Boundary Waters

The book is 'Boundary Waters - The Grace of the Wild' by Paul Gruchow.

I originally received this book as a gift from my lovely wife, Heather. I read it hoping for some history about the boundary waters canoe area, which I had visited for a canoe trip many years ago, in 1984. There was a little history in this book, and it was nice, but not the real value of this book.

I was also hoping that the book would remind me of some of what I felt when I visited the Boundary Waters, and there is some of that, particularly at the end, when Paul writes about seeing a moose walk through water. A similar moment is one of my most cherished memories of my trip.

Paul speaks about the nature of teaching and education, and about the book "Walden" by Thoreau. He intersperses his observations and comments as a sort of thread throughout the book, as the ideas occurred to him in his life.

Since this book wasn't quite what I thought it would be, it took me more time and effort than usual to get through it - perhaps six or seven hours. But it is a good book, a deep book, a worthwhile book.

The real value of this book, I think, to others, will be the nuggets of thought that are scattered throughout the book. Many readers may not have visited the Boundary Waters area of far northern Minnesota and southern Canada, so they will read it for different reasons. One such nugget concerns the nature of names, near the end of the book:

"Names can be both blessings and curses. ... they can be reductive ... a form of acknowledgment ... a way of establishing ... connection ... Names could be seen ... as ways of calling upon the things we name ..."

It's a good book, one I will read again some day.

Book - The World Without Us

This book is by Alan Weisman. It took a few evenings to get through - probably four hours for me. It isn't hard to read, just so thought provoking that you have to pause now and then to think about the ramifications of what you've just read.

The book is filled with facts that I had not heard of elsewhere, such as the underground cities in Turkey, or that Norway is already using underground carbon sequestration, which is the subject of proposals for study here in the U.S. Others I knew about, but didn't realize how important an issue it was until I read this book.

There are several concepts I have learned over the years, that I was finally convinced were false, after reading this book. One was that the "first americans" or "native Americans" lived in harmony with nature, without intruding upon it. I certainly can see how it was a harmony, but it certainly was one of their own making. Even the great plains of our central west were a human artifact - a result of controlled burns to keep the plains open for buffalo and other game.

It is a remarkable book. I am glad I read it. I recommend it to any student of history, of man, or simply any eco-minded person.

Book - Man's Search for Meaning

I finished this book last night. It is by Viktor Frankl, who is a psychiatrist and concentration camp survivor. The first part of the book is a recounting of some of his experiences in the Nazi concentration camps during World War II. It talks about the nature of suffering, and why some inmates in the camps were able to survive while others perished.

The second half of the book is a brief outline of logotherapy, a type of pyschotherapy, or school of thought within psychiatry.

The book itself took only a few hours to read, but I think its impact will be long felt. I found myself highlighting passages, just like I was in school again, and needing to remember certain passages for the test. In this case, the test is likely to be how well I utilize this material in my own life.

There are many possible quotations from the book, but here is one possible guiding principle for your life:

"Live as if you were living for the second time and had acted as wrongly the first time as you are about to act now."

I can truly say this is one of the most meaningful books I have read.

An Event (or Two) and a Book

I have decided to start blogging the books I read, and possibly an event or two in my life. This past week, my car died, and I decided to sell. Ordinarily this wouldn't be that big of a deal, but it was my grandmother Marcile's car, which she had for about five years, so it has sentimental value.

But, we don't need three cars any more, since my 17 year old son decided to move out. He decided he had had enough of my parental interference. He will be 18 on April 14th, so it isn't all that early, I guess. I have mixed feelings of relief and sadness.

Now for the latest book I've read. This one is by Janet Evanovich, who is a new author for me - I've not read any of her books. My wife suggested it: "Visions of Sugar Plums". It was funny, a quick read, and basically a fantasy. There are memorable and lifelike characters. My favorite is the grandmother. It took about an hour to read, I think.

My comment to Heather (my wife) as I was reading it was: "and you make fun of me for reading science fiction?"

I said that because some of the events in the book seemed science fantasy-like.