Minnelusa Magic. Este artículo no está disponible.Minnelusa Magic

Written by Scott Van Dam - Illustrated by Christy Robinson - Photography by Tom Shearer

Minnelusa Magic tells the remarkable story of the Fairburn agate-South Dakota's state gemstone and one of the most distinctive agates in the world.

Through poetry, photography, illustration, and science, the book traces the agates' journey from the ancient Minnelusa Formation to the prairies of the Great Plains, where these beautiful stones continue to captivate collectors and rockhounds.

Scott Van Dam moved with his family to the Black Hills in 2007 to begin his practice as an oral surgeon, quickly discovering he had also arrived in a rock-hunting paradise. A lifelong rockhound, he had collected stones since childhood, but South Dakota's Fairburn agates captured his imagination in a new way. Fascinated by both geology and storytelling, Scott began exploring the mystery of how these gemstones formed, weaving science with creativity to share their story in an engaging way. His playful poem about Fairburn agates - part rock concert, part geologic journey - grew into Minnelusa Magic, a book that blends poetry, illustration, and photography to celebrate the beauty, history, and enduring wonder of South Dakota's state gemstone.

Christy C. Robinson has been drawing ever since she could grip a crayon. At 16 she was a published illustrator. Since then she has been on many artistic side quests including years as a landscape architect and art teacher. Recently she has come full circle back into illustrating. Minnelusa Magic is the first nonfiction work for which she produced the illustrations and the layout design. Find her and many fun, original coloring pages at https: //www.facebook.com/christycrobinsondesign

Thomas P. Shearer is an accomplished photographer based in Rapid City, South Dakota, best known for his macrophotography of rocks and minerals. He was the sole photographer for Agates Inside Out by Karen Brzys, a widely respected and highly informative book that explores agates and their genesis. Over decades, Tom has become a trusted visual interpreter of agate mineralogy, combining artistic detail with scientific accuracy. Living in the heart of the Black Hills, he has had the unique opportunity to work closely with collectors and to document trophy Fairburn agates in extraordinary detail. In Minnelusa Magic, Tom's images showcase the beauty of these rare stones and, for the first time, reveal microfossils preserved within their surrounding chert matrix.