Books for Now
And a few updates from Cycle Forward
Like so many of us, I have a lot to process these days. I’m also feeling ready for the slower pace that winter affords us…if we accept the opening. I certainly don’t have all the answers on how to go about life in these tumultuous times, but one thing I do know is that reading does a person good.
A recent post by White Whale Books & Coffee explains the importance of books better than I could:
“Books are for grief. Books are for hope. Books are for escape. Books are for learning history to rewrite the future. Books are for dismantling systems word by word. Books are light through the darkness. Books are manifestos. Books are ancestors singing hymns across generations. Poetry is political. Literature is understanding. Writing is power. And art will set us free.”
For that reason, I thought I would share a list of “books for now.” These are mostly from my own collection and represent books I think might bring comfort, hope, and enlightenment to anyone who is searching for a better way:
Living Beautifully with Uncertainty and Change, by Pema Chödrön
This one requires some real focus but contains so much wisdom concerning what Chödrön calls “the groundlessness of being human.” This book is a guide of sorts to embracing that groundlessness. The book covers topics like impermanence, taking care of one another, and embracing the world just as it is (we can accept the world as it is and also work to affect change, by the way).
Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
The subtitle, “Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and Learning From Plants” is a good indicator of the book’s focus. A year or so after reading it, what stands out to me the most is her emphasis on reciprocity (with nature and with each other). Chapters I might recommend right now:
Maple Nation: A Citizenship Guide, where she speaks of civic engagement as a form of reciprocity.
The Sacred and the Superfund. Here, she addresses “wounded” places, noting that we can choose to take the path of fear and despair in response to the harm that’s being done. But, she says, “Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift.” She goes on to assert, “Despair is paralysis. It robs us of agency…how can we submit to despair while the land is saying ‘Help’? Restoration is a powerful antidote to despair.”
Palaces for the People, by Eric Klinenberg
I read this earlier this year as an Appalachian Leadership Institute reading assignment. Klinenberg argues that social infrastructure like libraries, senior centers, community gardens, and barber shops help fight inequality, polarization, and the decline of civic life. If you’re someone who’s working to make a difference in your neighborhood or community, this is a great and easy read about how community spaces are part of the recipe for a healthy and connected community.
The Upswing, by Robert Putnam (Bowling Alone) and Shaylyn Romney Garrett
Full disclosure: this book is sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. I can’t share my thoughts on the book itself, but did see Romney Garrett give an exceptional talk in June and based my “Creating a New ‘We’” blog post on her message. If you, like me, believe there is still a place in American society for “over the back fence citizenship” and want to understand ways in which the past might show us where to go from here, you might want to check this one out. Hint: the path has a lot to do with getting away from individualism.
Wintering, by Katherine May
I read and wrote about Wintering a couple of years ago and continue to think that it’s a sage take on how we care for and repair ourselves in difficult times. Read my 2022 post to get a better feel for Wintering, or just go ahead and read the book. Question for you all: has anyone read May’s latest book, Enchantment? If so, let me know your thoughts.
Another Appalachia, by Neema Avashia
This has been one of my most recommended books since I devoured it a couple of years ago. Avashia grew up near Charleston, West Virginia and now lives in Boston. She writes about her home state with compassion and tenderness, even as she grapples with the cultural divide. I’ve often thought about how urbanites don’t always get rural America. This book might start to shed some light for those who are looking to understand. At the same time, Avashia addresses some of the tough questions and complexities of “coming up queer and Indian in a mountain place.”
Little Chapel on the River, by Gwendolyn Bounds
This is an easy read about the author’s experience living in the Hudson River Valley following 9/11. Subtitled, “A Pub, a Town, and the Search for What Matters Most,” the book covers her newly-formed relationships with the townspeople and patrons of the pub and adjoining grocery store. I found myself wondering what we might learn (or remember) from how people came together following 9/11. Not to suggest that everything was all good at that time, but I still found myself questioning along these lines.
Building the Barricade, by Anna Świrszczyńska (a.k.a., Anna Swir)
I initially hesitated to share this, as it may be too grim of a reminder of the wars that are going on right now. That said, it’s a beautiful collection focused on Świrszczyńska‘s involvement in the Warsaw Uprising during World War II, and perhaps we do need to be reminded of the tragedy of warfare. And poetry can reach us differently than other forms of media. Building the Barricade speaks to the human condition in the most trying times, and l love the simplicity of Świrszczyńska’s writing. Each poem is presented first in Polish, and then in English.
The Hurting Kind, by Poet Laureate Ada Limón
Continuing with poetry recommendations, I’m currently reading Ada Limón’s The Hurting Kind. Organized by the four seasons, I’m still in the summer poems, but am loving the collection thus far. I like how the most powerful part of her poems tends to be in the last few lines.
Cookbooks! (whichever you prefer)
Finally, if you’re someone who enjoys to cook or bake, you might find solace, joy, and satisfaction in your cookbooks this winter. My favorite cookbooks (even if just for the photography and artwork) are The Book on Pie and Victuals: An Appalachian Journey, With Recipes.
Stay tuned for my standard year-end reading list, coming your way sometime in late December/early January. In the meantime, what are your “books for now” recommendations? As you can see, I don’t have any fiction on my list, but escape into to good novel goes a long way! Whether fiction or non-, please share your recommendations.
What’s New at Cycle Forward
First, what’s ongoing: I’ve been working with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and Pennsylvania Environmental Council to pilot an Outdoor Ambassador program in the Laurel Highlands and Pocono Forests and Waters Conservation Landscapes. If you live and work in either of these areas and would like to be part of the first cohort to go through an immersive experience next April and May, please reach out to me! This program is meant for frontline staff and volunteers who interact with outdoor travelers. It’s a free program that will include about 20 hours of online training, classroom content, and site visits. We’ve been testing the content and are excited to pilot the program! Let me know if you’d like me to send you more information.
Other current projects include:
Working with Alta Planning + Design on the Utah Trail Network Strategic Vision (including a trail town toolkit). Here are some photos from a trip there last week.
Providing some consultation to Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization and its partners regarding the Eastern Ontario Rail-Trail Loop (my role relates to planning for community engagement and supports the in-depth consulting Jane McCulloch at Terminus Consulting has been offering to the group).
Providing a support role in the PA Wilds Planning Study Update project, being led by HRG (with Firefly Outdoor + Economics and Grow Conservation).
And last but not least: collaborating with Michele Archie of The Harbinger Consultancy to teach Trail Towns 101 in February! We still have some seats open for this three-session course. Use code CycleForward for 10% off the cost of the course if you are registering.
In Gratitude
Ah, it’s Thanksgiving week. I am truly grateful to the Cycle Forward community, including those of you who take the time to read, comment on, and share these posts. Every time one of you hits reply and tells me that something resonated, it makes me want to keep going with my writing. It’s funny…most of my work has to do with trail towns, placemaking, and the outdoor economy, but my posts (I hope) go deeper and reach a broader audience. Your encouragement tells me this is a good thing. Thank you for connecting with me here as well as out there in real life. As one of my favorite poems ends:
“gratitude, I thank you, my fate,
I’m unworthy, how beautiful
my life.”
—from “Thank You, My Fate” by Anna Świrszczyńska
(I loved this poem for years without knowing anything about her. Having now read Building the Barricade, I can better appreciate where she was coming from. And, for the record, we are all worthy.)
