Echo Loba, Loba Echo: Of Wisdom, Wolves and Women

by Sonja Swift, Winona LaDuke (Foreword)

A unique look at the cultural, environmental, historical, literary, metaphorical, and political role of the wolf. Echo Loba, Loba Echo is a story about the metaphor of the wolf and how this is echoed in the lives and minds of people. A metaphor that embodies worldviews colliding, and the collision, the fallout, we live with still. It is a story about wolves’ own cultures, survival stories, acts of rebellion, and vital roles in maintaining healthy territories. And it is also a story about what we have been told to forget, or never even know, and what wolves show us about ourselves. Through essay and poetry, the metaphor of the wolf, and loba – for she-wolf – is examined the way one might observe the light off a prism, in multi-dimensional ways. The associations are many and diametrically varied. Wolf as scapegoat, villain, outcast, blamed for human violence. Wolf as warrior, guide, mother to stray or orphaned children as well as her own pups. The Ojibwe word for wolf is ma’ the one sent here by that all-loving spirit to show us the way. Wolf ( lupus ), which is another word for whore ( lupa ), for woman. Wolf, another word for backcountry. Yet the choice is not an easy duality, not simply between the notion of wolf as heroine or wolf as devil.

Genres: Nonfiction, Wolves

256 pages, Hardcover

Published October 3, 2023

About the author

Sonja Swift is a writer and poet of hybrid forms. She comes from dusty, sometimes emerald, coastal hills amidst a chain of old volcanic peaks that stretch into the Pacific Ocean.

Reviews

[Adele · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting and unusual combination of wolf information and thoughts from biology, myth, spirituality, history, mixed up with politics and literature analysis. I am interested in all the parts separately and the mixture mostly worked for me, at least at the beginning. It dragged towards the end, I thought at first because it was getting repetitive, but there are snippets and anecdotes I was unfamiliar with all the way through, so I think the problem was the steady level of depressing and infuriating. I like my spirituality with more inspiration and hope.

I did figure one thing out. I abandoned Wolfer: A Memoir and thought it was mostly because I couldn't get behind someone who had to transition from wolf killer to wolf advocate. That is part of it, but I now realize Niemeyer's views on women as exemplified by the attitude toward his ex-wife in the book played a much bigger role. In Echo Loba there are numerous examples of men having an epiphany or a more gradual growth experience and coming to see the personhood of wolves. Unfortunately, these transformed men never seem to have a similar moment that brings home to them the humanity of women. Swift tells the story of Ernest Thompson Seton who dedicated his life to killing a wolf nicknamed Lobo and then had a complete change of heart about wolves after watching Lobo die. Seton eventually caught Lobo only after trapping and killing Lobo's mate Blanca. Apparently Blanca's death did not prompt a dramatic change of heart. Interesting that.

Speaking about the recent oil boom in North Dakota, Swift writes, "Violence against woman trails extractive industries, as radioactive socks are tossed into ditches and unlisted frack chemicals are pumped into the underground, women are abused, trafficked, killed."(p.201). I already loved wolves and reading this didn't make me love them any more, but it did make me dislike men more.

[Julie PK · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Echo Loba, Loba Echo" is a truly captivating read that seamlessly blends the untamed spirit of the wolf with the evocative power of poetry, activism and proise. From the first page, Sonja Swift invites us into a world both primal and profound, where the wilderness speaks in lyrical verse.

The poems within these pages are like tracks in the snow – distinct, intriguing, and leading the reader on a journey through landscapes both external and internal. Swift evokes raw beauty, mirroring the wildness of the wolves that serve as the book's central muse. Her language is sharp and insightful, capturing the essence of these magnificent creatures and the powerful symbolism they hold.

I look forward to reading more books by this author.

[BookTrib.com]

Lauded poet, Sonja Swift, breaks Into #nonfiction with ECHO LOBA, LOBA ECHO, a study of society’s complex relationship with wolves.

Read the full review on BookTrib.com

[T Stenner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have long had an interest in our relationship with the wild, including animals, plants and that which is beyond our understanding, so Echo Loba, Loba Echo seemed like a good fit.

Winona LeDuke refers to the book as “Sonja Swift’s love song to a vilified and persecuted being”, reflecting the complicated and complex relationships between humans and wolves. The author takes a creative and varied approach, weaving together stories, histories, poetry and indigenous languages, exploring historic and current context and diverse aspects of the relationship. This format really draws us into her personal journey of memory and discovery.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who questions our human centred view of the world, and our modern tendency to demonize other species. Echo Loba, Loba Echo will make you see wolves and our relationship to them in a new light. Although the focus is on wolves, I often found my mind wandering to my relationship with other animals - making me think that there is a similar story to be told about bears.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The world needs more stories like Sonja Swift's "Echo Loba, Loba Echo", a book that passionately and intelligently speaks to a love for the earth, particularly through the wolf but equally through profound experiences in nature. The book's greatest strength is in its multiple genres--Swift blends her intensive research with memoir and poetry to create a powerful and soulful account of what it truly means to be connected to the land and to share it with all living things. Indigenous culture and stewardship, history and biology, a kaleidoscope of flora and fauna combine in this deep witnessing of humanity's bond with wolves and the earth. Beautiful to hold and to read, in both design and writing. A call to care for what nourishes us.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, generous call to action. We as humans are one with wolves throughout eternal time. An intimate memoir, poetic vision, and scholarly research all bound together. I could read this wonderful book time and time again. I actually have already read this incredible book 3 times! Encouragement is here to inspire softer voices, voices heard through deep listening, like voices of the frozen trees or ancient tragedies such as our often neglected bond with our closest wild wolf cousins. The Wolf Spirit is alive and well here in this text. Echo Loba, Loba Echo!

[CWH · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is beautifully written, with meticulous research, lifting up Indigenous wisdom about wolves, weaving in personal and historical narratives, and not afraid of stinging critique of Western colonial fallacies and legacies and present day unfettered destruction.
For all those who may feel despair in this time of genocide and ecocide, Echo Loba, Loba Echo, is a powerful spiritual call to action to choose to act, to honor the wolf, and to center life. It will ground you in deep soulfulness, both mournful and defiant, and ultimately hopeful…

[Margaryta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating mixture of genres and styles, balancing historical and scientific accounts about wolves with autobiography and cultural history, even some poetry. The wolf is not the only subject of the book. Neither are women. Swift creates an ecosystem, drawing connections to other animals and events to talk about what it means to care for the land and for other life, human and non.

[Cecile Sheff]

Gift from Sarah Q.

[elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

→ 2 stars (★★)