Earl Vincent de Berge's children's book 'Big Ears Jack and Friends' has received a 5-star review from Readers Favorite, with reviewer Essien Asian noting the work presents educational information while stimulating young readers' imaginations through character dialogue. The book, which features a huge magician jackrabbit named Big Ears Jack alongside other animals, birds and plants of the Sonoran Desert and its coastal regions, strategically mixes pictures, engaging narrative and thought-provoking subplots to teach lessons in diplomacy and survival.
De Berge's adventures in Baja California deepened his fascination with the Sonoran Desert and inspired this collection of stories. The book has achieved best-seller rating on Amazon, where it is available in both print and e-book formats at https://www.amazon.com/stores/Earl-Vincent-de-Berge/author/B09R6M1G4Y?. Amazon reviewer Mark Winheld highlighted enticing chapter titles including 'Sheriff Diamondback and the Egg-Thieving Coyotes,' 'Dianna the Musical Tarantula,' and 'Lady Treble Clef and Dust Devils Rescue a Javelina Family.'
An AWA reviewer praised the book's world-building, noting de Berge weaves Baja California's flora and fauna into the narrative so effectively that the setting feels like a character itself. The stories feature talking cacti, dust devils playing tag, and wise desert tortoises, creating an ecosystem where reality and fantasy blur. Throughout the collection, themes of community, creativity, and environmental respect provide magical adventures for young readers while conveying underlying messages about cooperation, individuality, and harmony with nature that adults can appreciate.
De Berge is also the author of the travel memoir 'A Finger Of Land On An Old Man's Hand,' which documents transformative journeys through Baja California in 1962 and 1964. ReaderViews gave this memoir a 5-star review, calling it 'the stark, witty, and profound memoir of four college students testing their limits on the Baja Peninsula.' The author has published three poetry collections—'Allegro to Life,' 'Swans to Carry Me,' and 'Wind in the Elephant Tree'—that explore nature, human nature, love, desert silence, and life in Guatemala.
All of de Berge's books are available at Amazon and other online retailers, with additional information including excerpts and historical photos available on his website at https://www.earldeberge.com. The success of 'Big Ears Jack and Friends' demonstrates how children's literature can effectively combine entertainment with environmental education, using imaginative storytelling to foster appreciation for delicate ecosystems like the Sonoran Desert.
