MY BOOKS

A Journey through England

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

When I graduated with a master’s degree in Biology with a Minor in Biochemistry in 1980, I asked Hal for a trip to Galapagos for a graduation present.

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All Season We Waited

Hamilton Farms of Terry County est. 1902

Another epic poem by this prolific author, All Season We Waited is a documentary of the love, legacy, and labor of her family’s 100-year-old cotton farm. Visual imagery is abundant in every line of these verses.

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Canyon Dam Canyon Lake

Tracing the Lives of My

Canyon Dam Canyon Lake is an epic poem written by Dr. Barbara ten Brink based on her forty-five years of weekly visits to the Dam, the Lake, and the Guadalupe River.

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Choosing the Path of Teaching

A Letter from Mentor to Mentee

Choosing the Path of Teaching congratulates the new teacher for entering the profession of education. In a letter to her mentee, this science educator uses analogy to speak about the journey into the classroom with ultimately hundreds of precious students who make this journey with her or him. Beautiful photographs illustrate the experience.

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During the Pandemic

with Edward Jenner

During the Pandemic with Edward Jenner is a work of fiction. While we know a lot of history about the life and work of Edward Jenner through his books, notebooks, publications, and letters, we know nothing about the fictional, authentic character, Robert, created by the author.

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Eight Pound Cows

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if cows weighed eight pounds? Just think of the fun to be had!

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Gifts of Love and Inspiration

A Letter from Mentor to Mentee

Inspire – v. mid 14c., to inhale enspiren, “to fill (the mind, heart, etc..)” Latin inspirare “inflame” Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck’s primary art form was fabrics. She sewed beautiful gowns for the officers clubs at every duty station.

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I Work in Solitude

with Edward Jenner

Dr. ten Brink writes about the natural wonders that she encounters while Working in Solitude among the organisms that inhabit her work space. 

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In the Springtime with Rachel Carson

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

A chance meeting between Rachel Carson, one of the greatest scientists of the twentieth century, and a fictional character in our story begins a life-long friendship, a passion to protect the environment, and a love and study of science.

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It Is My Sacrifice

A Letter from Mentor to Mentee

The author was inspired to write It Is My Sacrifice on a trip through New Mexico to Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Taos, Madrid, Ghost Ranch, and Chimayo.

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Miss Claus and Her Bunnies

with Edward Jenner

It takes a lot of magic at the North Pole to prepare Santa Claus for his trip around the world to deliver toys to every girl and boy.

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On the Island with Charles Darwin

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

On the Island with Charles Darwin is a work of fiction. While we know lots and lots about the life and work of Charles Darwin through preserved documents, notebooks, publications, letters, correspondence, membership in The Royal Society, we know nothing about the fictional characters I have created around him.

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Pet Anthology

Anthropomorphizing Animals for Fun

There remains great debate as to animals’ abilities to reason and rationalize or even to reciprocate the affection we display toward them.

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Season of Joy

with Edward Jenner

Dr. ten Brink retired from science education and is pursuing a career in writing having published 25 books in three years in six genres.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink

Anthropomorphizing Animals for Fun

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District.

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December 2014 - December 2015 (Volume 2)

December 2014 - December 2015 (Volume 2)

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 3

Vol. 3

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District
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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 4

Anthropomorphizing Animals for Fun

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 5 December 2017 - December 2018

December 2015 (Volume 2)

The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 5 is this year’s contribution to a series of poetry, stories, and 

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 6 December 2018

December 2019

The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink, Vol. 6, is inspired by the haiku of her mother, The Haiku of Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck, 2013. Seventeen syllables are used to convey an emotion, a visual imagery, a phenomenon in nature. 

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink

December 2019 - December 2020

Twenty-twenty is historic for many reasons recorded by every media world-wide. Hardest on everyone is socially distancing, retreating indoors, isolating. 

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 8

December 2020 - December 2021

Dr. ten Brink is a prolific author who has published 24 books in three years in six genres including young-adult novels, epic poems, short stories, collections of Haiku, treatises, and children’s books.

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Through the Microscopes with Antoni van Leeuwenhoek

December 2019

Dr. Barbara ten Brink presents us with another young-adult novel about the history of a scientist told through the fictional accounts of a young heroine who together, they discover the science.

