In 1995 - 96, gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park. To researchers' surprise, the wolves ended up positively impacting the entire ecosystem and landscape. Informational pages with further historical and scientific information complete this illustrated narrative. In 1995 - 96 twenty-three grey wolves were released in Yellowstone National Park where, due to over-hunting, there had been no wolves at all for almost seventy years. This reintroduction project was an overwhelming success. Over twenty years later we can still see the changes the grey wolves brought to Yellowstone National Park. Now that the elk graze higher ground, seedlings are growing tall, rivers are getting deeper as beavers return, and a lively pond ecosystem is developing. This true story offers an important lesson about the difference one creature can make in creating a healthy, thriving world. Acclaimed environmental author and illustrator Celia Godkin delivers an inspiring, feel-good environmental story that is the perfect follow up to her most recent nonfiction picture book, Skydiver: Saving the Fastest Bird in the World , a Bank Street Best Book that was also shortlisted for several awards. The Wolves Return features Godkin's evocative, full-spread pencil crayon and watercolour illustrations and is further enhanced by extensive information on the Yellowstone Wolf Project, including maps and statistics that will fascinate young animal lovers and inquisitive minds. Praise for The Wolves Return: A New Beginning for Yellowstone National Park 2018 Canadian Children's Literature Roundtables Information Book Award finalist 2017 School Library Journal blogger Betsy Bird's "2017 Science & Nature Books" selection 2017 Canadian Children's Book Centre Best Books for Kids & Teens selection "The clear, matter-of-fact text is a lovely complement to the warm scenes, which include vistas, underwater habitats, and close-ups. Additional information about the history of the park and the importance of the wolves to the ecosystem closes this lovingly illustrated, educational volume."―Booklist "Godkin eloquently examines how the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park led to dramatic changes both in the landscape of the park and in the lives of the creatures that make their home there."―Publishers Weekly "Beautifully illustrated by the author in watercolor and color pencil, each spread brims with the diversity of animals, plants, and insects presently thriving in Yellowstone. Young ones will enjoy the positive takeaway, and the picture book format makes a complex story accessible and usable in a wide range of early education classes. VERDICT Valuable for children for its affirming environmental message and to counteract the 'big bad wolf' image of these necessary predators."―School Library Journal "Beautifully illustrated, this book shows the lingering effects and the impact that animals at the top of the food chain have on the environment."―Book Links "Godkin succinctly outlines the species that have enjoyed success as a result of the return of the wolf to Yellowstone...Young readers will enjoy seeing all the animals and plants that now flourish as a result of one change in an ecosystem. Godkin's illustrations, created with pencil crayon and watercolor, are all two-page spreads and just beautiful."―Ingram Library Services "The illustrations are beautifully rendered, moving and evocative. They increase the emotional impact of the words, showing many creatures against the natural backgrounds of the park.... The Wolves Return is a handsome book with an uplifting environmental message, one that avoids sounding like a textbook....Highly Recommended."―CM Magazine "The illustrations are beautifully done in pencil crayon and watercolour....[Celia Godkin's] telling of this true environmental success story is well told and inspirational. It is important to relay such stories. The end of the book has the fascinating history of the wolf in North America with a map."―Resource Links Magazine "By demonstrating the complexity of seemingly simple problems and apparently simple solutions, this clear explanation of cause and effect relationships will encourage its 6-to-9 year old audience to think critically about humanity's interventions in the environment."―Teaching Librarian Magazine "[A]n engaging, accessible text and expressive mixed-media illustrations."―ILA Literacy Daily, "STEM Stories" " The Wolves Return explains in picture and in narrative how the reintroduction of the wolves, a natural predator of the elk, impacted positively on the whole environment….The mixed media art work in The Wolves Return is especially sensitively done and greatly enhances the exciting environmental health restoration true story."―Midwest Book Review "A beautifully illustrated book about the interconnected web of natural life, The Wolves Return is highly recommended for personal, school, and public library collections."―Midwest Book Review "[A] b