks where plans are made and then the Idaho landscape and horizons. The images settle the book deeply into the wilderness and the setting in which the book takes place. There is a sense of isolation and beauty in the images where the beavers land in their new habitat.
Fascinating and fun, this nonfiction picture book tells the story of a unique solution to a wildlife issue. Appropriate for ages 6-9.
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