author should stick with nature writing, not politics

books:

	• On the Wild Edge: In Search of a Natural Life David Petersen Holt Paperbacks, 2006 - 272 pages average customer review:based on 6 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

author should stick with nature writing, not politics

David Peterson writes very well and has a great ability to engage the reader and make them feel as if they are part of the forest where David writes. I am only about half finished with the book and have enjoyed his views on simple living and self sufficiency. However, his subtle and not-so-subtle interjections about politics totally distract from the beautiful writings about nature. If I wanted political commentary, I would read a book about politics, not a book about nature and simple living.

One of my all time favorites

This has got to be one of my favorite books of all time. Dave Petersen seems to have figured out early on how to get his priorities in order. That money and 'things' are fleeting and empty acquisitions. That what really matters are great relationships with those you love, be it your spouse, friends or even your dog, and that being debt free is a power all it's own. Dave freely admits that he doesn't have a lot of money, but, he is most definitely the captain of his own ship, truly able to call his time and what he does with it his own. How many of us can say that? It is a great wake up call and definitely motivates you to get your own priorities in order. Dave finds more value in the treasures of nature, the wild animals that call it home and the ability to know how to appreciate it than in 'filthy money' as he so rightly puts it. I happen to love his political rants about the state of our world, he is dead on most of the time, and thank goodness doesn't sugarcoat it one iota!! This is a must read if you love the mountains, snow, wildlife, and unlike so many Americans who seem to only be able to follow the herd, have the ability to think for yourself.

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My Quality Reading During Winter Hibernation

I read Dave's book, along with several other good reads, during the dead of winter this season. Time well spent. I found myself consuming the book each evening, and it was finsihed in short order. Following Dave from season to season, reading about his everyday experiences and thoughts, mulling over his political views, sharing his pains, exultations, celebrations of life, and observations of his natural world, I finished the book feeling quite satisfied. This should be required reading for any environmentally-aware hunter-naturalist, or anyone else who loves the outdoors, for that matter. I like it.

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Yarns of Naturalism

What a treat! I bought this from Amazon back when it first came out in hardcover, and it has resided on my to-be-read shelf all this time. We now have snow here and, in a wintry mood, I was prompted to pick this one up after finishing Vardis Fisher's excellent THE MOUNTAIN MAN and watching the Robert Redford movie based upon that book.

What a dustjacket! It says here that Caroline Peterson, the author's "permanent wife," took that photo. If the gorgeous, dustjacket art especially appeals to you--as it does to me--then you might also enjoy looking inside at these marvelous tales of David and Caroline Peterson in their natural surroundings.

This author will resonate to those who love the nature writings of Emerson and Thoreau, Doug Peacock and Edward Abbey. Peterson writes with the practical common sense of Wendell Berry mixed with an almost mystical be-here-now sense of wonder. He sees the Great Spirit in things.

We found this a delightful, gorgeous edition to our personal library of naturalism. This author edited A. B. Guthrie's enviromental essays and wrote the afterward to Guthrie's marvelous autobiography. I can't say if this is Peterson's best book because I've yet to read several of his others. They are now moving up on my list.

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reviews: page 1, 2

?Opinionated and iconoclastic, Petersen writes with humor and a well-honed craft that will delight fans of Edward Abbey.? ?Library Journal (starred review)
     Twenty-five years ago David Petersen and his wife, Caroline, pulled up stakes, trading Laguna Beach, California, for a snug hand-built cabin in the wilderness.    Today he knows that mountain land as intimately as anyone can know his home.
     Petersen conflates a quarter century into the adventures of four high-country seasons, tracking the rigors of survival from the snowmelt that announces the arrival of spring to the decline and death of autumn and winter that will establish the fertile ground needed for next year?s rebirth.
     In the past we listened to Henry David Thoreau or Aldo Leopold; today it is Petersen?s turn. His observations are lyrical, scientific, and from the heart. He reinforces Thoreau?s dictum: ?in wildness is the preservation of the earth.? In prose rich with mystery and soul, his words are a plea for the survival of the remnant wilderness.

?Many of us would like to live a life of greater intention and simplicity, but few can and even fewer do. David Petersen is one of those rare human beings among us who lives a wild life with a cultured mind . . . [He] has created a map all of us can follow.?
?Terry Tempest Williams, author of The Open Space of Democracy

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