For readers who are fascinated by monarch butterflies and their migration from the United States to Mexico each fall, Mary Alice Monroe's new novel is a precious gem of a story.

The Butterfly's Daughter [1] parallels the personal pilgrimage of Luz Avila, a 21-year-old Mexican-American woman from Milwaukee, with the flight path of these wondrous orange and black winged ones.

Monroe is an impassioned environmentalist. During her May 2011 book tour, she gave away 10,000 milkweed seeds to readers. Milkweed is the only food source for monarch caterpillars.

To read more about Monroe, go to her website [2].