{"product_id":"9780780722439","title":"The Missing 'Gator of Gumbo Limbo: An Ecological Mystery","description":"  \u003cp\u003eVanished?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLiza Poole lives with her mother in one of the last balanced ecosystems in North America — the Gumbo Limbo Hammock deep within the lush kingdom of the Florida Everglades. Some may think it strange to live outdoors, but Liza feels lucky to live it strange to live outdoors, but Liza feels lucky to live in her small yellow tent amidst tropical birds and exotic plants. And at the center of this natural paradise lies Dajun, the majestic alligator who protects Gumbo Limbo's environment. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThen, one day, a state official arrives with frightening orders. Dajun is scaring people nearby — he must be killed! Liza takes action to save the invaluable 'gator, but suddenly, he is nowhere to be found. Now, she must find Dajun before it's too late, and her search will lead her into the heart of an exciting eco mystery!\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAuthor Biography: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBorn in Washington, D.C. and raised in a family of naturalists, Jean George has centered her life around writing and nature. She attended Pennsylvania State University, graduating with degrees in English and science. In the 1940s she was a member of the White House press corps and a reporter for the \u003ci\u003eWashington Post.\u003c\/i\u003e Ms. George, who has written over 90 books - among them \u003ci\u003eMy Side of the Mountain\u003c\/i\u003e (Dutton), a 1960 Newbery Honor Book, and its sequels \u003ci\u003eOn the Far Side of the Mountain\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFrightful's Mountain\u003c\/i\u003e (both Dutton) - also hikes, canoes, and makes sourdough pancakes. In 1991, Ms. George became the first winner of the School Library Media Section of the New York Library Association's Knickerbocker Award for Juvenile Literature, which was presented to her for the \"consistent superior quality\" of herliterary works.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHer inspiration for the Newbery Medal-winning \u003ci\u003eJulie of the Wolves\u003c\/i\u003e evolved from two specific events during a summer she spent studying wolves and tundra at the Arctic Research Laboratory of Barrow, Alaska: \"One was a small girl walking the vast ad lonesome tundra outside of Barrow; the other was a magnificent alpha male wolf, leader of a pack in Denali National Park ... They haunted me for a year or more, as did the words of one of the scientists at the lab: 'If there ever was any doubt in my mind that a man could live with the wolves, it is gone now. The wolves are truly gentlemen, highly social and affectionate.'\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe mother of three children, Jean George is a grandmother who has joyfully red to her grandchildren since they were born. Over the years Jean George has kept 173 pets, not including dogs and cats, in her home in Chappaqua, New York. \"Most of these wild animals depart in autumn, when the sun changes their behavior and they feel the urge to migrate or go off alone. While they are with us, however, they become characters in my books, articles, and stories.\"  \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harpercollins Childrens Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47025896030448,"sku":"9780780722439","price":16.8,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780780722439","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}