“This annual collection of essays is distilled from a variety of publications (Orion, Smithsonian, Outside, Scientific American, etc)—25 essays in all. This year’s collection has a great diversity of subjects and features many well known, very good writers. I appreciate the various “Best of” collections, as they provide quality reading material that can be taken in bites. A few I found noteworthy from this collection include the following: Atul Gwande, author of The Checklist Manifesto and other books, wrote an outstanding piece for The New Yorker on our cultural perspective, and hence our medical systems approach to the end of life process. Anyone familiar with the services provided by Hospice organizations will appreciate the context of this essay. Amy Irvine, author of Trespass: Living at the Edge of the Promised Land, wrote an essay many Central Oregonians will find resonates with their homelife. Amy lives on the edge of wilderness in Colorado and thus shares her property with the wildlife of the area. She discusses what it means to share “your property” with the deer, bears, racoons, etc. This makes for a great bedside read, as you can take in an essay when you retire for the evening and wake up with new information to ponder on through the day.—Brad, Paulina Springs Books, with locations in Redmond and Sisters, OR. Buy The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2011 from Paulina Springs Books.
Face Out
The Best American Science and Nature Writing (2011), edited by Mary Roach
March 10, 2012