Sharon Butala
Paperback | Pages: 193 pages Rating: 3.77 | 243 Users | 48 Reviews
Be Specific About Epithetical Books Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature
| Title | : | Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature |
| Author | : | Sharon Butala |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 193 pages |
| Published | : | April 1st 1997 by Ruminator Books (first published 1994) |
| Categories | : | Environment. Nature. Autobiography. Memoir. Nonfiction. Cultural. Canada |
Explanation During Books Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature
It is a very personal book, and yet the writer is very careful to keep certain things at bay. There is much in her thoughts and experiences that resonate with human beings.
Writing about her life in nature, she says; "I inhabit another world now ... that is worked out physically in canning and sewing and driving the combine, where sorrow and rage and bewilderment are worked out in sky and hills, grass and wind, in the song of the meadowlark and the nightly cries of the coyotes, in the mystery of the northern lights and the moon and stars." Often one reads such beautiful and heartfelt lines.
While reading, I was annoyed by certain aspects of the book. For instance, if I adore and value something I do not have to critique something else. I do not have to constantly compare, contrast, and dismiss one lifestyle to uphold another. Although I understand why she does it, at some deeper level I detect a great degree of nostalgia of the past. In the book, she often compares herself with the women who have been living as farmers in the hostile/ beautiful nature for generations, but it seems like for her this desire to belong to such a setting is an experiment that she can afford to luxuriate in whereas for the country women it is their reality.
She writes beautifully about nature but she hardly says anything about the human pull that she is drawn, that makes her leave her professorship. She goes to live there for a farmer named Peter. While reading about her dreams and strong connection with the landscape, as a reader I want to know more about her relationship with her husband.
As one goes on reading and appreciating the hardworking farmers and their tremendous resilience, I feel admiration. Even as a superficial student of history, I wonder what kind of place this was where all these people were doing so much work by themselves (where were the slaves? Were there any natives in these places?). Almost half-through the book and there is no mention of Indian presence, and then they appear like an afterthought.
Perhaps, it is difficult to write definitively about a place when the history of the self is torn, when one history comes in the way of the other. Having said this, I would like to add that there is much in the book that is worth reading. Her intensity, passion for nature never flag as one flips through the book.
Particularize Books As Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature
| Original Title: | Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature |
| ISBN: | 1886913161 (ISBN13: 9781886913165) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Literary Awards: | Saskatchewan Book Award for Non-Fiction (1994) |
Rating Epithetical Books Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature
Ratings: 3.77 From 243 Users | 48 ReviewsArticle Epithetical Books Perfection of the Morning: A Woman's Awaking in Nature
I enjoyed the focus of geography, place and lifestyle. Living in Whitehorse for the last three years, I have developed my closest relationship with Nature spending so much time in its many forests, by its waterbodies and on its mountains. I have heard and felt the strength of a Raven's wings above me. Athought fleeting, it is quite something. A whole body experience.I was surprised, bored and disappointed when the narration became saturated with narrow anger and proud statements, such as theI wanted to like this book a lot more than I did, unfortunately. Sharon Butala left the life of an urban Canadian professional and moved to rural Saskatchewan when she married a rancher. On the northern edge of the Great Plains, this part of Canada is remote, harsh and beautiful. The book's strongest moments are when the authors pauses from self-reflection to observe the wildness around her - the chapter on encounters with nature is by far the best. Other than that, the book focuses on Butala's
"If wilderness has anything to teach us, it is about our own weakness, our failure to control much less understand this earth onto which we are all born. And with this growing humility in the face of the unknown, slowly a sense of being in the presence of some great consciousness, other than one's own, begins to grow too". Butala had courage to write her story especially as she says we don't really have the words to articulate this "otherness". Especially because she went through this
I enjoyed this book. Butala is on a mission to explore the 'truth' hidden behind what one sees in the natural world. She mixes in dreams, along with delving into her own past for answers. I only rated it 4 stars because it was hard for me to believe that Butala was as naive as she portrays herself to be in her memoir. She characterizes herself as a person who knows nothing about psychology, spirituality, dream interpretation, or native american (in Canada where she lives), but I highly doubted
I appreciate her years'-dawning realization that we are completely different when shaped by urban environments than we are when we're surrounded by nature. And I loved that she started having mystical dreams and experiences when she moved to the prairie. It was a reminder that this connection is always there, and just covered up by the busyness and noise of daily life.
It is a very personal book, and yet the writer is very careful to keep certain things at bay. There is much in her thoughts and experiences that resonate with human beings.Writing about her life in nature, she says; "I inhabit another world now ... that is worked out physically in canning and sewing and driving the combine, where sorrow and rage and bewilderment are worked out in sky and hills, grass and wind, in the song of the meadowlark and the nightly cries of the coyotes, in the mystery of
Yes, Sharon the prairies are so amazing.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.