Debra's comments (member since Jun 28, 2008)

Debra's comments from the Nature Calls group.

I appreciate the info about StoryArc too, Scott. I also write, although writing is on the back burner at the moment. Thanks again!

So late to respond, here. I'm trying to find a balance between the new and interesting ways of connecting on the internet (especially with like-minded folk) and unplugging...actively living in the real world...

To answer the question, I seem to browse my home library a lot. Instead of rereading a complete book, I often forage in books I love, riffling pages to find beloved bits. When I do reread the very best books, however, it's often a revelation, especially when years have gone by between first-reading and re-reading. The best books are prismatic, layered, deep. They meet us on different levels when we reread.

I've often thought it would be an interesting experiment to reread all my books over a period of time. But new books beckon. Another sort of balance to seek and to find...

Yes; Thanks! This weekend, I'm in Santa Fe for Spanish Market, but the shelf names look great and I look forward to giving the Nature Calls bookshelves a closer look next week.

Since both you, Scott, and Tom Chandler have such a strong background in fishing/flyfishing books, perhaps that could be a shelf too. I sometimes don't like to classify books too narrowly (ie many flyfishing books deserve a wider readership than just people who love fishing). But the nice thing is that the books can have more than one category, so fishing books could come up in both fishing and essay books, for example. Anyway: just a thought.

Thanks for your review of *Something's Fishy*, Tom. *Bottlemania* is on my "to read" list too. In general, I seek out "crusader" books, but often find that it takes me a bit longer to read them, as they require a different (more focused) sort of attention. Last summer, I read *The World Without Us* by Alan Weisman. His chapter on plastics in the environment definitely falls into the crusader category. I can honestly say that chapter caused me to change the way I do some things in my daily life (I no longer use plastic water bottles, I stopped using a certain kind of face wash--from the ostensibly environmentally conscious Body Shop no less!--etc etc). If those of us who have a deeper interest in the environment don't try to stay informed and articulate about the difficult issues, I don't think we can expect anything from the general public. But I agree that reading one essay a day is good. Or even less...whatever it takes to really absorb the material.

PS-if anyone is interested, *World Without Us* is scheduled to be out in paperback in early August.

Renny: I'm not just saying this just to flatter... but honestly, your book *On the Loose* influenced me when I was a young teenager. My older sister had all those great Sierra Club books--the ones with the Eliot Porter photos and all--but yours inspired me to live a different sort of life. So thanks! Thanks for your list as well. I agree that the 60's and maybe the early 70's were a "golden age" for nature writing. I miss that spirit. I've added your book *Rock Me on the Water* to my "to read list". Looking forward to it..and I'm glad you joined this list...

Another comment for Outdoor Educators:

I am going to order two new titles for my shop that teachers on this list may find interesting. (I have not yet seen or read these books, so if you have, please let me know what you think of them!).
I've added these books to the Nature Calls "To Read" list:

Place-Based Education by David Sobel (published by the Orion Society)

Creating Outdoor Classrooms: Schoolyard Habitats and Gardens for the Southwest by Lauri Macmillan Johnson

(We might want to start a new thread for Outdoor Ed conversations?)

Janice--

I've stocked both the first and the second editions of Last Child in the Woods at my bookstore at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson. The second edition includes about 40 extra pages of supplementary material. First, Louv gives a short report about how the "Movement is Forming."Then he gives a detailed list of "100 Actions We Can Take. The actions are divided into the following categories: "Nature Activities for Kids and Families," "Suggestions for Transforming Our Communities." "Pursuits for Businesses, Attorneys, and Health Care Providers," "Ways Educators, Parent-Teacher Groups, and Students Can Promote Natural School Reform," "Goals for Government," and "Build the Movement." Finally there are Discussion Points for book groups, classrooms and communities.

My impression is that the basic text of the second edition hasn't changed from the first, but that the "update and expansion" exists in this rather substantial supplementary material. I haven't combed over the text for a close comparison, though.

I recently re-read *Desert Solitaire* by Edward Abbey. I first read that book as a teenager in the late 1970's. I also read *Walden* in that time period. My relationship with both books have changed over time, but both made an indelible mark on my life.