REPORT ON APRIL MEETING

This afternoon we had a scintillating discussion of Terry Tempest Williams' REFUGE. The book generated ideas and questions on a wide range of topics. The book received mixed reviews but all agreed it was a worthwhile read. We had two new members attending, welcome!

Next meeting was set for May 31 at 3:00 PM with a possible change of location. Confirmation on location to come. In general, we will be scheduling meetings for the last Sunday of the month.

We were also very productive in that we have set books of the month through October! Participating members each suggested one title then they were drawn in random order.
MAY: Wallace, David Rains: Idle Weeds – The life of an Ohio Sandstone Ridge
JUNE Borland, Hal; Beyond Your Doorstep
JULY Costanz, George: Hollows, Peepers & Highlanders: An Appalachian Mountain Ecology
AUGUST Kline, David: Scratching the Woodcock--Nature on an Amish Farm
SEPTEMBER Kimmerer, Robin Wall: Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, 2003
OCTOBER Winn, Marie: Red-Tails in Love: A Wildlife Drama in Central Park, 1998

Click each title above to be linked to a website with more information!

I'm realizing that while the selection of a specific book is important, it is not as important as the responses we each have as we read, and then the special chemistry that occurs when we all get together and share our insights.

Happy reading (and writing! ;-)

Terry Tempest Williams' REFUGE

In REFUGE: An Unnatural History of Family and Place, Terry Tempest Williams witnesses the diminishment of the migratory bird refuge at Great Salt Lake, walks with a loved one through illness and grief, and explores the meaning of her family history. A dominant theme of the book is accepting loss and embracing change as part of nature.

The author is celebrated for her unique style and ability to evoke a deep emotional response in the reader. In 2006, Ms. Williams received the Robert Marshall Award from The Wilderness Society, their highest honor given to an American citizen. She also received the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Western American Literature Association and the Wallace Stegner Award given by The Center for the American West. She is the recipient of a Lannan Literary Fellowship and a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in creative nonfiction. Terry Tempest Williams is currently the Annie Clark Tanner Scholar in Environmental Humanities at the University of Utah.