Braiding Sweetgrass - Robin Wall Kimmerer

Braiding Sweetgrass

By Robin Wall Kimmerer

  • Release Date: 2013-09-16
  • Genre: Nature
Score: 4.5
4.5
From 350 Ratings

Description

As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowledge together to take us on “a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise” (Elizabeth Gilbert).

Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, and as a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings—asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders, algae, and sweetgrass—offer us gifts and lessons, even if we've forgotten how to hear their voices. In reflections that range from the creation of Turtle Island to the forces that threaten its flourishing today, she circles toward a central argument: that the awakening of ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings will we be capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learn to give our own gifts in return.

Reviews

  • Magnificent

    5
    By kirst*j
    Magnificent, I drank in every word. I wish I could sit at the feet of Robin Wall Kimerer and listen to her stories first hand, but sadly I can’t so this book at least will suffice, and it feels through the pages that I am sitting with her, learning from her and hearing her voice. Rich and poetic - this book will change the way you view the world. It is magnificent.
  • Elegantly descriptive gem of eco-activism.

    5
    By rose.monet
    Indigenous wisdom is woven beautifully with scientific inquiry and cultural awareness. Would recommend for those searching for diversity in thought.
  • Living earth

    5
    By Exgendoc
    This is an amazing work. Robin Kimmerer is a scientist who writes as a poet. I wish our politicians read this book and take appropriate action
  • A Must Read

    5
    By Grandad52
    This book is so foundational, that anyone who works for change, for reversing global warming, for justice will be better prepared to face our uncertain future. Also some of the best prose poetry being written today.
  • Breathtaking imagery

    5
    By Cindy Suns
    One of the most beautifully written love letters to nature I’ve ever read. It was recommended to me by a friend. Once I started reading I thirsted for it at the start of each day. I have been buying up every copy I find and sharing it with my friends who love the earth and plants as much as I do. Thank you Robin.
  • Never too late

    5
    By cosmic coyote
    This book of ancient teachings is so relevant…
  • Share.

    5
    By JinjeMahoney
    A revealing, insightful, caring, necessary book of philosophies and positive information about the importance of holding nature's gifts close to your heart in every aspect of your conscious life. Every paragraph, every story, every philosophy, and every intention was deliberately written to reciprocate organic food for thought to the open reader. A gorgeously written and earnest novel that I recommend for everyone :)
  • A Tender Textbook

    5
    By rokinrev
    From personal exemplar essays of bringing up children to love and care for the land, extending out to the history of clearcutting vast old growth forests and back to saving salamanders the author is a brilliant storyteller with the ability to draw you into the lessons she teaches, the trial and error attempts of many to clean up the acts of those who use and abuse the gifts of the earth, and give hope to the disenfranchised people and ecological permaculture of a healthier earth. This book left me breathless and speechless. Having lived the greater part of the decade in the shadow of Lake Onondaga, I can feel as well as see this ecological terrorism. I am moved by Dr. Kimmerer’s call for reciprocity, for us to quiet our minds to learn lessons lost in grief and greediness. This book had me laughing and crying, almost at the same time. I was very moved, and personally challenged by it. It is not a read it all at once Book, but one than needs to be read in chunks to fully comprehend it. Highly recommended 5/5