Mapping the Imagination

I am a visual learner.  When I read and write, I see it in pictures or as a movie.  Recently, I became aware of an exhibition in London of Ursula K. Le Guin’s work.  I love LeGuin’s fantasy novels for children and was intrigued by the maps she included, much like the work of C.S. Lewis and his Narnia trilogy.  The exhibition showcases Le Guin’s maps, which she used as a catalyst and organizational tool for writing her novels.  I find this so intriguing.  I hope the exhibition jumps over the pond to America.  I would love to spend time pouring over her work.  A new book detailing LeGuin’s maps, The Word for World: The Maps of Ursula K. Le Guin, is set to be published in January, 2026.

When reading books with a strong sense of place, I often had children map out the information they gleaned from the author’s description. A few great books to do this with are:  Gooseberry Park by Cynthia Rylant, My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett, The Search for Delicious by Natalie Babbitt, and The Wild Robot by Peter Brown.  There are so many books that lend themselves to this kind of activity.  And I found that children understood the book better when they created a representation of the place they were reading about.  The mapping out of the place, made the story come alive for them.

Much of my preparation for writing takes place in action.  I walk in the various woods nearby my house, and as I walk, words come into my head and form a description of what I’m seeing.  Each step takes on a cadence, and the words sort themselves out into a rhythm.  I map out what I’m seeing and feeling.  I learn the woods, the names of the flowers, the leaves, the birds, and insects that inhabit my poems.  I can return every season and retrace my footsteps, but what I see if different every time.  Each time I hike into the woods and map out my writing in my mind, it takes on a new perspective.

Geography of an Autumn Day
 
I start out on the gravel path
kicking up dust
into the chill autumn air.
On my right,
the gnarled limbs
of the ancient oak
stretches to grab
the blue stunning sky
dotted with clouds.
Directly to my left,
golden reeds sway,
rustling a greeting.
I continue on east
to the dirt path
winding along the river.
I stop every so often
to listen to the wisdom
of the gurgles and burbles
of water over rock.
Orange and red leaves
captured by the current
swirl in a race downstream.
I come to a bridge –
aach wooden board creaks
as I clatter across.
Continuing down the dirt trail
I find myself at the pond,
that in spring sang out
with the voices
of a hundred frogs.
Now, the pond is quiet,
the surface reflects
the stunning blue sky
dotted with clouds.
The perimeter is fringed
with cattails and milkweed,
switchgrass and bulrushes –
Brown, gold, and burgundy.
I stretch out my arms
to take in all around me,
then retrace my steps
through is autumn day.

Children’s Books with rich imagery of setting

1. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park
2. Catwings Series by Ursula K. Le Guin
3. Gooseberry Park by Cynthia Rylant
4. Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
5. From the Mixed-up File of Mrs. Basil E. Frankeweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
6. Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
7. Peter Pan  by J.M. Barrie
8. The Search for Delicious by Natalie Babbitt
9. The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

Children’s Books with map embedded into the story

• Brambly Hedge by Jill Barklem
• Earthsea Cycle Series by Ursula K. Le Guin
• My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett: 
• The Once Upon a Time Map Book by B.G. Hennessy
• Rosie’s Walk by Pat Hutchins
• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
•  The Little Wooden Robot and the Log Princess by Tom Gauld
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
•  Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne

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