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Braiding Sweetgrass
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
"As a leading researcher in the field of biology, Robin Wall Kimmerer understands the delicate state of our world. But as an active member of the Potawatomi nation, she senses and relates to the world through a way of knowing far older than any science. In Braiding Sweetgrass, she intertwines these two modes of awareness--the analytic and the emotional, the scientific and the cultural--to ultimately reveal a path toward healing the rift that grows between people and nature. The woven essays that construct this book bring people back into conversation with all that is green and growing; a universe that never stopped speaking to us, even when we forgot how to listen"--
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review
sebrittainclark
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

5/5

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

53 likes2 stack adds
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faelinwolf
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Thank you, Wendy!!! I am excited to read this! ❤️

Happy Jolabokaflod, everyone! 😄

@wen4blu @MaleficentBookDragon
#JolabokaflodSwap2023

wen4blu Hooray! Happy holidays! 3mo
16 likes1 comment
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K.Wielechowski
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

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JacintaMCarter
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick
OhNoMersault Such a powerful book 5mo
29 likes1 comment
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Chelseabillups30
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Even a wounded world. 💯

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Chrissyreadit
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Bklover This sounds perfectly reasonable to me. 😊 6mo
julesG @RaeLovesToRead guess you're on the right path. 🤣🤣🤣 6mo
dabbe 🤩🤩🤩 6mo
See All 8 Comments
RaeLovesToRead @julesG 🤣🤣🤣 What I've got to do is stop buying several copies of a book BEFORE I know if it's any good hahaha 6mo
Ruthiella 😂😂😂 6mo
Aimeesue Oddly enough, Braiding Sweetgrass is literally that 4 copy book for me. I have them all! 😂 (edited) 6mo
Chrissyreadit @Aimeesue I love Braiding Sweet Grass and have audio and hard copy too! 6mo
Hooked_on_books I love it! 6mo
78 likes8 comments
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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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...

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.“

AnnCrystal All the Miraculous Good Work of Hiawatha, the first Clan Mother, and the Peacemaker wrecked. Sacred lands and waters poisoned...descendants thrown into turmoil 😑😕😢. (edited) 6mo
9 likes1 comment
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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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I always loved the history of the Hiawatha Belt. The Mohawk were one of the tribes involved.

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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!

AnnCrystal This would be funny if not so serious an issue... 7mo
PageShifter I have this book in my TBR. But oh boy, yeah definitely serious. I have days when I hope to know less... 7mo
AnnCrystal @PageShifter 😔💕. True. I have the habit of preferring to ignore the world. Find a good book to get lost within...garden my anxieties away. I guess the world needs more of us to pay attention. I love my garden and garden critters, and I kind of feel like I'm being a bad garden parent...strange right. I need to help protect them somehow 🌱💕🙂. 7mo
10 likes3 comments
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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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“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.“

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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“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.

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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“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??

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.“

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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) 😉.

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AnnCrystal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

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REPollock
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

Leftcoastzen 😻👏 9mo
REPollock @Leftcoastzen 🐈‍⬛🖤 9mo
21 likes2 comments
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CuriousG
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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

Tkimsal My book club read this and it has some beautiful passages. 👍 9mo
CuriousG @Tkimsal it really does! I know everyone has some things they connect to more than others in this one, but I truly feel it has something for everyone. 9mo
24 likes2 comments
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MissHel
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

Ruthiella 😻😻😻 9mo
12 likes1 comment
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Lcsmcat
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

Tamra Highly recommend it in print. Definitely much to linger over. 9mo
Lcsmcat @Tamra Good to know! 9mo
CuriousG I bought a print copy after listening to the audio. A nice way to be able to go back into the specific areas I want to revisit. 9mo
48 likes3 comments
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Chrissyreadit
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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@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?

Eggs #3 Canada?? 9mo
43 likes1 comment
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Andrea4
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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?).