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Travelling with Isaac Newton

December 2019 - December 2020

This realistic novel takes us on a journey with a girl and her family traveling with Isaac Newton.

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Ancient Texas Oaks

December 2020 - December 2021

Trees in the United States are valuable because of their age, size, rarity, unique features, or unusual environments. 

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Water, The Elixir of Life

December 2019

Water on our Earth, aptly called, “The Blue Marble,” is the muse for this author’s creative endeavors. 

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Journeys Through Mexico

December 2019 - December 2020

Myriam and I are new to the Amigos Alegres Viajeros (AAV also known as the Retired Teachers of Nuevo Laredo) having only joined them in 2019.

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The Zebra Herders at Yellow Wolf Ranch

December 2020 - December 2021

The Zebra Herders at Yellow Wolf Ranch is a cute and silly Children’s Book to be read aloud to them about the adventures of Tuxedo and Turtle who travel around Texas as part of Management’s menagerie.

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Crafting Literary Treasures: Unveiling the Art of Dr. Barbara ten Brink's Knowledge-Infused Books - Conclusion: Dr. Barbara ten Brink's Literary Legacy

On the Silk Road with Marco Polo

(Young-Adult Biographies)

Dr. ten Brink’s seventh young-adult biography, On the Silk Road with Marco Polo, uses Marco Polo’s own writings in his book, The Travels of Marco Polo, and thousands of other pages….

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On the Space Shuttle with Sally Ride

(Young-Adult Biographies)

The American Space Shuttle Program had only flown six missions when the first woman and youngest astronaut ever went into space on Challenger STS-7 in 1983. 

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© 2022 Barbara ten Brink. All rights reserved

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A Journey through England

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

When I graduated with a master’s degree in Biology with a Minor in Biochemistry in 1980, I asked Hal for a trip to Galapagos for a graduation present. Twenty years later in 2003, I made plans to travel to Galapagos. I invited Jill Harding and her dad, Ken Harding, to go with me and they did. Twenty years later, four of my scientists’ biographies were invited to the London Book Fair, April 5, 6, 7, 2022: Traveling with Isaac Newton, On the Island with Charles Darwin, During the Pandemic with Edward Jenner, and Through the Microscopes of Antoni van Leeuwenhoek.

I made plans to travel to England, but Hal was no longer able to travel with me. Which brings us to these developments. I invited Jill Harding to accompany me to England from March 28 until April 8 and she agreed! We flew direct, arrived at Heathrow, rented a car, drove 904 miles on the wrong side of the road on the wrong side of the car, and visited the homes of Darwin, Newton, and Jenner.

We drove through at least 12 shires. We visited the North Sea twice, once at Grain and once at Skegness. Before heading into London, we sought out Stonehenge and four of the White Chalk Horses of Wiltshire. We gave up our car and became perfectly adept at public transportation.

We visited the London Book Fair 2022 with 15,000 of our closest friends from 100 countries and signed 100 books. For good measure we toured The Royal Observatory and gave homage to another scientist genius, John Harrison. Enjoy our adventures and use our guide to plan your own.

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A Journey through England

Tracing the Lives of My Scientists' Biographies

Another epic poem by this prolific author, All Season We Waited is a documentary of the love, legacy, and labor of her family’s 100-year-old cotton farm. Visual imagery is abundant in every line of these verses. Noble effort is engaged by the farmers and their machinery to tame and prepare the soil prior to putting down the expensive cotton seeds. Then the gamble begins when every farmer holds their breath with hope and fear. Against all odds, will the millions of seeds germinate? Will the semi-arid climate of West Texas relinquish some precipitation and give the delicate seedlings the moisture they require? At the same time, will the amount of rainfall be moderate enough not to flood the fields or unleash hail? The campaign is not done as the cotton plants mature. They must also combat insects, weeds, poison drift, drought, flood. The author wishes her readers to visit the fields as they lay prepped and as lush gardens stretch for miles across West Texas once the plants are in full bloom with white and pink blossoms. The blossoms are one stage of the plants’ life cycles. From flowers come fruit which in this case is the financial goal of the entire farming community. The plant’s seeds are swaddled in the valuable and luxurious cotton that is then harvested, processed, transported, and sold worldwide. Every piece of cotton fabric that is purchased as linens or clothing was grown on a farm while farmers work and live with passion, grit, and trepidation. A beautifully constructed poem from May to October, readers will become familiar with the complicated, expensive endeavor that benefits us all.

