Details Books During Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
Original Title: | Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place |
ISBN: | 0679740244 (ISBN13: 9780679740247) |
Edition Language: | English |
Literary Awards: | Evans Biography Award (1991) |
Terry Tempest Williams
Paperback | Pages: 314 pages Rating: 4.16 | 8416 Users | 749 Reviews
Chronicle Conducive To Books Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
In the spring of 1983 Terry Tempest Williams learned that her mother was dying of cancer. That same season, The Great Salt Lake began to rise to record heights, threatening the herons, owls, and snowy egrets that Williams, a poet and naturalist, had come to gauge her life by. One event was nature at its most random, the other a by-product of rogue technology: Terry's mother, and Terry herself, had been exposed to the fallout of atomic bomb tests in the 1950s. As it interweaves these narratives of dying and accommodation, Refuge transforms tragedy into a document of renewal and spiritual grace, resulting in a work that has become a classic.
Point Based On Books Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
Title | : | Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place |
Author | : | Terry Tempest Williams |
Book Format | : | Paperback |
Book Edition | : | 10th Anniversary Edition |
Pages | : | Pages: 314 pages |
Published | : | 2001 by Vintage (first published 1991) |
Categories | : | Autobiography. Memoir. Nonfiction. Environment. Nature. Biography Memoir |
Rating Based On Books Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
Ratings: 4.16 From 8416 Users | 749 ReviewsWrite Up Based On Books Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place
This book is the sort of beautiful that makes your soul ache. I've seen reviews criticize the dialogue as not sounding at all natural enough, and while I think those criticisms are indeed fair, I'll admit I hardly noticed, so swept up was I in the maternal relationships of the book, and of an ever-changing bird refuge as a metaphor for a family's wholeness. This book is about so many stark and important and timeless truths, but for me, this book is about saying goodbye to people who make up the
This series of essays is written by a woman who happens to be Mormon. The fact she is Mormon seems to do more with geography in this book, than by choice. It is a wonderful series of essays because she is a naturalist in writing. The Salt Lake and the environment around there take on almost a divine beauty in the way she describes it. There are some poignant, wonderful tender essays about the land, and her mother and her writing style is just that - tender.

One of those books where you arent the same person once youve finished it. My boss said to me the other day that she doesnt waste your time, and I couldnt agree more. Every moment felt purposeful & poignant. Just a wonderful, honest book about grief & survival. I loved every second.
The writing is so beautiful and descriptive that I felt like I could see everything she wrote about. Why have I not been to the Bird Refuge? Maybe I need to venture out to the Sun Tunnels. This is a book with two stories that the author weaves together: the rise of Great Salt Lake and the impact on the wildlife, particularly the birds, is one story. The other is the rise of her mothers illness. The way Williams puts it together is heartbreaking and moving.
I finished Refuge at least two weeks ago and have spent a lot of time wondering why I didn't like it as much as I expected to. That's not to say there was nothing I liked about it. I learned more about the Great Salt Lake--its structure and the birds that make their home there--than I have in years living near by. I loved that and the way she made me think about these valleys and mountains as shared places: native species with an ever burgeoning population.Maybe my familiarity with the area was
Reading this book is like... watching the wetland landscape of your childhood home transform and disappear, and watching your mother and beloved grandmother succumb to cancer and die. Just like.This book was -- stunning. Like a cattle prod between the eyes. And painful. Like crying sand instead of tears. And so familiar (yes I lived in Utah, yes with all my ancestors' pioneer histories, yes with the pervasive blessing and burden of Mormonism, yes with the inspiring and healing landscapes of
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