Once upon a time a creek burbled up and tumbled across a prairie valley. It was filled with insects and brook trout that ate them, frogs that chirruped and birds watching for bugs and fish. This is a true story about a man named Mike who went looking for that creek long after it was buried under fields of corn. It is the story of how a creek can be brought back to life, and with it a whole world of nature.

In the words of award-winning author Jacqueline Briggs Martin and the enchanting illustrations by Claudia McGehee, this heartening tale of an ecosystem restored in the Driftless Area of northeast Iowa unfolds in a way that will charm and inform young readers who are drawn to a good mystery, the wonders of nature-and, of course, big earth-moving machines.

There are 36 pages in this book. This book was published 2017 by University of Minnesota Press .

Jacqueline Briggs Martin is the author of many delightful books for children, including Banjo Granny and Chicken Joy on Redbean Road . She lives in Mt. Vernon, Iowa, and her web site is www. jacquelinebriggsmartin. com. Claudia McGehee is the illustrator and author of A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and A Woodland Counting Book . Most recently, she illustrated North Woods Girl .