Surtsey: The Newest Place on Earth

Kathryn Lasky

Oct 2012 · StarWalk Kids Media

About this ebook

Early on a November morning in 1963, off the coast of Iceland, a volcanic eruption was taking place deep under the ocean. On the surface, the crew of a nearby fishing boat were noticing some strange things: a sulfurous aroma in the air and the ocean swirling around the boat. Then, just before dawn, the volcanic eruption that had been increasing in intensity under the sea broke the surface and spewed lava miles in the air, just four miles from their fishing boat. By the next morning, something even more incredible had occurred. The cinder cone of the volcano had broken the surface of the water; a new island had been born. It was the newest place on Earth. The story of the birth of this island is powerfully told by Newbery Honor-winning author Kathryn Lasky. Christopher G. Knight’s dramatic photographs take the reader to the newest place on Earth – Surtsey island.

About the author

Kathryn Lasky grew up in the suburbs of Indianapolis, Indiana, with her father, her mother, and her big sister, Martha. She attended the University of Michigan and majored in English, becoming particularly interested in Victorian literature, Romanticism, and the Renaissance. After graduating, Lasky began working as a writer for a fashion magazine, though she later opted for a career as a teacher. While teaching, she met and married Christopher Knight, a National Geographic photographer and documentary filmmaker. Lasky began writing children’s books after returning from her second voyage across the Atlantic Ocean with her husband. She has since written many books for children, including fiction, nonfiction, and picture books, as well as several books for adults. Kathryn Lasky has two children and cites her family as the most important inspiration for her books. She lives with her husband in Cambridge, Massachusetts.