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Canyon Dam Canyon Lake

Canyon Dam Canyon Lake is an epic poem written by Dr. Barbara ten Brink based on her forty-five years of weekly visits to the Dam, the Lake, and the Guadalupe River. Unique in its construction and federal park status, visitors are permitted to walk the .8-mile span atop the Dam and swim at water’s edge. Dr. ten Brink’s poem calls upon the heroes and legends of ancient myths to build the reader’s imagery of this “behemoth engineered construct” and the resulting vistas created to the “west the azure glassy Lake, East the verdant River.” In rhyming four-line stanzas, Hercules, Colossus, Ulysses, Cyclops, and dragon describe the Dam’s, the Lake’s, and the Guadalupe River’s beauty and grandeur.

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Choosing the Path of Teaching

A Letter from Mentor to Mentee

Choosing the Path of Teaching congratulates the new teacher for entering the profession of education. In a letter to her mentee, this science educator uses analogy to speak about the journey into the classroom with ultimately hundreds of precious students who make this journey with her or him. Beautiful photographs illustrate the experience.

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During the Pandemic with Edward Jenner

A Letter from Mentor to Mentee

During the Pandemic with Edward Jenner is a work of fiction. While we know a lot of history about the life and work of Edward Jenner through his books, notebooks, publications, and letters, we know nothing about the fictional, authentic character, Robert, created by the author. Dr. ten Brink researched many topics to build a realistic setting and plausible events around the time Edward Jenner was working on the solution to the global pandemic of smallpox.
 
On May 8, 1980, the 33rd World Health Assembly of the World Health Organization declared the world free of the disease of smallpox which may be the biggest achievement in international public health. A goal written about by Dr. Jenner was realized 200 years later.
The reader may fi nd the novel timely as we face a worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2.
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Eight Pound Cows

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if cows weighed eight pounds? Just think of the fun to be had!

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Gifts of Love and Inspiration

Inspire – v. mid 14c., to inhale enspiren, “to fill (the mind, heart, etc…)” Latin inspirare “inflame” Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck’s primary art form was fabrics. She sewed beautiful gowns for the officer’s clubs at every duty station. Each dress embellished with lace, sequins, bugle beads, gathers, pleats, belts, tulle. My clothes too were things of beauty. All the above times two. My sister and I were dressed exactly the same in reverse with bows, collars, tucks, embroidery. Each dress meticulously sewn and ironed – too many to count. Innumerable, exquisite, immaculate, extraordinary quilts – some just to fill time and given to Salvation Army. Some tributes and memorials given to Sugar’s nieces, nephews, and grandchildren. At the One-Woman Quilt Show, February 14, 2014, fifty-three of Sugar’s quilts were exhibited. Some were gleaned from Sugar’s house, but most were brought proudly by the owner to the exhibition. The City of Brownfield provided the venue, advertised the event, and built the quilt frames. Sugar did these things and more by example. We have a small collection of her haiku assembled here for your joy. And we have her inspiration.

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I Work in Solitude

Dr. ten Brink writes about the natural wonders that she encounters while Working in Solitude among the organisms that inhabit her workspace. There is much research about the spiritual, emotional, and physical health benefits for humans when they experience and enjoy the out-of-doors. Schools add gardens, outdoor classrooms, water features, wildflowers to their campuses. They may delay mowing so that grasses and wildflowers have the opportunity to disperse their seeds. The school day includes time for students to run and play and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Fieldtrips are scheduled to parks, zoos, geological formations. Extra-curricular activities such as scouts value time that students can camp, fish, canoe. Enjoy her encounters as she works in the out-of-doors in solitude surrounded by Nature with a multitude of organisms that go about their daily lives.

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In the Springtime with Rachel Carson

A chance meeting between Rachel Carson, one of the greatest scientists of the twentieth century, and a fictional character in our story begins a life-long friendship, a passion to protect the environment, and a love and study of science. Miss Carson and our heroine, Louise, work together to identify the problems afflicting Louise’s family farm, implement solutions, and develop a relationship of mutual admiration and respect. Louise honors Miss Carson’s legacy by her career choice and continued farm conservation practices.

