I'm sure we've all been asked to name a book we found life-changing. My answer is always Annie Dillard's
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. The primary reason for this involves insects. Most people would probably have a hard time connecting
insects with
life-changing, but it was easy for me. I grew up without insects in New York City, and when we bought our weekend house in rural Pennsylvania I found them repulsive and frightening. Since I encountered insects on a daily basis in the country, this was no fun—for either of us.
As I've said many times, the more one learns about something, the less scary it becomes. (There are exceptions to this, most notably the Trump presidency.) Reading
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, following the author as she quietly observed the smallest creatures, I learned a lot. I went on to read Edwin Way Teale's
The Strange Lives of Familiar Insects.
Not only did I learn to look at insects differently, but I really
looked at them. I observed. I watched. And eventually I recorded.
Sooo... this is on my list of books to write about this month. I picked up Three By Annie Dillard after you and Wayne gushed about Pilgrim many years ago on that website. Safe to say, we agree on many things but this book ain't one of them.
ReplyDeleteUh-oh . . .
DeleteI need to read Annie Dillard. Her "An American Childhood" has been on my Amazon wish list for years.
ReplyDeleteAlso I love insects.
I loved this book. And I love your story of insects.
ReplyDeleteLove this. And the Trump aside.
ReplyDeleteI can understand - to a small extent - your horror when first encountering insects. I felt this way in Thailand when I first met ants, and cockroaches.
ReplyDeleteThis resonates! Just this weekend, a huge black beetle landed on my kitchen window causing mild panic. He was simply too huge, too glossy, and his antennae were sharply serrated. The woods are full of insects, spiders, worms, crane flies, June bugs, all manner of flying/crawling things. Mentally, I accept their harmless presence; physically, I do the crazy-mom-dance and shriek if they land in my hair.
ReplyDeleteI'm not crazy about hair-landings either. I don't think I shriek, but when you live alone you can do all sorts of things and no one notices. Not even yourself.
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