The Boreal Forest: A Year In The World's Largest Land Biome by Lindsey E. Carmichael

The Boreal Forest is a colourful picture book that takes readers through a year in the boreal forest in several countries. 

It begins the journey by setting the stage, explaining how the boreal forest came to be and what parts of the planet it covers. When the glaciers covering North America, Europe and Asia began melting as the climate warmed, the forest began migrating northward. 

The boreal forest became the planet's largest biome, stretching like a band through Canada, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Russia and Alaska. Sixty percent of the boreal forest is found in Russia.

The journey into the boreal forest begins with the winter season in Russia where there are Siberian flying squirrels, deciduous trees and very cold winters. In Finland, readers learn there is a whole world beneath the snow as shrews, the boreal forest's smallest mammals struggle to survive. In Norway, the boreal owls hunt for food while the reindeer shelter in the woods. The Saami, an indigenous people who live in Norway, Sweden, Finland and western Russia use traditional knowledge to help them care for the reindeer they rely on to survive. In Canada, fish are able to survive in the cold boreal lakes while moles hunt for insects along the lake bottom.

From this point on, life in the boreal forest is described in the various countries, as the seasons change from spring, to summer and then fall. In presenting the boreal forest biome in this way, this colourful picture book is able to describe a variety of animals and their habitats, as well as some unusual features of the biome. For example, in Russia, bears experience diarrhea when they switch from a vegetarian diet to the rich diet of fresh salmon. To counter this, bears are able to sniff out clay and eat large quantities of it. 

Carmichael has also incorporated some of the traditional knowledge about the biome that Indigenous Peoples have acquired from living in the boreal forest for thousands of years. For example, the Gwich'in First Nation peoples who live in Alaska, Yukon and the Northwest Territories, use dzeh ant' at which is spruce sap as a natural bandage.

At the back of the book are pages about the carbon and water cycles, a Glossary of terms and a large selection of resources in the Author's Selected Sources that includes articles, websites and books. Accompanying the text are the richly coloured illustrations rendered in mixed media by Montreal artist, Josee Bisaillon. This is a lovely and very interesting picture book that will engage young readers interested in learning more about the boreal forest.

Book Details:

The Boreal Forest: A Year In The World's Largest Biome by Lindsey Carmichael
Toronto: Kids Can Press      2020