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It Is My Sacrifice

The author was inspired to write It Is My Sacrifice on a trip through New Mexico to Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Taos, Madrid, Ghost Ranch, and Chimayo. The author writes about the many natural places she is drawn to. There is much research about the spiritual, emotional, and physical health benefits for humans when they experience and enjoy the out-of-doors. Schools add gardens, outdoor classrooms, water features, wildflowers to their campuses. They may delay mowing so that grasses and wildflowers have the opportunity to disperse their seeds. She considers herself fortunate to have access to many nature settings where she can write, paint, reflect on the wonders of living things, and apply her knowledge of biological systems.

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Miss Claus and Her Bunnies

It takes a lot of magic at the North Pole to prepare Santa Claus for his trip around the world to deliver toys to every girl and boy. Who is Elizabeth Claus? What is this claim that bunnies perform some of the magic all during the year at the North Pole to prepare Santa for his journey on the big night? Miss Claus and Her Bunnies clarifies these mysteries.
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On the Island with Charles Darwin

On the Island with Charles Darwin is a work of fiction. While we know lots and lots about the life and work of Charles Darwin through preserved documents, notebooks, publications, letters, correspondence, membership in The Royal Society, we know nothing about the fictional characters I have created around him. The characters, their names, and events are entirely fictional. But they are authentic. I researched many topics to build a realistic setting and plausible events around the time Charles Darwin was visiting the Galápagos Archipelago, making observations and journal entries for his manuscript, On the Origin of Species (1859). It was also my great privilege to travel to Galápagos, to visit the islands of Isla de San Cristóbal and Isla Isabela, and experience for myself the entrepreneurial spirit of young naturalists who hire out their boats to take tourists on excursions to witness seals and sea lions, boobies, sharks, marine iguanas, penguins. Rather than travel by cruise ship, I rented Villa Rosa. Th is home was once the sea cucumber warehouse and counting house mentioned throughout the story.

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Pet Anthology

Anthropomorphizing Animals for Fun

There remains great debate as to animals’ abilities to reason and rationalize or even to reciprocate the affection we display toward them. Because we love our pets and spend so much time with them and gain a great deal of comfort from them, we often attribute human characteristics, behaviors, emotions, and even speech to them. Pet Anthology – Anthropomorphizing Animals for Fun is a compilation of unique and entertaining stories of my relationship with my pets through the years. Whether a pet remains with us for a couple of years such as a hamster, several years such as a dog or a cat, or even decades such as a horse or a turtle or a parrot, we form emotional bonds with them. We think of them as members of our families. We include them in our social activities and outings. We parallel their wants, needs, and likes to our own. Within these stories and without apology, I have intentionally given my pets all the human attributes listed above for the pure joy, fun, and love of animals.

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Season of Joy

Dr. ten Brink retired from science education and is pursuing a career in writing having published 25 books in three years in six genres. Christmas 2021, Samantha asked her, “What was the best part of your Christmas holiday?” There can be no single answer to this question. Instead, Dr. ten Brink wrote an epic poem of praises and blessings to God and joy and peace of the Christmas Season. She could not write a poem about blessings without the help of her granddaughter, Marion. Even Marion finds blessings in lights, dogs, visits to grandparents, and fun.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District. She holds three degrees in science and an additional master’s degree in school administration. Dr. ten Brink has served as president of the international science teachers, Texas science administrators, and Texas elementary science teachers which she founded. Her muse is water. She was awarded a $2.95 million Technology in Education federal grant to study water quality with 150 teachers and their students throughout Texas. She is a recipient of the Conservator of the Colorado River Award which she shared posthumously with Lady Bird Johnson. The City of Austin presented Dr. ten Brink the distinguished service award. Her inspiration began in 2013 when she compiled and published the haiku of her mother, Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck. The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink is part of a series of haiku, poetry, and stories and is entered on these pages chronologically. The Art The paintings shown on these pages are a creative outlet of expression inspired by the family’s life at the Guadalupe River for over 40 years and the ten Brink House at Canyon Lake, Texas. The paintings published in Vol. 3 were all painted in 2016. The author and artist wish her readers to know that Dr. ten Brink held a paintbrush for the first time in 2014.

