Glorious scenery, rich Native American lore and handicrafts, wonders of wildlife and fascinating history: All are precious gifts we can share with our children this holiday season.

Following is a list of selected Northwest-themed books for children, new on the shelves this fall and good possibilities for Christmas stockings.

“Echoes of the Elders: The Stories and Painting of Chief Lelooska” edited by Christine Normandin - This handsome package presents, for the first time, five traditional legends of the Kwakiutl people of the Northwest Coast.

The late Chief Lelooska, who lived in Ariel, Wash., created this book after he learned he had cancer. He was a master storyteller, carver, painter and teacher of the culture and history of the Northwest Indians.

Officially adopted into the Kwakiutl tribe, Lelooska was charged with passing on the tribal stories.

The tales in this collection include: “The Old Owl Witch,” in which disobedient children are turned into mice, and “Raven & Sea Gull,” in which Raven tricks Sea Gull into returning the sun, which the gull has captured for his own.

Lelooska’s dramatic stylized paintings add depth to the stories. Included with the book is an audio CD featuring Chief Lelooska telling the stories. (DK Publishing, all ages, $24.95, 40 pgs.)

“Teddy Roosevelt’s Elk” by Brenda Z. Guiberson - Gorgeous oil paintings by Patrick O’Brien grace this book about the stately animals named in honor of a president known for his conservation efforts. The setting is in the Olympic Mountains just before the turn of the century.

As Roosevelt explored the Dakota Territory, his good friend C. Merriam Hart studied the elk in Washington’s Olympic Mountains. The text tracks a year in the life of an elk calf, mother and bull.

Guiberson, a Seattle resident, is a wonderful writer of non-fiction for children. And O’Brien’s paintings capture the light and lush beauty of the Northwest. An afterword explains that in 1909, President Roosevelt established Mount Olympus National Monument.

Today Olympic National Park protects the largest population of Roosevelt elk (about 5,000) living in their natural habitat. (Henry Holt, ages 5 and up, 32 pgs., $15.95)

“The Miser on the Mountain: A Nisqually Legend of Mount Rainier” retold by Nancy Luenn This is the exciting and wonderfully illustrated tale of a greedy man named Latsut who leaves his family to search for barter shells on top of Mount Rainier (called Ta-co-bet by the Nisqually people). He goes there because an elk spirit tells him to look for the shells at the summit of the mountain.

Climb the great Ta-co-bet and learn the true meaning of wealth.

Latsut learns what modern climbers know: getting to the top of Rainier and back isn’t easy.

He finds the shells, but on the way back he’s knocked off a cliff in a storm and sent into a hibernation that lasts for years. When he awakens, he is an old man who finally understands that wealth is really contained in the beauty of nature and the love of family.

Illustrator Pierr Morgan can see Rainier from her studio in Seattle. So can author Luenn from her home in Yakima. (Sasquatch Books, ages 4 and up, 32 pgs., $15.95)

“The Spindle Whorl: A Northwest Coast Indian Art Activity Book” by Nan McNutt - The newest in an excellent series of Northwest Indian activity books, this volume focuses on the art of the Salish people. McNutt tells the story of Sulsuliya and her family as they prepare gifts for a traditional naming ceremony.

Sulsuliya collects and cleans wool, while her brother makes the spindle and intricately carved whorl for spinning the wool. As does each book in the Art Discovery series, this volume includes several art activities, including a pull-out insert with which readers can make a whorl and spin wool with it.

Also included is an adult teaching guide that offers detailed historical and cultural information, and teaching suggestions. Other books in the series: “The Bentwood Box,” “The Cedar Plank Mask” and “The Button Blanket.” (Sasquatch Books, ages 6 and up, 42 pgs., $10.95, paperback)

“The West: An Illustrated History for Children” by Dayton Duncan - This fine series was published last year as one of three companion volumes for young readers to the Ken Burns PBS series “The West.”

Illustrated with hundreds of old photographs, the books do an excellent job of describing all aspects of life as the West was being settled.

The other two titles are “People of the West” by Duncan and “The Gold Rush” by Liza Ketchum. (Little, Brown, ages 9 and up, 136 pgs., $10.95 paperback)

“A Log’s Life” by Wendy Pfeffer - Sometimes it seems sad when a storm knocks down a beautiful old tree. But the dead tree on the forest floor is an important part of nature, this book eloquently points out. A giant log provides home for small mammals and insects, then after years pass, it rots and adds richness to the soil so new trees can grow.

The lifelike illustrations by Robin Brickman look just like leaves, wood, animal fur and feathers skillfully constructed into a collage. But as Brickman explains in a preface, the illustrations were made using only watercolor paper that she cut, painted and sculpted. (Simon & Schuster, ages 4 and up, 32 pgs., $16)