Welcome to Litsy!

The person ringing me up at Barnes&Noble today said this was the most diverse selection of purchases he's ever seen lol. 2 horror mangas by one of my favorites, indigenous teachings about nature and learning from plants, a puzzle, and a magazine about gardening.

I told him I have a lot of interests. What's funny is this just scratches the surface of things I enjoy 😆

#bookhaul #variety

Through reciprocity the gift is replenished. All of our flourishing is mutual.

#SpringSkies
#NFIndigenousPpl
@Eggs
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

#sweetgrass #nature #wisdom #botany #colortheory #purple #orange #yellow #gold #indigenous #knowledge

I saw the writer and writing coach, Paulette Perchach post about this book in her IG stories. She said if she recommended one book that everyone should read, it would be this one.

5/5

This was a fascinating read about about plants, the natural world, and indigenous culture, from the perspective of a Potawatomi scientist.

Thank you, Wendy!!! I am excited to read this! ❤️

Happy Jolabokaflod, everyone! 😄

@wen4blu @MaleficentBookDragon
#JolabokaflodSwap2023

I loved this book! I learned so much.
Kimmerer is a biologist who has spent her life learning and teaching about plants and their place in the world. She relates her knowledge back to her Potawatomi roots and lessons she learned from her grandmother and other members of the Indigenous community.

#2023Book70

Even a wounded world. 💯

This work is a treasure. There is only one word to describe this book, beautiful.

Absolutely beautiful.

Worth the wait to find myself a copy.

An easy read, even the science. Although, some parts were emotionally difficult to read... thankfully, the author kept such subjects light on details and more on cause and effect.

This work takes a poetic approach at suggesting a way forward...

Page 305 “...George Washington directed federal troops to exterminate the Onondaga during the Revolutionary War, a nation that had numbered in the tens of thousands was reduced to a few hundred people in a matter of one year...Parents tried to hide their children from Indian agents...the language that framed the Great Law of Peace was forbidden...ceremonies meant to keep the world in balance, were banned by law.“

This was one of the magical chapters. I've read it twice because I have always noticed that there are different water drops (I've been amazed by this fact since childhood).

I'm a couple of chapters over from this now.

Was excited at the mention of Hiawatha and the Peacemaker. Although, I prefer the version that tells of Hiawatha's grief over the loss of his daughters and his choice to forgive instead of hate, and about the first Clan Mother.

I always loved the history of the Hiawatha Belt. The Mohawk were one of the tribes involved.

We've considered such things. The way we address this is to buy the closest to genuinely natural as possible, and be grateful that those options are available.

Not easy, true. It's a journey. We began years ago & continue to learn & apply.

My mom has become better at this, the minute I see one of my obsessions I am again lost to non-eco bric-a-brac.

Batman, Encanto, anything Christmassy, fantasy or ghostly, garden deco. Etc. Etc. I'm horrible!

“I wonder if much that ails our society stems from the fact that we have allowed ourselves to be cut off from that love of, and from, the land. It is medicine for broken land and empty hearts.“

“...one thing I would recommend to restore relationship between land and people...“plant a garden.“ It's good for the health of the Earth and...people...once you develop a relationship with a little patch of Earth, it becomes a seed itself.“

“It is said that our people learned to make sugar from the squirrels.“

I ♥️ 🐿️ ! I will always think of squirrels while having maple syrup.

“the wonder of drinking sap straight from the tree. Sap, but not syrup...Earth endows us with gifts...The responsibility does not lie with the maples alone...we participate in its transformation. It is our work, and our gratitude, that distills the sweetness.“

Truth in so many of life's tedious tasks.

“The animacy of the world is something we already know, but the language of animacy teeters on extinction“

I've read about this in other American Indigenous languages.

It matches the way I feel, and I have always tried to incorporate this into my writing/speaking. Constantly try, yet it is tricky in the english language. I've probably missed chances to apply these rules.

Am I foolish to believe that the english language can be enlightened??

A bouquet of perfection.

“flowers could be ugly to us and still fulfill their purpose. But they're not.“

“by definition beauty could not be a valid scientific question...my questions were bigger than science could touch.“

“It is this dance of cross-pollination that can produce a new species of knowledge, a new way of being in the world. After all, there aren't two worlds, there is just this one good green Earth.“

The notion that a sacred plant is made impure if sold/purchased did not settle well with me.

That's like saying our tap water is no longer sacred.

I don't mean to be disrespectful. I get it, I feel and was raised up differently...this is something I just can't believe.

I get the chemically ruined, that could transform medicine into poison.

The gift economy was interesting. I've always liked the idea of bartering and such.

The Council Of Pecans

Absolutely fascinating. The way the pecan trees work is breathtaking.

“In the old times, our elders say, the trees talked to each other...“

“There is now compelling evidence that our elders were right-the trees are talking to one another...“

I've always known this about plants, but finding out that science has acknowledged this as fact...spectacular.

I believe that it is by wind and root (fungal bridges) 😉.

Purchased this from my local REI a few weeks ago.

Been wanting to read this for years, never managed to run across a copy until now.

Strange, what perfect timing.

This is like reading a holy book. I read a chapter or two at a time for months because I had so much to think about.

30 book recommendations in 30 days...