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December 2014 - December 2015 (Volume 2)

About the Book: The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District. She holds three degrees in science and an additional master’s degree in school administration. Dr. ten Brink has served as president of the international science teachers, Texas science administrators, and Texas elementary science teachers which she founded. Her muse is water. She was awarded a $2.95 million Technology in Education federal grant to study water quality with 150 teachers and their students throughout Texas. She is a recipient of the Conservator of the Colorado River Award which she shared posthumously with Lady Bird Johnson. The City of Austin presented Dr. ten Brink the distinguished service award. Her inspiration began in 2013 when she compiled and published the haiku of her mother, Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck. The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink, Vol. 3, is a continuation of haiku, poetry, and stories and is entered on these pages chronologically. The Art The paintings shown on these pages are a creative outlet of expression inspired by the family’s life at the Guadalupe River for over 40 years and the ten Brink House at Canyon Lake, Texas. The paintings published in Vol. 3 were all painted in 2016. The author and artist wish her readers to know that Dr. ten Brink held a paintbrush for the first time in 2014.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 3

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District. She holds three degrees in science and an additional master’s degree in school administration. Dr. ten Brink has served as president of the international science teachers, Texas science administrators, and Texas elementary science teachers which she founded. Her muse is water. She was awarded a $2.95 million Technology in Education federal grant to study water quality with 150 teachers and their students throughout Texas. She is a recipient of the Conservator of the Colorado River Award which she shared posthumously with Lady Bird Johnson. The City of Austin presented Dr. ten Brink the distinguished service award. Her inspiration began in 2013 when she compiled and published the haiku of her mother, Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck. The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink, Vol. 3, is a continuation of haiku, poetry, and stories and is entered on these pages chronologically. The Art The paintings shown on these pages are a creative outlet of expression inspired by the family’s life at the Guadalupe River for over 40 years and the ten Brink House at Canyon Lake, Texas. The paintings published in Vol. 3 were all painted in 2016. The author and artist wish her readers to know that Dr. ten Brink held a paintbrush for the first time in 2014.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 4

The Author Dr. ten Brink is a science educator of 47 years, 37 years as a science administrator. She has coordinated science in grades kindergarten through 12 for Texas Education Agency, Round Rock Independent School District, and Austin Independent School District. She holds three degrees in science and an additional master’s degree in school administration. Dr. ten Brink has served as president of the international science teachers, Texas science administrators, and Texas elementary science teachers which she founded. Her muse is water. She was awarded a $2.95 million Technology in Education federal grant to study water quality with 150 teachers and their students throughout Texas. She is a recipient of the Conservator of the Colorado River Award which she shared posthumously with Lady Bird Johnson. The City of Austin presented Dr. ten Brink the distinguished service award. Her inspiration began in 2013 when she compiled and published the haiku of her mother, Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck. The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink, is part of a series of haiku, poetry, and stories and is entered on these pages chronologically. The Art The paintings shown on these pages are a creative outlet of expression inspired by the family’s life at the Guadalupe River for over 40 years and the ten Brink House at Canyon Lake, Texas. The paintings published in Vol. 3 were all painted in 2016. The author and artist wish her readers to know.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 5 December 2017 - December 2018

The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 5 is this year’s contribution to a series of poetry, stories, and art captured annually and chronologically to record the events and musings of the author.
 
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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 6 December 2018 - December 2019

The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink, Vol. 6, is inspired by the haiku of her mother, The Haiku of Irene Sugar Hamilton Rieck, 2013. Seventeen syllables are used to convey an emotion, a visual imagery, a phenomenon in nature. Her poetry is entered on these pages chronologically from December 2018 to December 2019.
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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink: December 2019 - December 2020

Twenty-twenty is historic for many reasons recorded by every media world-wide. Hardest on everyone is socially distancing, retreating indoors, isolating. In spite of these challenges and even during a world-wide pandemic, race riots, and contentious politics, Dr. ten Brink managed to make sense of retirement and be productive in this first year of the new chapter of her life: Bought three houses, Sold one house, Bought one ranch, Sold one ranch, Moved out of two barns: La Grange and Purgatory, Remodeled two houses and staged them for comfortable living, Purchased a sculpture in Madrid, NM; had it shipped to Brownfield, had it installed in Hamilton Park, Published two novels, Illustrated three novels, Published two books of poetry, Built a website for my books, Promoted my books internationally including interviews with CBS and BBC Wrecked my car; Bought a car, Traveled prior to sequester, Enjoyed one of the best years regarding my rental properties, Maintained 5 houses that we use or gift to friends while assuring everyone that each is bleached throughout, Decorated 5 houses for Christmas.

