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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
By all logic, I should have adored this book. But for whatever reason I just couldn’t get into it at all. 😔 I ended up loving the introduction more than the text itself.
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
One of the most peaceful books I've ever read. Helped calm my nerves when I was deep in the black heart of 2020, when everything was COVID, forest fires, protests, and political chaos.
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Lyrically and poetic. If you love the ocean, it's a good book to own. I could relive some of the scenes he describes in such detail, and it makes me long for the solitude , sights, smells, sounds and beauty of an off season seashore.
adventurous
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
At almost 100 years old, this book is able to transport the reader to the great outer beaches of Cape Cod, MA with a modern sense of enthusiasm, passion, and mindfulness. Stunning reflections and descriptive tellings of natural events observed while living in a small cabin on the sandy dunes of the Cape are adventurous and inspiring.
This is truly one of the most beautiful pieces that I have read on nature and sense of place. As a young naturalist myself, I can only wish to one day become as immersed and familiar with the yearly phenology of a place, such as Henry Beston was with the Cape. This was a true love letter to the land.
~~~~~
"...the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear."
~~~~~
"Do no dishonour to the earth lest you dishonour the spirit of man."
~~~~~
"...the gifts of life are the earth's and they are given to all, and they are the songs of birds at daybreak, Orion and the Bear, and dawn seen over ocean from the beach."
This is truly one of the most beautiful pieces that I have read on nature and sense of place. As a young naturalist myself, I can only wish to one day become as immersed and familiar with the yearly phenology of a place, such as Henry Beston was with the Cape. This was a true love letter to the land.
~~~~~
"...the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear."
~~~~~
"Do no dishonour to the earth lest you dishonour the spirit of man."
~~~~~
"...the gifts of life are the earth's and they are given to all, and they are the songs of birds at daybreak, Orion and the Bear, and dawn seen over ocean from the beach."
Beautiful and peaceful little meditation on life beside the sea.
Henry Beston concludes his year-long stay on Cape Cod with this: "Touch the earth, love the earth, her plains, her valleys, her hills, and her seas; rest your spirit in her solitary places. For the gifts of life are the earth’s and they are given to all, and they are the songs of birds at daybreak, Orion and the Bear, and the dawn seen over the ocean from the beach." To fully appreciate this call to action, you must read this book.
Enough already spending three pages discussing birds or the qualities of waves. That's for someone else--I preferred the stories about his living conditions, his house, or the adverse conditions. Great moments lost in pages of obsessive naturalist meanderings.
I had never heard of this book until a reading friend recommended it in a chat on Facebook! It's such beautiful nature writing. I wanted more, I suppose like a modern memoir with a storyline woven in, but it is really vivid and beautiful and changed the way I'll think about several things, like the influence of electricity in our modern life, the benefits of environmental regulation and especially the way the sea and all the earth varies in subtle ways from season to season.