- Colorado Off the Beaten Path: Discover Your Fun
- How to Read the Wilderness: An Illustrated Guide to the Natural Wonders of North America
- Wildlife Anatomy: The Curious Lives & Features of Wild Animals Around the World
- The Secret World of Weather: How to Read Signs in Every Cloud, Breeze, Hill, Street, Plant, Animal, and Dewdrop
- Sounds Wild and Broken: Sonic Marvels, Evolution’s Creativity, and the Crisis of Sensory Extinction
- 100 Plants to Feed the Monarch: Create a Healthy Habitat to Sustain North America’s Most Beloved Butterfly
- 437 Edible Wild Plants of the Rocky Mountain West: Berries, Roots, Nuts, Greens, Flowers, and Seeds
By the staff at Covered Treasures
“Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”—Albert Einstein
This is a glorious time to get outside in Colorado. Here’s a sampling of books to learn more about plants, wildlife, and getting outside.
Colorado Off the Beaten Path: Discover Your Fun
By Christine Loomis (Globe Pequot Press) $17.95
This new, updated 13th edition by local author Christine Loomis is an essential source of information about the sights and sites travelers and locals want to see and experience. From the best in local dining to quirky cultural tidbits to hidden attractions, unique finds, and unusual locales, this guide takes the reader down the road less traveled.
How to Read the Wilderness: An Illustrated Guide to the Natural Wonders of North America
By Nature Study Guild (Chronicle) $35
From the mountains to the ocean shores, from the wetlands to the deserts, North America teems with flora and fauna. With this book in hand, you will understand the language of nature and see those wild places with new eyes. For more than 60 years, these Guild guidebooks have helped hikers, campers, foragers, and explorers navigate the great outdoors. Now, the best of the guides’ informative text and iconic illustrations are gathered in one book, the perfect reference for today’s ramblers.
Wildlife Anatomy: The Curious Lives & Features of Wild Animals Around the World
By Julia Rothman (Storey Publishing) $18.99
Bestselling author/illustrator Julia Rothman shares a delightfully illustrated guide to all the beasts of the wild, from lions, tigers, and bears to elephants, giraffes, foxes, owls, and much more. This guide covers all the key features, right down to the anatomy of a lion’s claw and a wild horse’s hoof. All the illustrations are accompanied by labels, intriguing facts, and identifying details, such as: When is a Panther not a panther?
The Secret World of Weather: How to Read Signs in Every Cloud, Breeze, Hill, Street, Plant, Animal, and Dewdrop
By Tristan Gooley (Experiment) $17.95
Learn to “see” the forecast in the hidden weather signs all around you in this eye-opening trove of outdoor clues. Acclaimed natural navigator Tristan Gooley shows us how, by reading nature as he does, you’ll not only detect what the weather is doing (and predict what’s coming), you’ll enter a secret wonderland of sights and sounds you’ve never noticed before. Discover the ways that weather can reveal a hidden world with every step you take—through the woods or down a city street.
Sounds Wild and Broken: Sonic Marvels, Evolution’s Creativity, and the Crisis of Sensory Extinction
By David George Haskell (Penguin) $18
We live on a planet alive with song, music, and speech. David Haskell explores how these wonders came to be. Starting with the origins of animal song and traversing the whole arc of Earth history, Haskell illuminates and celebrates the emergence of the varied sounds of our world. This book is an invitation to listen, wonder, belong, and act.
100 Plants to Feed the Monarch: Create a Healthy Habitat to Sustain North America’s Most Beloved Butterfly
By The Xerces Society (Storey Publishing) $16.95
The plight of the monarch butterfly has captured public attention and sparked widespread interest in helping save their dwindling populations. In this in-depth portrait of the monarch butterfly, detailed instructions on how to design and create monarch-friendly landscapes are enriched by guidance on butterfly behavior and habits. You will find profiles of plant species that provide nourishment, including those that bloom in late season and sustain monarchs on their great migration. Gorgeous photographs of monarchs and plants, plus illustrations, maps, and garden plans, make this a visually engaging guide.
437 Edible Wild Plants of the Rocky Mountain West: Berries, Roots, Nuts, Greens, Flowers, and Seeds
By Caleb Warnock (Familius) $27.99
This thorough field guide documents 437 edible wild plants for Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. Self-sufficiency expert Caleb Warnock brings the ultimate guidebook to living off the land, including a section on poisonous plants to avoid. Packed with over 1,450 photographs and invaluable information on plant identification, flavor, seasonality, history, common synonyms, eating and preparation instructions, and more, you can have accurate information. Be aware: Much false information on wild edibles has been widely distributed on the internet.
Until next month, happy reading.
The staff at Covered Treasures can be reached at books@ocn.me.
Other Book Review articles
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – February is Heart Month (2/4/2026)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Resolve to take care of yourself in 2026 (12/31/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Consider the gift of reading (12/4/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Remembering to be thankful (10/30/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Reading is still fundamental (10/2/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Get lost in a new book (9/3/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Settle in for some Romance (7/31/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Summer fun has begun (7/3/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Let’s get cooking! (6/7/2025)
- Between the Covers at Covered Treasures Bookstore – Celebrating Poetry Month and Earth Day (4/5/2025)