{"product_id":"the-tragic-tale-of-the-great-auk-9781554988655","title":"The Tragic Tale of the Great Auk","description":"For hundreds of thousands of years Great Auks thrived in the icy seas of the North Atlantic, bobbing on the waves, diving for fish and struggling up onto rocky shores to mate and hatch their fluffy chicks. But by 1844, not a single one of these magnificent birds was alive. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn this stunningly illustrated non-fiction picture book, award-winning author and illustrator Jan Thornhill tells the tragic story of these birds that \"weighed as much as a sack of potatoes and stood as tall as a preteen's waist.\" Their demise came about in part because of their anatomy. They could swim swiftly underwater, but their small wings meant they couldn't fly and their feet were so far back on their bodies, they couldn't walk very well. Still the birds managed to escape their predators much of the time ... until humans became seafarers. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eGreat Auks were pursued first by Vikings, then by Inuit, Beothuk and finally European hunters. Their numbers rapidly dwindled. They became collectors' items -- their skins were stuffed for museums, to be displayed along with their beautiful eggs. (There are some amazing stories about these stuffed auks -- one was stolen from a German museum during WWII by Russian soldiers; another was flown to Iceland and given a red-carpet welcome at the airport.) \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlthough undeniably tragic, the final demise of the Great Auk led to the birth of the conservation movement. Laws were eventually passed to prevent the killing of birds during the nesting season, and similar laws were later extended to other wildlife species.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Groundwood Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/11\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781554988655\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 44\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.10lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 11.00h x 8.80w x 0.60d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/0001\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 08\/15\/2016 pg. 212\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/01\/2016 pg. 41\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/01\/2016 pg. 133\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBulletin of Ctr for Child Bks\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/01\/2016\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2016 pg. 41\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAccelerated Reader Quiz #\/Name: \u003c\/b\u003e183707 \/ Tragic Tale of the Great Auk\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReading Level:\u003c\/b\u003e 6.5 \/ \u003cb\u003eInterest Level:\u003c\/b\u003e Middle Grade \/ \u003cb\u003ePoint Value:\u003c\/b\u003e 1\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Jan Thornhill","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36659615301788,"sku":"9781554988655","price":16.11,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_732fdf04-c6e3-404c-a356-05b325c29020.jpg?v=1603895145","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-tragic-tale-of-the-great-auk-9781554988655","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}