June is here and the weather is perfect for spending time in the great outdoors. This month’s picks are nature and outdoor friendly, ideal for reading in the hammock or on the deck.
Sleeping Naked is Green by Vanessa Farquharson is the story of how one Canadian woman instituted one green tip a day for 366 days in her quest to live a more earth-friendly life. She documented her changes and their impact on her life on her blog, greenasathistle.com, which then was turned into a book. From small changes (switching to all natural lip balm) to large (getting rid of her car and unplugging her refrigerator), Vanessa’s journey and her meditations on what being ecologically-aware really means are both entertaining and thought-provoking. When she began her green odyssey, she was a high-maintenance, label-conscious, product-junkie snob. She also despised the holier-than-thou eco-conscious hippie freaks and their smug diatribes on the importance of being green. Frankly, I couldn’t imagine how she’d manage to green her life and maintain her chosen lifestyle, but by the time she completes her challenge, she is composting, bicycling, recycling and freecycling, yet still managing to be stylish. Fair warning, though: Vanessa did not live on a tight budget while pursuing the green lifestyle. During the year she went green, she also bought a house in Toronto and went on a six-week, 17,000-plus mile trip all over the world..
At times she seems to be straining for something to change (June 12: Go to eco-friendly spas?), but to be fair, it is probably difficult to come up with 366 changes in 366 days. Vanessa’s life post-challenge is greener than it was, but not as green as it could be. She has kept the changes that work for her, but discarded others. If you need inspiration to live a greener life, this book will provide it.
Brad Kessler was a writer living in Manhattan when he and his wife decided to change their lives and move to a farm in southern Vermont to raise goats and make goat cheese. I know nothing about goats and have little interest in agriculture, but Brad Kessler has been recommended to me many times, so I gave Goat Song a chance. It is wonderful, inspirational, educational and a rare treat to read. From buying the farm to purchasing their first two goats, to breeding them, milking them and producing cheese with the milk, this is a fascinating and sensual story. The bones of the narrative are the mundane tasks necessary to keep the goats fed and healthy and the chores that keep a goat farm running, but the meat is the lyrical writing about the origins of man’s ancient dependence on goats, the rhythms of nature upon which agricultural work is based, and the sensory delight of eating fresh, unpasteurized chevre directly from its cheese mold. Eating local fresh food has never sounded so appealing! Farmers, foodies and fans of wonderful writing will adore this book, and if you’re like me, you’ll do two things when you are done: 1) head to Honest Weight to buy some cheese and 2) sit down and read Heidi by Johanna Spyri.
One last book to mention: local mystery author Tom Schreck has his third Duffy Dombroski mystery, Out Cold, coming out this month. If you enjoy action-packed hilarious capers, this series is for you! They are pure fun.
Susan Taylor has been in the book business, in one aspect or another, since 1982.
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