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Adventures-of-a-French-Reader
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

Tamra That is a beautiful edition. 10mo
25 likes1 comment
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BC_Dittemore
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

Eggs Good to know🥰 10mo
15 likes1 comment
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vlwelser
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 11mo
49 likes1 comment
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actualdisneyprincess
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Recommended by one of my favorite people in the whole world, this is such a beautiful book. 🥹😍 #braidingsweetgrass #robinwallkimmerer #botany #naturalworld #indigenouswisdom #earthday #indigenouspeoples

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kera_11
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

KadaGul @kera_11 My friend has #LFL/#LITTLEFREELIBRARY n as a steward she won 🔟 copies of #BraidingSweetgreat 🥰😍🙏 11mo
11 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Tkimsal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Book club today! (Not this book though!) 😉

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Tkimsal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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This month and next for book club. #BooksWithBeth #FirstSaturdayReaders

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Gadolby
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
Pickpick

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.

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Tkimsal
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Up next for book club.

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TracyReadsBooks
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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.

mcctrish I love this book! I own it and listened to the audio 13mo
30 likes1 comment
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AnneCecilie
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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

Andrew65 Sounds excellent, well done 👏👏👏 14mo
78 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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AnneCecilie
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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An important reminder - there‘s always humans behind every decision made by a corporation

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AnneCecilie
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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This - language is more that just words

bthegood Thank you for sharing - love this passage and reminder of the many ways in which words matter - make a great day - 🙂 14mo
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AnneCecilie
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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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

AnneCecilie on our plates. 14mo
54 likes1 comment
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gossamerchild
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 1y
Kangaj1 I am almost done with this on audio! 1y
gossamerchild @Kangaj1 Ooh, I didn't think about listening to it. Are you enjoying it? 1y
Kangaj1 The audio is fantastic - she reads it and her voice is soothing. 1y
gossamerchild @Kangaj1 That sounds lovely! 1y
30 likes5 comments
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PaperbackPirate
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Yet another book read with my book club!
I also loved Book of Extraordinary Tragedies by Joe Meno in September.

#12BooksOf2022
@Andrew65

39 likes2 comments
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CaitZ
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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

AllDebooks It is a beautiful book and defo an eye opener 🌱 1y
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MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

35 likes3 stack adds
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SayersLover
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Mehso-so

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.

AnnR A thoughtful review and you summed the book up nicely. I felt pretty much the same way and gave up on it about half-way through. 1y
21 likes1 comment
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Messiejessie
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

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.

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AllDebooks
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

#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. ⬇️⬇️⬇️

AllDebooks Cont. I particularly loved the indigenous folklore stories, Kimmerer's work with her students & family life with her daughters. 1y
40 likes1 comment
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Graywacke
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Mehso-so

A collection of personal essays, sometimes accumulating into a sense of theme. They‘re mixed. Some are great, many were plain. They trend idealistic, with romanticized Native American values. Based on these essays we might (sarcastically) conclude that the solution to all the world‘s problems is to purchase a rural property in New York and grow a garden. I wanted a hard but healthy reality check. But she did leave me with stuff to think about.

Graywacke Read with #naturalitsy 1y
AllDebooks This a great, honest review. I agree with the reality check, for sure. We can all make a difference whether in an apartment or rural property. 1y
Graywacke @AllDebooks thanks! And thanks for leading…and for your group. I really wanted to read this and I‘m not sure I would have gotten very far without the group support. 1y
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AllDebooks @Graywacke it's such a pleasure. I'm so very grateful to find like-minded folks x 1y
TheBookHippie So fun to be reading with you again! Great review. 1y
Graywacke @TheBookHippie ditto. I enjoy it too. (I miss our Shakespeare). And thanks. 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke I miss Shakespeare ! We might need to do seasonal rereads 😂♥️ 1y
AnnR @Graywacke - Wonderful review! All your well stated points summed up why I decided not to finish the book. Some of Kimmerer's ideals made for lovely, flowery essays but they seem too impractical to put into practice, even just in the U.S. The disconnect was even more perplexing coming from a (supposed) person of science. Actually, I wish she'd just left all the science related stuff out. 1y
Graywacke @Ann_Reads i was ready to bail at one point, but I enjoyed the last two sections. I think her relationship with the sciences is not well worked out. Clearly she needs it in her thinking. 1y
56 likes9 comments
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AllDebooks
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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#Naturalitsy

Our final week of Braiding Sweetgrass. What are your thoughts on the book? Was it a hit or miss?

We're having a break for the holidays now. We will pick up our next read, tagged in comments, on Monday 2nd January. Y'know, just in case of New Years hangovers 😊🥂❄️🎄

@wordslinger42 @rockpools @Chrissyreadit @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm @Blackink_WhitePaper @BookwormAHN @Deblovestoread @MilesnMelodies @Graywacke @Dilara @mitch

literarymermaid I read Braiding Sweetgrass a while back and am totally in love with it. I look forward to the discussion!
(edited) 1y
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jenniferw88 I think you mean January, not July! 😂😂😂 I really enjoyed it & has got me thinking on how to do my bit to help the earth - I just need to read more & figure out how best to do it with my health problems. 1y
rockpools 😂😂 That‘s some hangover! I‘m still reading, and enjoying this - a definite pick from me 😊 (edited) 1y
AllDebooks Lol, fyi I am not an alcoholic. Trots off to edit 😅😊🙃 1y
Graywacke The last section had what seemed to me some of the best essays. I really liked her point that information known in the sciences doesn‘t affect the culture or community. Any action has to first be embraced widely. 1y
Graywacke Overall I‘m mixed. I wanted a glance at reality as part of her relationship with the small stuff she encourages and the native philosophy she promotes. I felt these were presented with blinders on. And some essays were better than others. Some essays felt part of the whole and built on each other, but some felt more random. (edited) 1y
Graywacke And…July has less letters than January, if you‘re counting Litsy-post characters. ☺️ 1y
SamAnne I really appreciated this book. I read it last year and didn‘t actively participate in the read-along. Perhaps I didn‘t love it quite as much as others, but I have such admiration the the author. Much of my career has involved working with NW tribes on salmon restoration so some of the themes weren‘t new to me. I love the trend of Tribes fighting for more leadership over natural resource issues and environmental protection. 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke An action has to first be embraced wildly AMEN. That in itself is every thing. I do feel she had a bit of blinders on. I did love her lyrical writing style and I believe her to be passionate in her cause and I hope at the very least it gives people pause and think a bit differently. I am very glad I read it! 1y
Graywacke @TheBookHippie yes, the thinking differently. She had that impact on me and I appreciated that a lot. 1y
Graywacke @SamAnne sounds like a very interesting career! 1y
Deblovestoread I loved listening to this and connected with some more than others but still learned some things. 1y
AllDebooks @literarymermaid Hi, lovely to hear from you. Glad you enjoyed the book. What did you like the most? 1y
AllDebooks @Graywacke I enjoyed this part the most. The lake/Allied chemicals essay was fascinating.
Hmm, I was mixed about the comments on community and group action. I'm a great believer that an individual can & does make a difference. I have to hope that is true otherwise what's the point!! Look what Greta Thunberg did with her school strikes. Alone for so long but persisted and it became a global event.
1y
AllDebooks 😂@jenniferw88 hahaha, I did laugh. Thanks to you and @rockpools for drawing my attention to my error. That would have been the mother of all hangovers!! 😂 I'm glad you enjoyed it and it has made you think more. I've been reading so much about environmental impact for a while now. I'm happy to help you if you wish. x (edited) 1y
AllDebooks @rockpools 😁 Yay, another positive. I hope you continue to enjoy it as you finish it. 1y
AllDebooks @SamAnne I love this comment, what a fascinating career!! The Tribe's eco-activism made me cheer. I'm behind them and bow to their expertise. 1y
Graywacke @AllDebooks I was thinking about how resistant the US is to addressing global warming. The science and passions of perceived liberals (like Greta) don‘t compete with the conservative-driven denial/misinformation. (I think it‘s not actually a conservative/liberal issue. That‘s an odd unhelpful political construction.) Without wider popular support, there is only so much that can happen. I think she is touching on that. 1y
AllDebooks @TheBookHippie I was reading this initially but towards the end moved to the audiobook as short on time. I really enjoyed her writing even more with her narration. I think her passion & reverence for her subject really shows. I'm so pleased you enjoyed it. It is a seminal nature book, very widely referenced. 1y
AllDebooks @Deblovestoread It was an eclectic book. I did feel more comfortable thinking of it as an essay collection to get over the occasional disconnect or random topics. 1y
AllDebooks @Graywacke lol, great minds. This was going to be my next point!! I was wondering how much more effective our fight against climate change would have been if we had the internet back in the 80s. Ironically, given the amount of environmental damage our technology had caused. But, if we had been able to communicate & connect more effectively, maybe the general population could have been more proactive fighting the lack of gov response. (edited) 1y
AllDebooks The tide is finally turning. I just hope it's not too late.
1y
AllDebooks Again, thank you all so much for joining me on this read-along. The discussions have been stimulating and thoughtful. I can't wait for our next one. 1y
Graywacke @AllDebooks were aligned! I do wish Florida had gone Gore in 2000. (My childhood state was much healthier in the 20th century.) What a difference it might have made. 1y
AllDebooks @Graywacke Things could have been so different! 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke climate change denial is tied to evangelical religious alt right. They are taught from kindergarten it is evil to love this earth and people who do are witches, & this isn‘t their home, their home is heaven where it‘ll be perfect. It is taught at every parochial school here -so that does not help. I attended one and was taught this, we‘ve had discussions in town with people in similar school situations different ages⬇️ 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke cont—— all of us were taught it we asked a recent grad. Same thing still being taught. That can‘t help. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke GORE. Yes. Ugh. He was right!!!!!! So aggravating. 1y
TheBookHippie @AllDebooks thanks so much for leading!!! 1y
TheBookHippie @AllDebooks @Deblovestoread I had to switch very early to thinking it was all short essays. Otherwise it would have driven me to stop reading it! Ha. 1y
Graywacke @TheBookHippie “taught…it is evil to love this earth” !! 😳😢😟☹️😞 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke Welcome to evangelical alt right schooling…. 🤢 1y
TheBookHippie @Graywacke I spent my life in detention age 9 -17 when I graduated 😂 mostly for arguing with teachers. 1y
AllDebooks @TheBookHippie it's always a pleasure. Keeps me busy and out of trouble 😁 1y
AllDebooks @TheBookHippie 9 - 17 🤣🤣🤣 1y
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I truly loved this book. My personal life made it hard for me to keep up with the read-a-long, but I just finished! I found something of value in just about every essay. My copy‘s from the library, but I‘ll definitely get my own copy to keep around. I‘d like to put this book in the hands of many more people. I want to read it to my son as he grows up. I hope I‘ll be a good enough example to him of how to treat the planet and its non-human peoples. 1y
MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm @TheBookHippie I too grew up being taught that this world was not something to worry over. That it was just an imperfect shadow of our “true” home in the afterlife. I still have family that don‘t believe in climate change and that don‘t care about their impact on the planet. This isn‘t what their religion teaches is their true home, so there‘s no point in being good stewards while they‘re here. Very sad and frustrating. 1y
TheBookHippie @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm there are so many of us!!! My grandma taught me it was our duty to protect the earth thank goodness. I too had a library book and ordered my own copy yesterday! Parts of it I want to revisit. 1y
TheBookHippie @AllDebooks made me a good activist ♥️✌🏼✊🏼 1y
TheBookHippie @AllDebooks also clearly trouble is my DNA … but it‘s good trouble! 1y
Aimeesue I love this book, & Kimmerer. I think it's a distillation of two diff perspectives, being PART of the world vs being MASTER of the world, and entitled to exploit it for personal gain, regardless of consequences. The early chapters showed how the first connection was established, in ages past, and why so few of us recognized the interconnected web of life today, and the damage that results. Not meant to be a "solution," shows the two mindsets. ❤️ 1y
AllDebooks @Aimeesue Wow, that is a very astute observation and certainly reflects Kimmerer's storytelling. She certainly gives you enough perspective to decide which side of the fence you want to plant yourself. 1y
AllDebooks @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm I'm so pleased this book had such an impact on you. So much so that you wish to pass it onto others. You will be a perfect example to your son, as you're thinking about this and how to broach the subject as he gets older. 😍 It's always interesting to see something from another perspective. It must be incredibly hard dealing with climate deniers in your family. I would not handle that well. 1y
AllDebooks @TheBookHippie my grandmother raised me this way, too. She made me the woman I am today. I'll be forever grateful for her care. 1y
AllDebooks @TheBookHippie yay to being an activist. I'm here for that 💯✋️❤️ 1y
TheBookHippie @AllDebooks mine did too she made me so so grateful ♥️ grandmas are special . 1y
CaitZ I've gotten behind on this, but what I've read has given me a new way of looking at the world. I've really enjoyed it. 1y
40 likes49 comments
review
monalyisha
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

Robin Wall Kimmerer views language as a gift and a responsibility - and she writes that way. Her words are like spider silk: delicate, glittering, soft, and strong. She writes of reciprocity, ethical harvesting, gratitude, consent, and ecological restoration. She writes of strawberries, witch hazel, salmon, cedar trees, and the ties that bind. 👇🏻

monalyisha 1/3: I knew from the very first essay that Braiding Sweetgrass would be among my favorite books of the year. It‘s everything I love about narrative nonfiction: informative and lyrical in equal measure. I learned about how beans transform nitrogen into usable nutrients; I also got teary-eyed while reading about fish guts and salamander mating rituals. 1y
monalyisha 2/3: The way a story is told matters, and Kimmerer knows how to plant a garden, weave a basket, start a fire, *and* spin a yarn. She also knows how to narrate an audiobook! I highly recommend listening over reading a print copy. A word of caution, however: do yourself a favor and do not attempt to read this on a deadline! It‘s writing that‘s meant to be considered slowly and thoughtfully. (edited) 1y
monalyisha 3/3: Favorite chapters: The Gift of Strawberries, Witch Hazel, The Honorable Harvest, Burning Cascade Head, Witness to the Rain, and Collateral Damage. 1y
See All 8 Comments
monalyisha @JamieArc I cheated when I added this title to your #AuldLangSpine list…but I knew it belonged there. 1y
IndoorDame Great review ! 1y
jenniferw88 Same here... I knew it was going on my #auldlangspine list before I finished it! 😂 1y
JamieArc I‘ve been meaning to read this for a long while and needed a nudge so I was glad to see it on your list! 1y
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review
jenniferw88
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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Pickpick

#naturalitsy @AllDebooks

#2013 #192025 @Librarybelle

Really enjoyed this one (as you already know!)

Librarybelle I‘ve heard so many good things about this one! 1y
JamieArc I‘ve been meaning to get to this one, so I was glad to see it on my #AuldLangSpine list to give me a nudge to read it. 1y
46 likes2 comments
blurb
AllDebooks
Braiding Sweetgrass | Robin Wall Kimmerer
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#Naturalitsy

Our final week of reading Braiding Sweetgrass, part 5 - Burning Sweetgrass.
Discussion thread will be posted on Saturday