Day 9: This was a beautiful audiobook in so many ways. Her calming voice suited the subject matter so well and I found it the perfect, unique mix of science, traditional Indigenous knowledge and practices, and her personal experiences. I enjoyed it so much that I also bought a physical copy so I can flip to specific sections easily whenever I want. Have encouraged many to read it. #30recsin30days

I‘m kicking myself for not reading this sooner. It would have meshed beautifully with Firekeeper‘s Daughter for our library‘s winter read. So far it‘s gorgeous. The author is narrating and she reads in this gorgeous dreamy way.

This is an audio book I may need to buy in print for rereading pleasure. Such wisdom and such reverence for the earth! I loved listening to her reading it too.

@ravenlee thanks for the tag for #wonderouswednesday
1. i have met authors and had books signed at The National Book Festival and various Comic Cons
2. i have done this more times than i want to admit!
3. Honestly I cannot decide! what fictional books have good healthcare, equity, community, environmentalism?

This started out quite strong for me and the last essay or two (?) Have seemed quite dull in comparison and a bit repetitive. I like the beginning because of the discussion of a gift economy/reciprocity. I ❤️the indigenous lore & science but her waxing poetic is too much at times . Also there is a heavy focus on mothers and while I appreciate and understand the sentiment, she seems to be adding an extra burden on women (maybe this time changes?).

3.5/5
It's a love letter to nature, a thank you to everything nature gives us.

The author shares wisdom from nature, teachings we, humans, should put into practice.

Robin Wall Kimmerer shares Native Americans' wisdom and concepts about reciprocity, about our duties concerning nature.

It's a very interesting read, even if I'm not a fan of the lyrical tone she sometimes uses.

Possibly the most beautifully written book I have ever read/listened to. Robin Wall Kimmerer‘s mixture of science, memoir, and Native worldview combines to make an experience unlike any other. This book is truly a gift and I want to run out and buy a copy for everyone I know. Or, at the very least, tell everyone that they need to read it. Like, legitimately need.

This is interesting. There's something very soothing about listening to this author talk about science and culture for 16 hours.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Recommended by one of my favorite people in the whole world, this is such a beautiful book. 🥹😍 #braidingsweetgrass #robinwallkimmerer #botany #naturalworld #indigenouswisdom #earthday #indigenouspeoples

A beautiful love note to the Earth and all of its beings. Filled with gratitude for what the Earth provides and how humans can be better to reciprocate. 100/10. Recommended reading for absolutely everybody. My copy is full of sticky notes and annotations, so good.

Book club today! (Not this book though!) 😉

This month and next for book club. #BooksWithBeth #FirstSaturdayReaders

So, funny enough I didn‘t necessarily love reading this book. I put it down midway and almost didn‘t pick it back up. But, I‘m glad I did because I think it‘s given me an important perspective about reciprocity and motherhood that I‘ve found myself thinking a lot about.

Up next for book club.

This one has been sitting on my shelves awhile but after a librarian I know recommended it this week—he had just accessioned the edition for young readers—I decided it‘s time to start reading.

A call to listen to nature, take more consideration to nature, and to realize that we are not the only species on earth and start to take more consideration to all the others.

I loved the indigenous folklore/ myth stories about how earth and humans were made.

3rd book for #FabulousFebruary
@Andrew65

An important reminder - there‘s always humans behind every decision made by a corporation

This - language is more that just words

Because the mature leaves make more sugar than they can use right away, the sugar stream starts to flow in the opposite direction, from leaves back to roots, through the phloem. And so the roots, which fed the buds, are now fed in return by the leaves all summer long. The sugar is converted back to starch, stored in the original “root cellar”. The syrup we pour over pancakes on a winter morning is summer sunshine flowing in golden streams to pool

Finished my first book of 2023, which also happened to be my IRL book club book and my #doublespin #bookspinbingo.

I loved this. I will probably buy a copy for myself, because I want to reread it and highlight the parts that really struck a chord with me. It was beautiful and heartbreaking, but strangely hopeful, too. Highly recommend it.

@TheAromaofBooks

Yet another book read with my book club!
I also loved Book of Extraordinary Tragedies by Joe Meno in September.

#12BooksOf2022
@Andrew65

I finally finished this. Her way of life is unlike what I've known, and it helped me look at things differently. I think it's a book I'll return to. #NaturaLitsy @AllDebooks

5 ⭐️s
This is one of those rare books that once I finish it, I want to buy up several hundred copies and get it into as many people‘s hands as possible. Every essay spoke to me and I will carry this book in my heart for the rest of my life. I urge anyone who loves nature to pick it up sometime. Even if you take away half of what it has filled me with, you will be the better for it. I‘ll be buying a personal copy since this was a library read.

Honestly, I struggled to get through the second half of this. I heartily agree with her philosophy regarding the importance of having relationships with nature. Yet, I was often left with the impression that only Native Americans currently have relationships with nature. Felt a little insulting. My favorite section was the one on basket making. Overall, I think this book was longer than necessary and repetitive. I liked her book on moss better.

This book is thoughtful and heartfelt. At times it is heartbreaking but it is always hopeful.

It has helped me to begin to connect my mind to my heart.

#Naturalitsy
This seminal book has many threads running through it, including botany, connections with nature & each other, science, culture (both western and indigenous), memoir and climate change. With this content in mind, it's best to view it as a collection of essays when reading. I thoroughly enjoyed it and have learned a great deal. There are many points to debate, so it is a good selection for a bookclub. ⬇️⬇️⬇️