The Philokalia-a collection of the best writings from Orthodox spiritual masters across many centuries-is a treasure trove of direction for the spiritual life. But it can be overwhelming at first glance. Popular author and podcaster Angela Doll Carlson set herself the mission of reading through The Philokalia in a year and journaling about the thoughts it called up in her. The result is a thoughtful, inspiring daily devotional that introduces new readers to this great spiritual classic and helps us apply the wisdom of the ages to a layperson's life in the modern world.
Throughout history, many people have escaped to nature either permanently or temporarily to rest and recharge. Richard L. Proenneke, a modern-day Henry David Thoreau, is no exception. Proenneke built a cabin in Twin Lakes, Alaska in 1968 and began thirty years of personal growth, which he spent growing more connected to the wilderness in which he lived. This guide through Proenneke’s memories follows the journey that began with One Man’s Wilderness, which contains some of Proenneke’s journals. It continues the story and reflections of this mountain man and his time in Alaska. The editor, John Branson, was a longtime friend of Proenneke’s and a park historian. He takes care that Proenneke’s journals from 1974-1980 are kept exactly as the author wrote them. Branson’s footnotes give a background and a new understanding to the reader without detracting from Proenneke’s style. Anyone with an interest in conservation and genuine wilderness narratives will surely enjoy and treasure this book.
The personal diaries of one of America’s best-loved naturalists, revealing his difficult and inspiring path to finding his voice and becoming a writer Few writers are as renowned for their eloquence about the natural world, its power and fragility, as Sigurd F. Olson (1899–1982). Before he could give expression to The Singing Wilderness, however, he had to find his own voice. It is this struggle, the painstaking and often simply painful process of becoming the writer and conservationist now familiar to us, that Olson documented in the journal entries gathered here. Written mostly during the years from 1930 to 1941, Olson’s journals describe the dreams and frustrations of an aspiring writer honing his skills, pursuing recognition, and facing doubt while following the academic career that allowed him to live and work even as it consumed so much of his time. But even as he speaks with immediacy and intensity about the conditions of his apprenticeship, Olson can be seen developing the singular way of observing and depicting the natural world that would bring him fame—and also, more significantly, alert others to the urgent need to understand and protect that world. Author of Olson’s definitive biography, editor David Backes brings a deep knowledge of the writer to these journals, providing critical context, commentary, and insights along the way. When Olson wrote, in the spring of 1941, “What I am afraid of now is that the world will blow up just as I am getting it organized to suit me,” he could hardly have known how right he would prove to be. It is propitious that at our present moment, when the world seems once more balanced on the precipice, we have the words of Sigurd F. Olson to remind us of what matters—and of the hard work and the wonder that such a reckoning requires.
For the first time in softcover, Edward Abbey's last book, a collection of unforgettable barbs of wisdom from the best-selling author of The Monkey Wrench Gang. Notes from a Secret Journal Edward Abbey on: Government-"Terrorism: deadly violence against humans and other living things, usually conducted by a government against its own people." Sex-"How to Avoid Pleurisy: Never make love to a girl named Candy on the tailgate of a half-ton Ford pickup during a chill rain in April out of Grandview Point in San Juan County, Utah." New York City-"New Yorkers like to boast that if you can survive in New York, you can survive anywhere. But if you can survive anywhere, why live in New York?" Literature-"Henry James. Our finest lady novelist."
An account of living history kept by Governor William Bradford and others of the Mayflower company, chronicling the adventures of the Pilgrims' day-to-day life after arriving in the New World. Homes in the Wilderness, first published in London in 1622, conveys the struggles of this gallant company of a hundred through the first long, hard winter of 1620, and the building of their settlement at Plymouth in the spring of 1621. The old language was modernized just enough in 1939 by the beloved author of Goodnight Moon, Margaret Wise Brown, while preserving the flavor of the original King James English. This edition for young people includes a list of Mayflower passengers, a glossary of old words, and several maps. Profusely illustrated by Mary Wilson Stewart.
This meticulously edited John Muir collection is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents: Picturesque California The Mountains of California Our National Parks My First Summer in the Sierra The Yosemite Travels in Alaska Stickeen: The Story of a Dog The Cruise of the Corwin A Thousand-mile Walk to the Gulf Steep Trails Studies in Sierra The National Parks and Forest Reservations Save the Redwoods Snow-storm on Mount Shasta Features of the Proposed Yosemite National Park A Rival of the Yosemite The Treasures of the Yosemite Yosemite Glaciers Yosemite in Winter Yosemite in Spring Edward Henry Harriman Edward Taylor Parsons The Hetch Hetchy Valley The Grand Cañon of the Colorado
Since its establishment as a federally protected wilderness in 1964, the Boundary Waters has become one of our nation's most valuable--and most frequently visited--natural treasures. When Amy and Dave Freeman learned of toxic mining proposed within the area's watershed, they decided to take action--by spending a year in the wilderness, and sharing their experience through video, photos, and blogs with an audience of hundreds of thousands of concerned citizens. This book tells thedeeper story of their adventure in northern Minnesota: of loons whistling under a moonrise, of ice booming as it forms and cracks, of a moose and her calf swimming across a misty lake. With the magic--and urgent--message that has rallied an international audience to the campaign to save the Boundary Waters, A Year in the Wilderness is a rousing cry of witness activism, and a stunning tribute to this singularly beautiful region.
