In this fourth volume of the “Secrets of the Forest” series, outdoor educator Mark Warren describes the details of how to make and operate the tools that hurl projectiles toward a target including: · “firing” techniques of a sling, spear, atl-atl, bow and arrow, throwing knife, tomahawk, and blowgun. · a comprehensive lesson in the art of archery that includes the direct, lob, and clout shots, as well as shooting at a moving target. · primitive precision methods of creating your own Cherokee self-bow and rivercane arrows. · cementing projectile skills through a gamut of games and challenges. The second half of the book provides lessons on tandem canoeing, beginning on a lake or pond and evolving to whitewater. The pre-education of paddling starts on a creek with a self-made model boat to understand the dynamics of moving water. On the lake, using a full-sized canoe, paddlers learn how to take control of their craft. Once on current, paddlers are introduced to the never-relenting march of moving water, a phenomenon that must figure into every river maneuver, from planning routes by “reading” the water, eddy turns, lateral ferry maneuvers, peel-outs, hovering in place, and running rapids “dry,” to river-rescue of capsized boats and “swimmers,” and the joy and instruction of slalom. This volume contains more than two hundred original adventures.

Award-winning writer of Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey, winner of the 2020 Will Rogers Medallion Award, a 2019 Spur Award Finalist and an “Editor’s Choice” by The Historical Novel Society In 1941 Jonas Walks-Through-the-Storm, a full-blooded Cherokee horse trainer in rural North Carolina, trains an equestrian unit at Camp Tuckasegee. As he straddles the racist divide while working with white men, a mutual love develops between him and the wife of an officer. In modern-day Chicago, Jonas’s one-quarter-native grandson, Russell, battles racism of another color. As a teacher at a mostly black school, he burns out in work, marriage, and self-esteem by sliding into alcoholic dissolution. Divorce, dismissal, and dejection quickly follow. Trying to exhume his self-respect, Russell attempts to revive his lineage through a self-imposed “trial by fire” alone in a night forest. This ceremony leads to a journey to retrace his grandfather’s story. Due to a past scandal, memories of Jonas have been erased in Russell’s family. Yet Russell’s childhood excursions with his grandfather persist. Wandering across Illinois and Wisconsin he interviews the people who knew Jonas and discovers a chain of sobering tragedies. When the search leads to North Carolina’s mountains, Russell comes full circle to his grandfather’s old homestead and discovers the love and purpose that the old man had bequeathed to him through a kinship with the land . . . and a brotherhood with horses. Praise for Mark Warren “Woven with clarity and colorful prose, Warren leads readers on an odyssey . . .” —True West Magazine on Promised Land “A good book offers the ultimate escape . . . armchair travel to those wild places of the imagination. Warren’s book took me to places I had previously not expected to visit, but I’m really glad I went there. —New Zealand Booklovers on Promised Land "Warren's novel paints a vivid picture . . . and its colorful similes will put a smile on any genre-fiction lover's face." —Booklist on Born to the Badge

Award-winning writer of Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey, winner of the 2020 Will Rogers Medallion Award, a 2019 Spur Award Finalist and an “Editor’s Choice” by The Historical Novel Society Clayton Jane, a war-weary ex-Confederate from Georgia, heads west to Wyoming, where he reconstructs his life as a ranch foreman and right-hand man for an English cattle baron. When the Englishman's sister, a promising Surrey painter, visits along with her husband and young son, the ranch hands soon learn that this reunion is more than a family gathering. The brother-in-law, who provided most of the investment money for the Rolling F Ranch, has come to take over the ownership and management. As the crew ponders its shift of loyalty to such a man, they begin to see signs that he is a wife-beater. When Clayton attempts to interfere in this suppressed spousal abuse, he finds himself in an awkward position with his present employer and future employer. His dedication to protecting this headstrong artistic woman leads to a surprising bond between ranch foreman and celebrated painter, a relationship that totters between mutual respect and romance. With these complications in place, Clayton is treated to a new level of troubles. A Pinkerton detective is sent to Laramie to investigate anonymous threats from a would-be president-assassin. President Grant is due to come into town on a political tour, and Clayton an ex-Southerner finds himself on the Pinkerton's list of suspects. Praise for Mark Warren “Woven with clarity and colorful prose, Warren leads readers on an odyssey . . .” —True West Magazine on Promised Land “A good book offers the ultimate escape . . . armchair travel to those wild places of the imagination. Warren’s book took me to places I had previously not expected to visit, but I’m really glad I went there. —New Zealand Booklovers on Promised Land "Warren's novel paints a vivid picture . . . and its colorful similes will put a smile on any genre-fiction lover's face." —Booklist on Born to the Badge

