Like Earth Odyssey, this book is enjoyable balance between
journalism and personal experience. The author, Derrek Jensen, (
frequently appearing in Sun Magazine ), explores the mystery of
interspecies communication, mixing in his own life story, from his
childhood in an abusive family, to his struggle as an
environmentalist within our cultural on verge of collapse.
There's no easy summary for this book. The chapter names do as well as anything to give a sampling of what he covers: Silencing, Coyotes, Kittens, and Conversations, Cultural Eyeglasses, Seeking a Third Way, Economics, The Goal is the Process, Violence, Honeybees, Innerconnection, Connection and Cooperation.
The mood of the book bounces from angry to hopeful, from despair to wonder. After reading a few chapters, I put the book down and was endanger of not picking it up again. It felt full of anger. While I was interested in the topics he was discussing, I didn't really want to hear them in that tone. I picked the book back up, finished it and was rewarded. Not with a self-inflicted load of painful reading, but honesty. It was as if he was saying "These are the issues I care about about here's how I feel about them". Sometimes it was optimistic, sometimes not. I have to agree, sometimes it's hard to look at the world and be an optimist. By the end of the book, I felt like I'd not only gained some insights about how to keep coyotes from eating my chickens, but I also felt closer to knowing a person. It's a good book.
One of the memorable parts of the book was interview with Cleve Backster. Cleve uses scientific tests to show that plants can somehow respond to other plants and animals regardless of distance.
I recommend this book.
Read more about this book at Amazon.com
Thanks to Chris for the gift.