The connection people have to nature can be powerful, whether it's a quiet morning spent bird watching with binoculars and camera, or an afternoon of strenuous hiking. Just as strong can be their reactions to books — both fiction and nonfiction.

Staff members from Lake Katherine nature preserve and the Palos Heights Public Library have two upcoming programs that make those connections through a book discussion and a new Nature & Literature Festival.

A nature-themed book discussion of the best-selling memoir “H Is for Hawk” by Helen Macdonald will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday. Lake Katherine operations manager Gareth Blakesley, the library's head of public services Jeannine Kacmarand a math and a science teacher from Sandburg High School will begin with a panel discussion of the book, followed by discussion with audience members.

“(The panel discussion) is a combination of talking about the book and our experience with it,” said Dave Wierzal, a language arts teacher at Sandburg, who is married to Kacmar.

He likes that Macdonald included a number of allusions to “The Once and Future King,” a book that Wierzal has taught his freshman honors students in the past.

“Nature really does touch people in many different ways,” Kacmar said. “It unites people in a way.”

Kacmar will moderate the discussion among people with different backgrounds who share their perspectives on the book.

“H Is for Hawk” chronicles Macdonald's experience adopting and raising a goshawk, a strong predatory bird. At the same time, Macdonald is experiencing grief from the loss of her father, and the book is an example of how people's relationships with an animal or natural landscape can lead to recovery.

This is the third panel discussion on nature-themed books the library and Lake Katherine have presented, and Kacmar and Blakesley hope to do more.

“Our mission is to connect people with nature. The library's mission is to improve literacy. This is a winning combination,” Blakesley said. The discussions have drawn people who are interested in the topic, even if they haven't read the book. Some come to discuss; some just come to listen, Kacmar said.

Lake Katherine's first Nature & Literature Festival is an invitation to further experience nature and literature together. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 29, Lake Katherine visitors will have the chance to celebrate and learn about nature and the written word, as well as create some art of their own. Blakesley said he wanted to take the nature and literature pairing further than the panel discussions.

“Nature is a stress release. Reading about it is, too,” Blakesley said.

The main presenter during the festival is Dennis Downes, an artist who has studied and written a book about Native American trail marker trees. Downes' book, “Native American Trail Marker Trees: Making Paths though the Wilderness,” is based on his research on Native American and Canadian cultures and how they manipulated trees to create trail markers, some of which are still growing in the Chicago area. The book explores cultures, history and nature. During the festival, a Lake Katherine trail marker tree will be planted.

Booths throughout the festival include nature journaling, a “create-a-poem wall,” author and photography exhibits, adult and children's art projects and food vendors. A literary hayride will circle the grounds with stops along the way for readings pertaining to the landscape, Blakesley said.

While some parts may be more adult-oriented, the free festival is for all ages, Blakesley said.

Paige Fumo Fox is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.