2. Name of Book Review Author Is Included at End of Each Review

1

Book Reviews

NOTES:

1. We used a star rating system with 5 stars as the highest. I was unable to insert the actual stars, so have just indicated the number to include for each book.

2. Name of book review author is included at end of each review.

3. In keeping with typical reviews, page numbers for quotations have not been included. They can be added, if necessary. Just let me know.

Bass, Rick. The Lives of Rocks. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2006.

4 stars

The Lives of Rocks is a collection of ten short stories written by the conservationist writer Rick Bass. The stories focus on how the intimate connection between humans and the environment around us shapes our personal lives and our outer lives. Characters either recognize modern day environmental problems or slowly become aware of their own personal problems through their decaying environments. Bass does an excellent job of juxtaposing nature’s natural beauty and the reality of dirty industry in states like Texas, or the problem of overfishing by tourists along the Alabama coast. All in all, Bass offers a well written collection for nature lovers and those who enjoy introspective characters and writing.

Readers familiar with Emerson will see a similar intimacy with nature in The Lives of Rocks. I found myself enjoying reading one story at a time and then taking a break to reflect on what I had read. This breaks the book down into chunks and allows you to absorb each story’s theme and the problems faced by a particular character.

For example, “The Lives of Rocks,” the short story in this collection that gives the collection its title, features a woman who lives in the wilderness alone. Readers will have known this woman already as Bass uses her in an earlier short story. There is an established connection that adds further characterization when she is diagnosed with cancer. As the cancer worsens, our character realizes that she can’t continue living in the wilderness by herself like she’s been doing for so long. She realizes she needs help from others in the end, but she can no longer enjoy her life in the outdoors like she once did.

Stories like these make up Bass’s collection—a character either realizes a problem in themselves or a problem in the environment that ties back to their own well-being. This pattern doesn’t come across as formulaic, but some readers may be put off by a few stories that read as preachy. The guiltiest story is the final one. Bass takes everything he’s written so far in theme and applies it, almost or seemingly breaking the fourth wall. His ending to his collection is meant to be a call to action, but reads more as a harsh plea than as a story. This is what made me give the collection four stars instead of five. It didn’t break the collection for me, but it could break it for some readers. Despite this last bump, The Lives of Rocks was an enjoyable and introspective read.

Bass’s stories are either set in the south or south west, but Northern Illinois readers can still find relevance in his writing when thinking of pollution, rivers, forests, and the migration of animals. His introspective writing style paired with his juxtaposition of decay and the need for growth in the human person is enough to give this read a try.

Reviewed by Lucas Marchini

Bishop, Elizabeth. Poems. Ed. Lloyd Schwartz. 1sted. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. 2011. Electronic.

5 stars

Elizabeth Bishop’s Poems is a collection of the late poet’s works. The text contains some of her more well-known, separately published pieces such as North & South, A Cold Spring, and Questions of Travel, along with a few lesser studied writings and poems. Collected and edited by fellow poet Lloyd Schwartz, this book offers a glimpse into the life of the elusive artist, poet, and writer Elizabeth Bishop (1911-1979).

Poems offers the reader a new, rather detailed perspective on the environment. For indeed Bishop focused much of her writing on her view of the world that surrounded her. Places were her focus, and she leaves none out. Rural, urban, exotic locations, and the great outdoors are all examined with a keen eye for detail. Bishop traveled extensively, and this is reflected heavily in her work: however, the work does not feel foreign to the reader. Her poetry has an ease which is easily translatable to a wide variety of readers.

Though her work examines places and locations, there is an overwhelmingly empathetic quality throughout. Bishop, through minute and thoughtful detail, painted sensory scenes with her poetry. One of her more well-known pieces “A Cold Spring” describes the awakening of a new season:

Now, from the thick grass, the fireflies begin to rise:

up, then down, then up again:

lit on the ascending flight,

drifting simultaneously to the same height,

--exactly like bubbles in champagne.

--later on they rise much higher.

Bishop is not overly wordy. Every carefully chosen phrase is simple yet effective and gives the reader an instant sensory image of what she is describing.

Bishop’s talent in creative writing is not limited to just describing the environment. She is also quite adept at applying human sentiment to nonhuman creatures and nonliving places. Poems like “The Fish” and “The Man-Moth”are perfect examples of this. This examination of the human condition through means of an animal or a specific environment allows for a more understated writing style. It also allows for a better understanding of humanity’s connection with the earth and everything that resides on it. Only through an understanding can we hope to preserve and maintain the beautiful world around us.

