Earth Day

Every April, we honor our planet on Earth Day with a selection of works celebrating the natural world. With titles ranging from stories of wilderness survival to nonfiction works about conservation and sustainability, this Collection features a broad spectrum of ideas regarding nature and our role within it.

Publication year 1972

Genre Essay Collection, Nonfiction

Themes Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Society: Community, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Philosophy, Psychology, Anthropology, Science / Nature


Publication year 2023

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Regret, Identity: Gender, Identity: Mental Health, Life/Time: Midlife, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Mothers, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality

Tags Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 1923

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Beauty, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Environment

Tags Lyric Poem, Science / Nature

“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” is a short, structured poem written in 1922 by the American poet Robert Frost, one of the foremost poets of the 20th century. The poem was originally published in 1923 in the magazine New Republic, and then in Frost’s poetry collection New Hampshire. The poem explores themes of nature, beauty, duty, life, and death, and is written using simple and accessible language that has made it beloved by... Read Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening Summary


Publication year 1923

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Climate, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Natural World: Environment

Tags Science / Nature, Harlem Renaissance


Publication year 2010

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Relationships: Family, Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Fate, Relationships: Teams

Tags Action / Adventure, Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction, Natural Disaster

In Roland Smith’s 2011 adventure novel, Storm Runners, three middle-grade students struggle to survive and find shelter during a hurricane after their school bus crashes. While a team of rescuers drives toward the disaster in search of the missing kids, the three students use all their skills and brainpower simply to stay alive.Award-winning author Smith spent decades working as a zookeeper and world-traveling animal rescuer. He has turned his experiences into award-winning novels and non-fiction... Read Storm Runners Summary


Publication year 2007

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family

Tags Science / Nature, Southern Literature, History: World, Historical Fiction

American writer and essayist Ann Pancake’s debut novel Strange as This Weather Has Been is a work of fiction that blends elements of Pancake’s own upbringing in Appalachia to tell the tale of a present-day coal mining family. Published in 2007, this is a character-driven novel with a ticking clock. Set amid the turmoil of West Virginia, Pancake’s characters are thrust into one of the most dangerous regions of the country, where strip mining has... Read Strange as this Weather Has Been Summary


Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Place, Society: Class, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Society: Nation, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Equality

Tags Sociology, Politics / Government, History: U.S., American Literature, Social Science, Business / Economics, History: World, Social Justice

Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right (2016) is an in-depth exploration of the rise of the Tea Party movement in Louisiana by sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild. In an effort to understand the Tea Party and bolster her empathy for political opinions oppositional to her own, Hochschild spent five years getting to know residents and conducting interviews in and around Lake Charles, Louisiana. Hochschild argues that by understanding one another’s... Read Strangers in Their Own Land Summary


Publication year 1945

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Identity: Gender

Tags Historical Fiction, Agriculture, Children's Literature, Education, Education, History: World, Classic Fiction


Publication year 1905

Genre Short Story, Fiction

Themes Identity: Gender, Identity: Femininity, Society: Education, Natural World: Environment

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Gender / Feminism, Indian Literature, Asian Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction

The author of “Sultana’s Dream” is Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, popularly known as Begum Rokeya (“Begum” is the Urdu equivalent of Mrs.). The story is a science fiction social satire that features a feminist utopia called Ladyland. As the title suggests, the narrative takes the form of a dream that the narrator experiences. The narrator is a woman called Sultana (the Arabic title for an empress or the wife of a sultan). The story was originally... Read Sultana's Dream Summary


Publication year 2024

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Place, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed

Tags Romance, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Modern Classic Fiction


Publication year 2009

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Society: Economics, Society: Politics & Government, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Environment, Society: Globalization, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Psychology, Sociology, Finance / Money / Wealth


Publication year 1930

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Identity: Gender, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Environment, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Siblings, Relationships: Teams, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger


Publication year 2011

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Environment

Tags Magical Realism, Fantasy, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Southern Gothic, Modern Classic Fiction

Swamplandia! is a 2011 novel by the American author Karen Russell. It is an adaptation of her short story “Ava Wrestles the Alligator,” first published in the Summer 2006 issue of the literary magazine Zoetrope: All-Story and later collected in her 2006 book of short stories, St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves. It was longlisted for the Orange Prize and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.A Miami native, Russell uses magical realism... Read Swamplandia Summary


Publication year 1891

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Identity: Sexuality, Identity: Gender, Society: Class, Society: Community, Natural World: Environment, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride

Tags Romance, Victorian Period, Classic Fiction, Historical Fiction, British Literature, History: World, Victorian Literature / Period

Tess of the D’Urbervilles is Victorian writer Thomas Hardy’s 12th novel. It was first published in 1891 as a serial in the newspaper The Graphic; this serialized publication was followed by a three-volume edition in 1891 and a single volume in 1892. Like many of Hardy’s other realist novels, Tess is set in the fictional, southwestern English region of Wessex, using fictional locations closely modelled after real ones. Hardy’s sympathetic portrayal of a young woman... Read Tess of the D'Urbervilles Summary


Publication year 1817

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Place, Values/Ideas: Fate, Society: Community, Natural World: Environment

Tags Lyric Poem, Science / Nature, Grief / Death, Romanticism / Romantic Period, Education, Education, American Literature, History: World, Classic Fiction


Publication year 2022

Genre Graphic Novel/Book, Fiction

Themes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Environment

Tags Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Children's Literature, Animals


Publication year 1957

Genre Poem, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Environment

Tags Grief / Death


Publication year 2014

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Fate, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Natural World: Climate

Tags Fantasy, Modern Classic Fiction, Canadian Literature

The Back of the Turtle (2014) is a bestselling novel by Canadian American author Thomas King. King is of Cherokee Greek descent and has garnered acclaim for his novels about Indigenous Canadian experiences, including The Inconvenient Indian and Green Grass Running Water. The Back of the Turtle won King the Governor General’s literary award.The narrative follows Gabriel Quinn, a member of the First Nations community of Lethbridge, Alberta, as he returns to his family’s home... Read The Back of the Turtle Summary


Publication year 2024

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Values/Ideas: Art, Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Literature, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Memoir / Autobiography, Creative Nonfiction, Science / Nature, Animals


Publication year 2004

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Natural World: Environment, Society: Class, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology

Tags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Romance, Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Mystery / Crime Fiction, Futurism