“Excellence and care guide every quiet step Mark Warren makes; to follow him teaches unique, wonderful truths about one’s connection to the Earth and its inhabitants. “ –Rhyse Bendell, Medicine Bow summer camper and student “Mark leads the modern reader along the almost forgotten paths of wood lore, natural medicine, and self-sufficiency. “ –Emily Ghiz, baker and Montessori teacher In this third volume of the “Secrets of the Forest” series, outdoor educator Mark Warren opens the door to experiences with wildlife such as: · how to stalk animals of the wild without being detected by their keen senses. This discipline addresses posture, clothing, diet, de-scenting, and “soft-walking,” the ultra-slow-motion technique that falls below the radar of wildlife’s peripheral vision. · how to read individual tracks and multiple gaits of specific animal species. · how to convert animal skins into rawhide and leather for crafts and clothing. · how to differentiate species of snakes and, in the process, demystify their often misunderstood intentions. The second half of the book is dedicated to games. Its main purpose is to ensure that young ones (under an adult leader) simply have fun on an outing and will want to return to nature for another adventure. Some of these games come from Native American traditions, but many are new and range from “high-action” to “pensive around the campfire” kinds of activities. This volume contains more than one hundred fifty original adventures.

In the second volume of the Secrets of the Forest series, Mark Warren addresses a wide range of what an outdoorsperson needs to know about fire such as: how to create it from scratch using three different methods (hand drill, bow drill, and fire-saw). which species of trees and dried winter weeds make good candidates for a fire kit. where to find tinder that can combust. how to construct a fail-proof pyre by mixing fast-burning fuel with dense hardwood. how to sustain a fire for the long term, including how to safely store a smoldering fire that can survive for several days. The second half of the book is dedicated to storytelling and ceremony. Its main purpose is how to design stories that augment whatever lessons a teacher has in mind. Such stories can familiarize students with the fine points of archery, canoeing, tracking, stalking, and other crafts or skills. Borrowing from Native American traditions, Warren introduces dozens of ways for young outdoorspeople to build self-esteem and a deep connection with the forest. This volume contains more than 100 original activities.

In this first volume of his Secrets of the Forest series, nature educator Mark Warren explains how to identify and use 100 wild plants as food, medicine, and craft. He also covers “primitive” survival skills, from building a shelter, to purifying water, making tools, traps, and snares. With more than 200 original hands-on activities, the book is a step-by-step guide for teachers, scout leaders, outing clubs, and wilderness programs, and anyone interested in the outdoors and forgotten skills. Hikers who want to carry less gear and become more self-reliant by using what the forest has to offer, will find tricks in these pages to lighten their loads. Outdoor rec professionals will expand their knowledge of their natural surroundings to share with their clients. And parents who seek a closer relationship with nature for themselves and their children will learn to become active, adventurous participants in the forest, rather than just occasional visitors. Volume 2: The Art of Creating Fire and Storytelling and Ceremony Volume 3: Eye to Eye with Animals and at Play in the Wild Volume 4: The Art of Archery and Lake to Whitewater Canoeing

Award-winning writer of Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey, winner of the 2020 Will Rogers Medallion Award, a 2019 Spur Award Finalist and an “Editor’s Choice” by The Historical Novel Society A high school history teacher, Harte Canaday, is going through a divorce in his small mountain town in north Georgia. No longer living at home, he is camping in the wilderness that had been his former riding grounds as a young horseman. Because of his fascination with the Old West and his innate skill with period firearms, Harte stumbles into a shootout with drug traffickers and bests three violent men in a matter of seconds. With his best friend—the sheriff—killed in this affray, the county leaders ask Harte to take over the vacant job. When he pins on the badge, he finds that he was born for the work, but the challenges fall in avalanches as he learns about his county’s entanglement in drug addiction, sexual coercion with minors, and murder. These puzzle parts lead him to investigate people he has known all his life, and the secrets he uncovers take him not only into more violent face-offs but also into an unexpected hard look at what appears to be his own affinity for violence. Praise for Mark Warren “Woven with clarity and colorful prose, Warren leads readers on an odyssey . . .” —True West Magazine on Promised Land “A good book offers the ultimate escape . . . armchair travel to those wild places of the imagination. Warren’s book took me to places I had previously not expected to visit, but I’m really glad I went there. —New Zealand Booklovers on Promised Land "Warren's novel paints a vivid picture . . . and its colorful similes will put a smile on any genre-fiction lover's face." —Booklist on Born to the Badge