Bishop’s Poems is highly recommended for any nature enthusiast. Readers will love Bishop’s emotionally scenic style of writing, which perfectly captures the outdoors. Not only is this a great collection of beautiful poetic reflections which highlights the beauty and often underappreciated details of the world around us, but it also serves as a reminder that we as humans play a part in the world around us.

Reviewed by Mary Bridgeland

Bradbury, Ray. The Martian Chronicles. New York: Simon and Schuster Paperbacks, 2012.

4 stars

Ray Bradbury is one of the greatest American authors of the twentieth century, perhaps known best for his novel Fahrenheit 451 (1953). Bradbury is, however, much more an author of short stories than a novelist, and his propensity for shortstories is on display in The Martian Chronicles (1950).

The Martian Chronicles is a collection of related science-fiction short stories arranged as a novel, covering various human expeditions to the planet Mars, human interaction with the Martians who inhabit the planet, and man’s interaction with the Red Planet itself.

There is a lot to love in The Martian Chronicles for both long-time Bradbury readers and readers opening his pages for the first time. Bradbury’s signature prose-poetic language colors the pages, and his pet theme of nostalgia returns. In “April 2000: The Third Expedition,” astronauts land on Mars to find themselves instead on Earth, surrounded by family and friends, some who have long passed. Drawn in by the familiar, the captain discovers too late that he and the rest of his crew of astronauts have fallen into a Martian trap, proving that nostalgia can indeed kill.

The Martian Chronicles, however, also has a lot to say about how man treats the planet. In “June 2001: -- and the Moon Be Still as Bright,” the fourth expedition lands on a Mars in ruin. Martian cities have been abandoned. While some members of the crew party and one member, “Biggs,” drop empty bottles into Martian canals, another member, “Spender,” responds by punching Biggs in the face. Spender explains his actions to his captain, saying that “[Earth Men will] rip [Mars] up, rip the skin off, and change it to fit ourselves.” He continues, saying that “We Earth Men have a talent for ruining big, beautiful things.”

Bradbury writes about the mass-migration from Earth to Mars, the planet’s settlement, and about human life on the Red Planet. He also writes about Earth, where nuclear war soon begins.

Published in 1950, The Martian Chronicles is an early product of the Cold War and the fears of the destruction of our planet by nuclear war. By pointing his readers to the heavens, creating another world, and sending his readers to this other world, Bradbury focuses his readers on home, on Earth, and on our treatment of our home.

As a collection of related short-stories arranged as a novel, The Martian Chronicles is not character-driven, at least not in the traditional sense. Although some characters reoccur, the only constant, reoccurring character that drives the stories is the Red Planet Mars itself.

Available for as little as $6.00 in mass market paperback from Amazon, The Martian Chronicles is well-worth the investment of money and time (and at only 241 pages, you won’t be investing a lot of that, either, unless, of course, you want to re-read it, and for that I wouldn’t blame you).

The Martian Chronicles is science-fiction blended with just the right amount of horror and flashes of environmental awareness written in the same beautiful language that one has come to expect from the master American author.

Reviewed by Daniel A. Nord

Bryson, Bill. A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail. New York: Broadway, 1998.

5 stars

In a perfect mix of creative non-fiction, historical narrative, and a call to action to save our national forests, Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods takes its readers on a comedic but informative adventure on the Appalachian Trail (or the AT as its devotees so lovingly call it). Bryson takes on the trail with a long lost, but never forgotten friend as a myriad of funny but often frightening situations arise. Through his witty and comedic undertone, Bryson allows the reader to experience the trail through words, while remaining adamant that he is also encouraging his readers to follow in his footsteps and see it for themselves.

Deciding he is going to take on the daunting task of walking the 2,100+ miles of the AT, from Georgia to Maine, Bryson sets out on a journey most people would never even consider: walking from the southern United States to the northern most part. Joined by his old friend Katz, Bryson soon realizes that he is in for way more than he had bargained for. Out of shape and aging, Bryson is always reminding his reader how his own physical existence is not that different from that of the AT. Aging but maintained, the trail and Bryson could both use some work in terms of getting healthier. His creative non-fiction narrative reminds the reader that these are real people with real experiences who walk the trail, and he is quick to share the stories of those who have completed it from end to end.

