A well-written and informative guide to sustainable farming.
A nonfiction book delivers an impassioned call to action for a sustainable agricultural system.
In this follow-up to The Great Healing (2019), Erickson implores readers to reject industrial agriculture and embrace methods that are both financially and environmentally sustainable. The book explains how farming techniques can return nutrients to the soil as well as consuming them; how growing cover crops allows farmers to get the most value from their lands; why regular plowing does more harm than good; and how large-scale irrigation affects groundwater supplies. The author draws heavily on the work of other writers who focus on agricultural practices, particularly Wendell Berry and Vandana Shiva. Erickson introduces readers to a number of individuals currently pursuing sustainable and regenerative farming—the section on Marlon Foster of Green Leaf Learning Farms is particularly well done. The author also explains how nonfarmers can support sustainable agriculture in large and small ways. In a whimsical touch, several chapters feature anthropomorphic animals, including Timothy the white crowned sparrow, Lucinda the monarch butterfly, and Earl the worm, who serve as entry points to the discussion of specific problems caused by conventional agriculture. Erickson does not hesitate to identify the primary enemy of regenerative farming (Chapter 9 is called “Our Arch-Villain”), and readers will learn plenty about the harm caused by industrialized agriculture and the multinational companies that dominate the industry. The book is solidly researched and makes strong arguments backed up by both logic and data. While the author’s enthusiasm for his subject makes for animated prose, some readers may find its rendering on the pages, with copious italicized phrases (“This is the only way that exists to significantly drawdown atmospheric carbon”), to be a bit much. But on the whole, the volume is generally an easy read on an intriguing topic. Although the book clearly lays out the problems of industrial agriculture, it is done without a sense of despair, with the focus more on what can potentially be fixed than on entrenched structural issues.
A well-written and informative guide to sustainable farming.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 287
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Jan. 13, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.
A charming bird journey with the bestselling author.
In his introduction to Tan’s “nature journal,” David Allen Sibley, the acclaimed ornithologist, nails the spirit of this book: a “collection of delightfully quirky, thoughtful, and personal observations of birds in sketches and words.” For years, Tan has looked out on her California backyard “paradise”—oaks, periwinkle vines, birch, Japanese maple, fuchsia shrubs—observing more than 60 species of birds, and she fashions her findings into delightful and approachable journal excerpts, accompanied by her gorgeous color sketches. As the entries—“a record of my life”—move along, the author becomes more adept at identifying and capturing them with words and pencils. Her first entry is September 16, 2017: Shortly after putting up hummingbird feeders, one of the tiny, delicate creatures landed on her hand and fed. “We have a relationship,” she writes. “I am in love.” By August 2018, her backyard “has become a menagerie of fledglings…all learning to fly.” Day by day, she has continued to learn more about the birds, their activities, and how she should relate to them; she also admits mistakes when they occur. In December 2018, she was excited to observe a Townsend’s Warbler—“Omigod! It’s looking at me. Displeased expression.” Battling pesky squirrels, Tan deployed Hot Pepper Suet to keep them away, and she deterred crows by hanging a fake one upside down. The author also declared war on outdoor cats when she learned they kill more than 1 billion birds per year. In May 2019, she notes that she spends $250 per month on beetle larvae. In June 2019, she confesses “spending more hours a day staring at birds than writing. How can I not?” Her last entry, on December 15, 2022, celebrates when an eating bird pauses, “looks and acknowledges I am there.”
An ebullient nature lover’s paean to birds.Pub Date: April 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780593536131
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.
The third volume in the Elephant Whisperer series.
In this follow-up to An Elephant in My Kitchen, Malby-Anthony continues her loving portrait of the Thula Thula wildlife reserve, which she co-founded in 1998 with her late husband, South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony, who published the first book in the series, The Elephant Whisperer, in 2009. Following his death in 2012, Malby-Anthony sought to honor his legacy by continuing his vision “to create a massive conservancy in Zululand, incorporating our land and other small farms and community land into one great big game park.” At the same time, the elephants gave her “a sense of purpose and direction.” In the Zulu language, thula means quiet, and though the author consistently seeks to provide that calm to her charges, peace and tranquility are not always easy to come by at Thula Thula. In this installment, Malby-Anthony discusses many of the challenges faced by her and her staff, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. These included an aggressive, 2-ton rhino named Thabo; the profound loss felt by all upon the death of their elephant matriarch, Frankie; difficulty obtaining permits and the related risk of having to relocate or cull some of their animals; the fear of looting and fire due to civil unrest in the region; and the ongoing and potentially deadly struggles with poachers. Throughout, the author also shares many warm, lighthearted moments, demonstrating the deep bond felt among the humans and animals at the reserve and the powerful effects of the kindness of strangers. “We are all working in unity for the greater good, for the betterment of Thula Thula and all our wildlife….We are humbled by the generosity and love, both from our guests and friends, and from strangers all around the world,” writes the author. “People’s open-hearted support kept us alive in the darkest times.”
A heartwarming and inspiring story for animal lovers.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781250284259
Page Count: 320
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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