The War Against The Beavers: Learning to Be Wild in the North Woods [Hardcover]

Verena Andermatt Conley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2, 2003

A lifelong city dweller, Verena Andermatt Conley had long harbored romantic ideals about the natural world and dreamed of a wilderness retreat for herself and her husband, Tom. When a sizable tract of land along the Vermillion River on the edge of Minnesota's Boundary Waters - complete with two primitive log cabins - became available, they jumped at the chance to own a piece of paradise. The War against the Beavers is a wry and funny account of two people's ten-year apprenticeship in backwoods living, from their arrival as literal babes in the woods to their education in the ways of nature as they face plagues of insects, fungus, storms, and droughts, and embark on a lengthy campaign to eradicate a colony of beavers that threatens the peace and beauty of their forest refuge. It is only the coming of a mechanized and much more menacing threat - bulldozers and other heavy machinery clear-cutting the woods - that restores perspective to the obsessed cabin dwellers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a fascinating story about the difference between the destructive forces of nature and the destructive forces of humans. It begins with a charming naivete and ends with a clear-eyed wisdom." -Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature

"[Verena Conley's] Minnesota Walden is resplendent but also beset by natural and man-made plagues that continually threaten her serenity. The book's wisdom is that it reveals how she finally triumphs over her complex environment by recognizing that for the most part she doesn't have to." -Ross McElwee, director of Sherman's March and Bright Leaves

"A great book to read aloud - especially in a car escaping a city." -David Black, award-winning screenwriter, journalist, novelist, and producer

Book Description

A lifelong city dweller, Verena Andermatt Conley had long harbored romantic ideals about the natural world and dreamed of a wilderness retreat for herself and her husband, Tom. When a sizable tract of land along the Vermillion River on the edge of Minnesota's Boundary Waters - complete with two primitive log cabins - became available, they jumped at the chance to own a piece of paradise. The War against the Beavers is a wry and funny account of two people's ten-year apprenticeship in backwoods living, from their arrival as literal babes in the woods to their education in the ways of nature as they face plagues of insects, fungus, storms, and droughts, and embark on a lengthy campaign to eradicate a colony of beavers that threatens the peace and beauty of their forest refuge. It is only the coming of a mechanized and much more menacing threat - bulldozers and other heavy machinery clear-cutting the woods - that restores perspective to the obsessed cabin dwellers.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Univ Of Minnesota Press; 1 edition (June 2, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816642176
• ISBN-13: 978-0816642175
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,315,169 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, April 26, 2007

By 

T. Osborne - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The War Against The Beavers: Learning to Be Wild in the North Woods (Paperback)

Conley's book is alternately hilarious and tragic, naïve and sharp, but it is always charming. A must-read for any city slicker who likes to get out of town.