For each day of the year, witty text and engaging drawings describe familiar wildlife and reveal surprising connections between the natural world and our own human nature. Surprising clues to our own human nature can be found in the natural world all around us, according to author-illustrator Cathie Katz, creator of this unusual and engaging almanac. On each page, Katz interweaves fascinating information about a selected plant or animal, appealing pen-and-ink renderings, and a related quotation. Her quoted sources range from essays on biology to Native American reflections, from the poetry of Emily Dickinson to the novels of Barbara Kingsolver.Through the musings of these various individuals, Katz shows us how an aspect of the featured plant or animal tells us something about human nature - including such aspects as love, sex, appetite, and thought - and about the human condition in general. A visual treat as well as nourishment for the mind, this unique book of meditations is one that readers will turn to day after day, season to season, all year long. On every page there is wit and wisdom - something to reflect upon and much to remember.