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The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink Vol. 8 December 2020 - December 2021

Dr. ten Brink is a prolific author who has published 24 books in three years in six genres including young-adult novels, epic poems, short stories, collections of Haiku, treatises, and children’s books. The Haiku of Barbara ten Brink is the eighth volume in a series that started when Dr. ten Brink edited her mother’s Haiku and published, Gifts of Love and Inspiration. That exercise changed her brain to think in the cadence of Haiku. The volumes are illustrated with Dr. ten Brink’s paintings and photography.
Dr. ten Brink has received the distinguished service award from the City of Austin and Conservator of the Colorado River Award from the Colorado Foundation which she shared with Lady Bird Johnson, posthumously. She is a Fellow of the Texas Academy of Science.

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Through the Microscopes with Antoni van Leeuwenhoek

Dr. Barbara ten Brink presents us with another young-adult novel about the history of a scientist told through the fictional accounts of a young heroine who together, they discover the science.
We know the history of Antoni van Leeuwenhoek’slife and work through his notebooks, publications, letters, and the books published by the Royal Society of London.

We know the history of the author’s family ten Brink through the frescos, stained glass windows, sculptures, books, and museum in Mettingen, Germany.

Through the Microscopes of Antoni van Leeuwenhoekis a work of fiction. Dr. ten Brink weaves a story of our hero, Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, and his use of the microscope, from 1671 until his death in 1723, with the history of the tenBrink linen export shipping company, from 1700 until 2010. Our fictional heroine, Helena, connects the reader to the history of the invention of the microscope for the purpose of examining fabrics and the history of both Antoni van Leeuwenhoek and the Family ten Brink being fabric merchants. Dr. ten Brink uses Helena to build a fictional story to entertain her readers.
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Travelling with Isaac Newton

This realistic novel takes us on a journey with a girl and her family traveling with Isaac Newton. Their adventure is full of love, discovery, and the thrill of science.
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Ancient Texas Oaks

Trees in the United States are valuable because of their age, size, rarity, unique features, or unusual environments. People revere trees so much that some are registered, cataloged, and protected. Each state maintains a registry of the most valuable trees. State and National Parks are built around some of the most significant trees. Trees are the objects of many artists’ paintings and poets’ musings. But every tree is an organism of wonder! From a tiny seed, some of the largest organisms on our planet are grown. Even a tree in your yard or at your school can be studied through the seasons, drawn in your journal, hugged, and loved. This book is a poem of the most valuable Oaks in Texas. Enjoy the book. Go visit a tree!

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Water, The Elixir of Life

Water on our Earth, aptly called, “The Blue Marble,” is the muse for this author’s creative endeavors. Dr. ten Brink’s study of water through 48 years of science teaching and a lifetime of nature observations have resulted in six volumes of poetry and the paintings you find herein.
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Journeys through Mexico

(Travelogues)

Myriam and I are new to the Amigos Alegres Viajeros (AAV also known as the Retired Teachers of Nuevo Laredo) having only joined them in 2019. However, the group goes back to their young teaching days. They taught together, were promoted to administration together, changed schools, came back. As the group, Amigos Alegres Viajeros, have been traveling since: “The beginning of AAV with that unforgettable trip to Chiapas, where we began to walk. Then, unfortunate insecurity between 2012 to 2015 stopped us from traveling. We resumed with regional trips to Bustamante and Monterrey; caught a flight to Real de Catorce; Zacatecas; La Huasteca Potosina; Cuatro Cienegas; and Chihuahua. We were stopped again when trying to go to Guadalajara in 2020, this time by the COVID. With great confidence, we headed out to Guerrero, Mexico City, and Querétaro July 7-10, 2022.” Journeys through Mexico records the attention to details of planning and the adventures of the road as the AAV traverse the states, biomes, geology, history, architecture, flora, and fauna of Mexico. The book is written in Spanish and English as the authors do not speak each other’s language.

