An essential book for any naturalist, hunter, dog lover, angler, or thinker.
| |||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Why did Kimber delay moving his wood indoors for the winter to allow a deer mouse to relocate its babies, but then go and shoot a porcupine? Why did he risk collision on a rain-drenched road to escort a painted turtle across, but spend a lifetime killing deer and ptarmigan and fish? In these nimble, ruminative essays on man's responsibility to animals, Kimber's first book in more than a decade (after Upcountry: Reflections from a Rural Life), the writer and German translator elaborates his ideas about what it means to treat creatures humanely. He recalls a happy boyhood in which he lived to fish; the thrill of receiving his first real rod and rifle; and the pleasure of putting food on his own table for more than five decades, most recently on his farm in rural Maine. Yet all this isn't bloodsport, Kimber argues; he is a hunter-gatherer, not a sportsman, consuming what he shoots or catches rather than merely pursuing the thrill of the hunt. The mouse and the turtle lived because he could not use them responsibly; the porcupine had to be killed because it threatened his dog Lucey a circumstance he folds skillfully into his clear-eyed, level-headed naturalist philosophy, justified by the fact that he skinned that porcupine for stew. There is little sentimentality in Kimber's thoughtful book on his relationship with the animal and plant life around him; instead, there is enormous respect.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Review
"Robert Kimber is the thinking man's outdoor writer. These are the sort of essays Thoreau might have written if he were a hunter living today--quiet, contemplative, and deeply concerned with finding man's proper place in the fretwork of life on this beleaguered planet."--Robert F. Jones
"There is little sentimentality in Kimber's thoughtful book on his relationship with the animal and plant life aroundhim; instead, there is enormous respect.
--Publishers Weekly
--Publishers Weekly
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thinking about the natural world,
By
This review is from: Living Wild and Domestic: The Education of a Hunter-Gardener (Hardcover)
I thought this book might not be for me. A harrowing visit to a sheep slaughtering works years ago is still too real in my mind, and any discussion of turning live animals into consumables hits a sore spot.But I was drawn in by Robert Kimber's unsentimental pragmatism, always lightened with humor and thoughtfulness. For example, on stringing a chicken up and sliding an ice pick into its brain (as recommended in USDA literature): "Chicken brains are small and hard to find, but they are large enough to tell chickens that a man grabbing them by the feet and hanging them upside down from a chest-high limb on a red maple tree is up to no good." Among all the beautifully written essays in Kimber's book, I urge you to read it particularly for the chapter "Dish-fed Retainers," about the relationship between Kimber and his dog Lucy. This is the most sentimental section of the book, but so wry and self-aware that you will smile and remember your own best-loved companion animal. Kimber fell instantly for Lucy at the animal shelter but tried to conceal that fact from his wife and son, all the while "casually" promoting his choice. "She looks like a sophomore at Wellesley," his son said. Kimber leaped at that comment: "Exactly! ... Young, attractive, intelligent, interested in getting a good education, just the right size, not too big, not too small, looks like a strong swimmer ... athletic, lively, obviously affectionate, charming, beautiful ..." The sentimental approach Kimber used in choosing (being chosen by?) a dog features in all his essays, though usually along with a much larger portion of rational interpretation! Kimber's book strikes a pleasing balance between memoir and philosophy. While hunting and fishing are not a part of my life, I thoroughly enjoyed this thoughtful book on living a considered life in rural Maine.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
You might like it,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Living Wild and Domestic: The Education of a Hunter-Gardener (Hardcover)
If you are troubled by killing an animal, whether by accident, such as a spider in a bathtub or a squirrel on the road, or whether on purpose, such as slaughtering a lamb or hunting a deer or hooking a fish, then you will probably like this book very much.Kimber analyzes the hunting paradox and many related concepts-sport verses food hunting, subsistence hunting/gathering verses husbandry, the wild verses the domesticated-in this thoughtful, well-written book. By pulling in the writings of many other authors, Kimber analyzes them in his own insightful way. The result is often rambling and slightly disjointed, but always thought provoking. Answers are not concise, clear, or black-and-white, because there really aren't such answers. Regardless of whether you like this book, you will no doubt like Kimber, his lifestyle, and his honesty. I highly recommend his other books Upcountry: Reflections from a Rural Life and Made for the Country.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
