Baby animals in all their glory
Providence photographer Traer Scott has published books on street dogs, shelter dogs, and nocturnal animals. She strives to educate her readers while winning their hearts with her photography. Her new book, “Wild Babies: Photographs of Baby Animals From Giraffes to Hummingbirds’’ (Chronicle), follows this recipe. Portraits of more than 30 animals are accompanied by facts about how the babies develop. Scott emphasizes the crucial role of licensed wildlife rehabilitators in helping injured animals recover. (Yes, she knows that many people say, “Let nature take its course.’’ But often it’s humans who have caused the injury.)
Scott was introduced to the world of wildlife rehabilitators after she found a baby squirrel that looked as if it had fallen from a nest. The tiny creature was cold and wasn’t moving, and there was no mother in sight. Scott took it home to keep it warm and feed it but quickly realized she was out of her league. Searching online, she found the name and number of a licensed wildlife rehabilitator. Before handing the baby squirrel over, she looked inside the box and was happy to see a furry head pop up.
Most of the animals in Scott’s book are 1 to 2 months old. Bunnies and ducklings are common, but fewer have seen baby seagulls or pigeons because they’re kept in the nest and closely guarded by their parents before they are old enough to fly.
Hawley honored
“Fargo’’ creator Noah Hawley’s thriller “Before the Fall’’ (Grand Central) is this year’s winner of the New England Book Award for fiction. Minutes after a private jet departs Martha’s Vineyard, it crashes into the sea. A down-on-his-luck painter and the 4-year-old son of a media mogul are the only survivors.
Sy Montgomery’s “The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration Into the Wonder of Consciousness’’ (Atria) is the nonfiction winner. Montgomery details her interactions with octopuses at the New England Aquarium and beyond.
The children’s winner is Cape Cod author Lauren Wolk’s “Wolf Hollow’’ (Dutton), a story about bullying set in rural Pennsylvania during World War II.
The New England Book Awards honor authors who live in New England and/or books set in New England. Winners are selected by members of the New England Independent Booksellers Association.
Riffraff in Providence
Book industry veteran Tom Roberge and translator Emma Ramadan are planning to open a bookstore/bar called Riffraff in Providence this fall. The bookstore’s specialties will be literary fiction, crime, the social sciences, poetry, art, and graphic novels. Roberge has worked as a book editor and publicist, been a bookseller in New York, and was deputy director at Albertine, a store dedicated to books from 30 French-speaking countries. Ramadan, who studied comparative literature at Brown University, translated the novel “Sphinx’’ (Deep Vellum) by Anna Garréta. The characters in the French novel are not identified by gender. The Riffraff co-owners have raised about 75 percent of the start-up costs and aim to raise $50,000 more through an online community-lending program. Details at www.riffraffpvd.com.
Coming out
■ “The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel’’ by Uri Bar-Joseph. Translated from Hebrew by David Hazony (Harper)
■ “Sweet Tomorrows’’ by Debbie Macomber (Ballantine)
■ “Highway to Hell: Can You Survive the Zombie Apocalypse?’’ by Max Brallier (Gallery)
Pick of the Week
David Lampe-Wilson of Mystery on Main Street in Brattleboro, Vt., recommends “The Second Life of Nick Mason’’ by Steve Hamilton (Putnam): “Serving 25 years in prison, Nick Mason makes a deal for early release, but he soon discovers that all prisons don’t have bars. This is a fast-paced thriller that heralds an intriguing new series.’’
Jan Gardner can be reached at JanLGardner@yahoo.com.
