On the Edge of the Wild: Passions and Pleasures of a Naturalist [Hardcover]

Stephen J. Bodio (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1997

Thought-provoking essays on country, wildness, sports, falconry, literature, and food.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Passionate outdoorsman Stephen Bodio manages to pull off an important feat in these collected nature writings: he makes the natural world fresh and new. With a seemingly small detail or minor twist, Bodio takes us to the edge of wildness and beyond. Consider his musings on the fierce but seldom seen--and always inscrutable--goshawk, culled from a piece titled "Why I Love Goshawks": "...you may come around a corner of brush in the late afternoon to see a big young female gos sitting in the top of a willow, at eye level, no more than thirty feet away. Her streaked buffy breast glows in the bloody light; her eyes, still the pale yellow of youth, are on yours. She's waiting for you to flush a bird for her; using you, quite consciously, as her dog. We are not used to such arrogance." Bodio writes about other raptors, hunting, some of his favorite books--even a recipe for "reconciliation chili," a dish tailored to local tastes and designed to bring together the frequently warring factions in the American West, or wherever else people are too busy arguing about the land to sit down together over a hearty meal. These essays are not necessarily meant to be read in order; pick up the book, open it anywhere, and find yourself transported to the few remaining nooks and crannies where humanity is still a visitor.

From Publishers Weekly

"This life of mine believes in intimate contact, in eating and wallowing and breathing the dust, in sometimes getting the blood on its hands," writes Bodio (A Rage for Falcons) in this often lyrical paean to a rugged lifestyle of catching and eating meat, and respecting the outdoors, dogs and birds of prey. Bodio, who grew up in an Italian family in Boston, fly-fished at age four; his father kept homing pigeons. These essays, written between 1988 and 1997, explore those influences. Most center around hunting or the joy of working with and studying falcons, golden eagles and goshawks, but a few reflect the writer's literary inspirations and his favorite foods. He also writes of mentors, wives and old dogs. The book evokes many areas: New Mexico, Montana, southern France and Massachusetts, where Bodio, an unembarrassed member of the NRA, grew up. Bodio defends his controversial viewpoints cogently and poetically. He defines his writing purpose this way: "If writing essays means anything to me it is as an act of celebration and inquiry, like, if lesser than, poetry and science." His book, which includes some book reviews as well, should most appeal to other hunters and fishers, but a nature lover or even a vegetarian can gain new perspective by reading it.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 212 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (December 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558216480
• ISBN-13: 978-1558216488
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,476,168 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perceptive essays of the changing West and all its creatures, April 16, 1999

By 

Fernando Garzon,([e-mail]) - See all my reviews

This review is from: On the Edge of the Wild: Passions and Pleasures of a Naturalist (Hardcover)

Stephen Bodio presents a compelling,thoughtful series of essays mostly about New Mexico and the western backcountry. This is the southwest one does not learn about from the tourist guides, nor the resort towns. I have walked thousands of miles of "Bodio Country" and his insights of the land and its people are quite poignant.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Unique and Stirring bit of Literature..., January 21, 2006

By 

C. Carlisle "Ravenlight Arts" (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On the Edge of the Wild: Passions and Pleasures of a Naturalist (Paperback)

Steve Bodio is one of my favorite nature writers, so I'll say I'm prejudiced. Yet the reason I am so impressed by his writing is that, besides his great love and knowledge of his subject, and the beautiful balance between his scientific, non-anthropomorphic attitude and touchingly personal bits,- Steve is a lyrical, artistic writer. What an exceptional combination! He is not afraid to deliver his Self, across the board, as far as I can tell. He's not writing for anyone but himself, really. And maybe the animals,or rather Nature. This book, like his others, does not fail to deliver the full banquet of naturalist type info, history, geography, and whatever else touches him most deeply, be it in the heart or mind or soul. You will come away with some of Steve's inspiration on reading this book; that's what I consider to be the true objective for producing art,to spread the inspiration. The world rarely sees such effective rendering in the genre Steve writes in.