Mixing this creative narrative with historical information, Bryson enlightens his readers on what the trail went through in its 70 year existence from its establishment to when he walked the trail in 1996. Throughout that time, the trail has gone through stages of neglect and revitalization. At its inception, few people actually walked the trail, which caused it to become overgrown in areas. Throughout the decades, the AT has been rerouted so many times that the AT one walked in the late 1920s differs almost completely from the AT one walks today. Bryson focuses many pages of the book to the historical context of the trail and the towns, shelters, and people who have been lost along the way.

Encapsulating the elements of creative and historical narrative is the overarching "call to action" that seems to be the feeling Bryson would like to leave his reader with. At the time of his hike, Bryson noticed major issues facing the AT. Though he touches on issues of safety on the trail (weariness of other hikers, as well as the landscape of the trail), what he would like the reader to come away with more than anything is the realization that conservation is key. Bryson narrows in on the National Park Service in the U.S. and how poorly they have done at the task of actual conservation. Bryson makes a worthy attempt to emphasize that these organizations need to focus more on conserving nature rather than on ensuring we can manipulate nature for the benefit of mankind. It seems Bryson would recognize the importance of Forest Preserves over their fellowship with Park Services as one is focused on the preservation of nature and the other on the preservation of the human race through intervening with nature.

Between the creative and historical narrative, and the ever present call to action, the reader is left with an amazing travelogue of one man's journey through the wilderness. It is a story of endurance, not only as a hiker, but also the ever enduring ways that nature will always prevail.

Reviewed by Megan Peper

Dickinson, Emily. The Collected Works of Emily Dickinson. Introduction and Notes by Rachel Wetzsteon. New York: Barnes and Noble, 2003.

5 stars

Emily Dickinson’s poetry is not only beautiful, but it is accessible to all ages. The way she writes is relatable on a very personal level. This book is wonderful because it tells the reader about Emily Dickinson’s life and organizes her work in a very readable way. The book opens with a mini-biography of Dickinson’s life. This is important to read because you really get to know Dickinson through her poetry. She is a very emotional writer and knowing about her life helps the reader become closer to her. It is interesting to learn that Dickinson was somewhat of a recluse and would write her poetry from inside her home and her backyard. There is also a section that breaks down her poetry writing style and gives the reader a glimpse of how her process must have been. This is great to read because it makes the reader aware of the way Dickinson writes and leaves you attune to her style.

An important thing to know about Emily Dickinson’s poetry is that she never used titles. Roman numerals are used in this book to separate the poems from each other, but most often her poems are categorized by their first line. I will refer to the poems in this way. The poems are also categorized into themes. The different themes are Life, Nature, Love, Time, and Eternity.

Even though Dickinson spent most of her time in her home or only in her backyard, her poetry about nature is amazing. Dickinson has a real connection to the plants and animals she sees. She puts herself on the same level as all of these creatures, and her poetry shows a unique perspective on wildlife that people don’t normally have. In “The Rat is the ConcisestTenant,” she personifies a rat, an animal that would otherwise be seen as dirty, and gives him a lovable personality. In “The Spider as an Artist,” she makes a usually disgusting creature be one who creates art and is sentient of his works. Showing animals in this way makes the reader think about how we are treating our natural world. The use of poetry and beautiful imagery give the reader a call to arms and gives them motivation to give nature respect.

The other poems in the Nature section, such as “So Bashful When I Spied Her,” “A Dew Sufficed Itself,” and “The Murmuring of Bees Has Ceased,” give the reader an intimate look into Dickinson’s fragile mind. These poems show her innocence and genuine curiosity of the world. These poems make the reader become introspective and look into how they see themselves and that is a unique and brilliant quality to have in an author. She is a writer that needs to be read and studied.

The editor of this edition also gives little footnotes to let the reader know some of the context of the words, which I loved because it helped me understand some of the imagery.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone, poetry lover or not, because of its beautiful language and the delicate appreciation of Nature shown in these poems by Dickinson.

Reviewed by Susan Collins

Krakauer, Jon. Into the Wild. New York: Anchor Books, 1996.

4 stars

“In April 1992 a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley…Four Months later, his decomposed body was found by a moose hunter.”--Jon Krakauer

From the first page, Into the Wild promises an interesting tale full of adventure and speculation as to the true story that surrounded the death of Christopher McCandless; Jon Krakauer follows the path McCandless walked in his final days in the wilderness of
Alaska. In many ways the novel tells two distinct stories: the story of McCandless and the story of Krakauer as he walks the path of a dead boy.