Heartwarming experiences that taught about nature and life.
John Stanard’s delightful story of his long life in nature illuminates the challenges facing a natural environment that is so essential to our welfare. Stanard’s a great writer. Just buy the damned book and enjoy it!
Leigh Fredrickson, Ph.D., Wetland Ecologist
About
The Stanards
Author John Stanard toyed with the idea of writing about his childhood "Lake House" for years. His late wife, Vida, encouraged him to do it. His current wife, Rose Anne, said he owed it to his family to share the memories he cherished. She offered to illustrate whatever he came up with. The result was a compelling account of his heartwarming boyhood experiences with grandparents who gave him a lifelong conservation ethic.
Rose Anne's amazing cover design and charming graphite illustrations were the proverbial frosting on the toadstool. (Even at 86, that little boy whose Lake House toys were bugs and lizards, still enjoys picking up toads just to see if they're going to pee on him.)
Photo by Tim Edington
Find Us Here
Old Greenville Days - September 19-20, 2026
Greenville Recreation Area at Wappapello Lake
US Highway 67 Bridge
(South of) Greenville, Missouri
Book Signing - September 22, 2026
Ridgel Library
3398 Kanell Blvd., Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Iron Horse Festival - September 26, 2026
416 Vine Street (Inside Artfully Framed)
Poplar Bluff, Missouri
Books by John Stanard
Our Inspiration
Preserve and Protect
Insects, mammals, lizards, snakes, maple trees, creeks and the lake were our playthings and playground.
Photography by John R. Stanard