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Friendship Fires
In these fascinating tales, Sam Cook captures the remote and beautiful North Woods, examining how this dramatic and forbidding landscape shapes his life and the lives of other people who reside there. Like a skilled storyteller sitting near a campfire, he leaves his audience spellbound with tales of adventure. "Cook writes so well that his text reads effortlessly. His descriptions are striking without being self-conscious or showy.... In his writing, Cook passionately evokes the feelings that come from contact with wild places and wild creatures. He creates in us a longing for the seasons-all the seasons, not just summer, but all the seasons of the north."
192 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 31, 2024
Despite my best effort to linger about, trying to indulge myself in Cook's various outdoor scenes a little longer, Friendship Fires comes to its inevitable closure.
This the last of the only five outdoor essay anthologies by Sam Cook that I've read - not the latest one he published: I didn't read them in chronological order. And I love each of them. My only complaint is that there are just five of them, no more, at least per Sam himself. He has announced his retirement as a writer, but he will never retire from outdoor activities, just like the people he illustrated in one section of this anthology.
In this book, essays are not arranged by seasons as in his other anthologies. Instead, they are grouped loosely by different kinds of relationships, as the title indicates, including that with our four-legged friends, and those with some aspects of the nature.
Otherwise, these essays differ not much from his other ones. Each one focuses on a small - but no less significant - aspect of the wild, an outdoor activity, or, in some cases in this book, people who enjoy themselves in it. His words flow effortlessly, nonetheless working out a magic to unveil the wonderfulness off the beaten track.
You needn't be an outdoor enthusiast to enjoy these elegant essays. As the blurb goes, it's a great read for armchair travelers too (like me).
This the last of the only five outdoor essay anthologies by Sam Cook that I've read - not the latest one he published: I didn't read them in chronological order. And I love each of them. My only complaint is that there are just five of them, no more, at least per Sam himself. He has announced his retirement as a writer, but he will never retire from outdoor activities, just like the people he illustrated in one section of this anthology.
In this book, essays are not arranged by seasons as in his other anthologies. Instead, they are grouped loosely by different kinds of relationships, as the title indicates, including that with our four-legged friends, and those with some aspects of the nature.
Otherwise, these essays differ not much from his other ones. Each one focuses on a small - but no less significant - aspect of the wild, an outdoor activity, or, in some cases in this book, people who enjoy themselves in it. His words flow effortlessly, nonetheless working out a magic to unveil the wonderfulness off the beaten track.
You needn't be an outdoor enthusiast to enjoy these elegant essays. As the blurb goes, it's a great read for armchair travelers too (like me).
Displaying 1 of 1 review