Something in the Woods Loves You

It's rare that I start reading a book and almost immediately know it will become a forever favorite, but that's the case here. In this powerful book full of wisdom--maybe more wisdom than I've ever seen in one book--Anderson's gorgeous writing and humor come together to offer a powerful mix of nature writing, self-help, memoir, and lessons we can all use on controlling what we can control and understanding our place in this huge, strange world. Here's a quick excerpt that spoke to me, and which I absolutely fell in love with:

"Something else, something with furry little hands, tapped at the backdoor of my thoughts.

Sometimes I need a heron to be my contemplative guide. Sometimes I need a deer, antler-crowned, or a bluebird like a living show more shard of cloudless summer sky. But that autumn when my newfound mental health was collapsing around me, bedraggled in sweatpants, hounded by barking worries like hunting dogs, I needed a raccoon, a trash-goblin, a clever little cutthroat with Dorito dust on his whiskers to stand among my dirty dishes and whisper, "It's not what you eat or how you eat, but that you eat.

Yes, nature is soaring eagles, hundred-foot pines, and leaping marlins glistening above the seafoam, but it's also raccoons armpit deep in a discarded peanut butter jar."

Anderson's stories are all the more powerful because they're talking about the nature that so many of us take for granted--raccoons, deer, backyard birds, and even flowers. They're anecdotes about being powerless, and yet discovering one's own agency to find power again, and about overcoming depression and helplessness step by step. And through it all, there is such wonderful humor and observation here.

If I could put a copy of this book in every person's hands, I would. If you're even remotely tempted--even if you avoid self-help, or avoid memoir, or avoid nature writing, or don't particularly care for raccoons!--I hope you'll read this book. show less

A beautiful, philosophical, and poetic memoir about depression and how the author found that being out in nature helped him to cope with it. It got pretty didactic in the later “Summer” chapters, which I started to find tiresome. But aside from those few chapters, it was a lovely and comforting read. It’s definitely something I’ll return to when I’m feeling depressed myself.

The book requires more of my attention than I can give it right now (not TTS enabled), but I will finish it after I buy my own audio copy to keep. The narrative takes us through the seasons, flora, fauna, and the healing power of nature (best combined with professional help in the case of depression and its depths) based upon his personal journey. The writing is deeply affective.
I requested and received a free temporary PDF from Timber Press via NetGalley. Thank you

4.5/5