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The Zebra Herders at Yellow Wolf Ranch

The Zebra Herders at Yellow Wolf Ranch is a cute and silly Children’s Book to be read aloud to them about the adventures of Tuxedo and Turtle who travel around Texas as part of Management’s menagerie. When Management buys a new Ranch and begins talking about selling off the resident Zebras and Gemsboks, Tuxedo and Turtle attend staff meetings to convince Management of the value of the hoof stock. Our heroes take great pride in their contributions to save the herds of Zebras and Gemsboks at Yellow Wolf Ranch. Share the imagery and imagination of this book with the animal lovers in your reading circle. Examine the roles of Tuxedo and Turtle as our heroes in The Zebra Herders at Yellow Wolf Ranch. It is they who have accepted the responsibility and take pride in their persuasive speaking to instill acceptance and promote inclusion and diversity to all with whom they interact. Encourage your young readers to look for the attributes within their own pets that add to your family’s dynamics.

Crafting Literary Treasures: Unveiling the Art of Dr. Barbara ten Brink's Knowledge-Infused Books - Conclusion: Dr. Barbara ten Brink's Literary Legacy
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On the Silk Road with Marco Polo

(Young-Adult Biographies)

Dr. ten Brink’s seventh young-adult biography, On the Silk Road with Marco Polo, uses Marco Polo’s own writings in his book, The Travels of Marco Polo, and thousands of other pages from research books and documents to tell the story of this phenomenal “Empire of Superlatives (her words)”: largest, grandest, greatest, richest, most brutal in war, best horsemen, most beautiful women, most abundant, most extreme, largest contiguous empire ever in the world. The Khans and princes were the richest monarchs ever in the world. The trappings, fabrics, rugs, weavings, metalwork, gold, silver, pearls, furs, the display of their personal accoutrements, the accessories adorning their hairstyles and bodies were the most elaborate in the world. The wealth and numbers of their military defeated all the kingdoms of the Asian continent in a formation of powers of ten and subsequently gave the world the decimal system. Historians have calculated that one-half of the total population of China was eliminated. Possibly, as many as 60 million people or 10% of the world’s population were killed during the time of the expansion of the Mongol Empire.
Critics of Marco Polo’s travels could not believe his fanciful tales. On Marco’s deathbed, his clergy asked him to recant his stories. He replied, “I have not told half of what I saw.” Imagine traveling 15,000 miles in 24 years through extremely diverse and foreign cultures, climates, animals, and peoples and through extreme violence, power, and wealth. Yet Marco Polo, his father, Nicolo Polo, and his uncle, Maffeo Polo, survived piracy, wild animal attacks, jealousy while others in their caravans and in their similar appointments of duty to the Great Kublai Khan did not. Marco recorded his experiences and reported many new and remarkable events in his journals. Upon returning to Venice, he published his adventures. Most people in 1290 Europe had no experience with other cultures, travels to foreign lands, or new technologies. Most people had no frame of reference on which to attach Marco Polo’s tales. It was easier to dismiss them as folktales and imagination. History is proving his accounts to be true.

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On the Space Shuttle with Sally Ride

(Young-Adult Biographies)

The American Space Shuttle Program had only flown six missions when the first woman and youngest astronaut ever went into space on Challenger STS-7 in 1983. Thirty-two years old, Ph.D. physicist Dr. Sally Ride broke every barrier with her tenacity, intellect, and determination. A former professional tennis player, she traded sports for academia to achieve degrees in physics from Stanford University. She flew two missions: STS-7 and STS-41G, started the NASA Office of Exploration, served on the Rogers Commission to investigate the Challenger disaster, and served on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. She retired from NASA to teach physics at the University of California, San Diego and started Sally Ride Science which became a major publishing house for science trade books with the goal of encouraging young students to pursue science and mathematics careers. This is the eighth biography of scientists in a series by Dr. Barbara ten Brink. After a successful teaching career, Dr. ten Brink has turned her talents from teaching the major discoveries of science to writing the scientists’ biographies. Rather than a chronology, she focuses on the scientists’ attributes. Her readers will appreciate the tenacity of Dr. Sally Ride.