The Lost Forest

by Phyllis Root, Betsy Bowen (Illustrator)

Overview

The story of a forest “lost” by a surveying error—and all the flora and fauna to be found there

A forest, of course, doesn’t need a map to know where to grow. But people need a map to find it. And in 1882 when surveyors set out to map a part of Minnesota, they got confused, or tired and cold (it was November), and somehow mapped a great swath of ancient trees as a lake. For more than seventy-five years, the mistake stayed on the map, and the forest remained safe from logging—no lumber baron expects to find timber in a lake, after all. 

The Lost Forest tells the story of this lucky error and of the 144 acres of old-growth red and white pine it preserved. With gentle humor, Phyllis Root introduces readers to the men at their daunting task, trekking across Minnesota, measuring and marking the vast land into townships and sections and quarters. She takes us deep into a stand of virgin pine, one of the last and largest in the state, where U.S. history and natural history meet. With the help of Betsy Bowen’s finely observed and beautiful illustrations, she shows us all the life that can be found in the Lost Forest.

Accompanying the story is a wealth of information about the Cadastral Survey and about the plants and animals that inhabit forests—making the book a valuable guide for readers who might want to look even deeper into the history of Minnesota, the flora and fauna of old-growth forests, and the apportioning of land in America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780816697960
Publisher:	University of Minnesota Press
Publication date:	04/02/2019
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	1,113,780
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	4 - 9 Years

About the Author

Phyllis Root is the author of more than forty books, including Creak! Said the Bed and Lily and the Pirates, both named in Smithsonian’s 2010 Notable Books for Children; Aunt Nancy and Old Man Trouble, winner of a Minnesota Book Award; Big Momma Makes the World, winner of the Boston Globe Horn Book Award; and, published by Minnesota, Plant a Pocket of Prairie and One North Star, both winners of the John Burroughs Riverby Award, and Searching for Minnesota’s Native Wildflowers. She was awarded a 2006 McKnight Fellowship for Lucia and the Light. She has taught at the Loft and currently teaches in Hamline University’s MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults program.

Betsy Bowen has written and illustrated numerous children’s books, including Helen Hoover’s Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman (Minnesota, 2005) and Phyllis Root’s Big Belching Bog (Minnesota, 2010), Plant a Pocket of Prairie (Minnesota, 2014), and One North Star (Minnesota, 2016). She lives in Grand Marais, Minnesota.

Editorial Reviews

★ 02/20/11

“How do you lose a forest?/ First you need a forest to lose.” So begins Root’s beguiling true-life telling of how 114 acres of northern Minnesota old-growth pine forest was spared the lumberjack’s saw thanks to a surveyor’s error in 1882. Two narratives grow side-by-side: the story of the U.S. taking land from Native peoples to be mapped and measured, and the deeper truth that forests operate on their own timescale. At the intersection of these realities is one mismarked map that meant a lost forest, an ancient world’s survival. Finely wrought plainspoken poetry (“If you have ever walked through the woods/ you know that the land doesn’t care/ about straight lines”) covers a lot of ground, supplemented by end notes explaining the ecology of old-growth forests and the history of surveyors. Bowen’s moody, saturated illustrations of layered landscapes and historical journals add heft to the text’s implicit message that the natural world is something more than a measurable commodity. Ages 4–9. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Bowen’s moody, saturated illustrations of layered landscapes and historical journals add heft to the text’s implicit message that the natural world is something more than a measurable commodity."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"One of the pleasures of reading is finding out about a subject you’ve never heard of. Who knew there are forests in Minnesota untouched by loggers, trees that tower because they were overlooked by surveyors mapping out areas more than 200 years ago? You’ll learn the reasons why when you read “The Lost Forest” by Phyllis Root."—Newsbee

"The Lost Forest written by Phyllis Root and illustrated by Betsy Bowen tells with humor and fascinating descriptions, an important environmental story."—The Pirate Tree

"The powerhouse duo of Betsy Bowen and Phyllis Root team up again, writing about nature and science in a gorgeous and accessible way."—Star Tribune

From the Publisher

05/10/2019

Gr 2–4-Root and Bowen recount how a surveying error that took place in Minnesota in 1882, resulted in 114 acres of undeveloped forest that would become known as "The Lost Forty." The design of the book is tall and narrow, consistently placing short rows of text on the left-handed page, allowing the textured illustrations on the right to showcase the height of the old growth forests with dark, saturated colors. The text briefly mentions that the land being sold to lumber companies by the government had been taken from Native people and goes on to detail the work of the survey crew as well as the wildlife and flora that were able to thrive as lumber companies overlooked the expanse of pine that had been incorrectly mapped as part of a lake. The painterly illustrations capture both the dark and expansive nature of the forest as well as whimsical details depicting songbirds and botanical illustrations. The back matter includes photos of the surveying crew, a list of flora and fauna species found in old growth forests, maps, definitions, and extension activities for children. VERDICT A story of local interest that may supplement collections on naturalism and National Forests.-Kelly Topita, Anne Arundel County Public Library, MD

School Library Journal

2019-02-13

Human error works for the greater good in this engaging true tale of an old-growth forest getting the last laugh.

How do you misplace something that was never truly lost? To answer that question, consider the case of the Lost Forty. In 1785 the Continental Congress declared that the United States be surveyed as it expanded, so in 1882, Josiah R. King and his crew surveyed three townships in Minnesota. Yet it wasn't until 1958 that someone figured out that King had made a mistake. On the maps, King had listed a patch of old-growth forest as part of Coddington Lake. By the time the mistake was detected, loggers had avoided the area and the trees were part of the Chippewa National Forest. (The text falsely implies that this means they are "protected forever," although logging does take place in national forests.) The book takes care to mention that the survey of Minnesota could only occur after "most of the land had been taken from Native people" because "the government of the United States wanted [it]." Bowen's art alternates between thick, deep hues and light, winsome watercolors, but an aesthetically jarring typeface mars the overall design. Additional information about old-growth forests and where to find them, as well as the details of surveying, rounds out the book.

An engaging consideration of happy accidents and lucky environmental mistakes. (Informational picture book. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews