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Braiding Sweetgrass

Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

Robin Wall Kimmerer

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English
Penguin
23 April 2020
"A graceful, illuminating study of the wisdom of the natural world, from a world-renowned indigenous scientist

As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowledge together to take us on ""a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise"" (Elizabeth Gilbert).

Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, a mother, and a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings-asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders, algae, and sweetgrass-offer us gifts and lessons, even if we've forgotten how to hear their voices. In a rich braid of reflections that range from the creation of Turtle Island to the forces that threaten its flourishing today, she circles toward a central argument- that the awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings will we be capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learn to give our own gifts in return."

By:  
Imprint:   Penguin
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 198mm,  Width: 129mm,  Spine: 22mm
Weight:   292g
ISBN:   9780141991955
ISBN 10:   014199195X
Pages:   400
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  ELT Advanced ,  Primary
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She lives in Syracuse, New York, where she is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology, and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment.

Reviews for Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

Beautifully written . . . Anyone who enjoys reading about natural history, botany, protecting na ture, or Native American culture will love this book * Library Journal * The gift of Robin Wall Kimmerer's book is that she provides readers the ability to see a very common world in uncommon ways, or, rather, in ways that have been commonly held but have recently been largely discarded. She puts forth the notion that we ought to be interacting in such a way that the land should be thankful for the people * Minneapolis Star Tribune * With deep compassion and graceful prose, Robin Wall Kimmerer encourages readers to consid er the ways that our lives and language weave through the natural world. A mesmerizing story teller, she shares legends from her Potawatomi ancestors to illustrate the culture of gratitude in which we all should live * Publishers Weekly * An extraordinary book, showing how the factual, objective approach of science can be enriched by the ancient knowledge of the indigenous people. It is the way she captures beauty that I love the most - the images of giant cedars and wild strawberries, a forest in the rain and a meadow of fragrant sweetgrass will stay with you long after you read the last page -- Jane Goodall A journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise -- Elizabeth Gilbert


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