Anthony Doerr Recommends

"An under-appreciated book this past year that I absolutely loved is a slim book of interrelated essays called Wolves and Honey, by Susan Brind Morrow," writes Anthony Doerr. "On the surface it's a regional history of the Finger Lakes area of New York, but it's also a personal narrative about the deaths of two friends. Sort of. But everything in this memoir ranges: ultimately, it is impossible to categorize other than to say it's a riveting compendium of observations from a very curious, very interesting mind. From beavers to coyotes, to a history of grafting, to an absolutely beautiful chapter on the lives of bees, Morrow's memoir/collection consistently subverts the confessional in favor of tracing the infinite connections between the modern self and the larger world beyond. What I enjoyed more than anything was her extreme care with words, and her classicist's sensitivity to etymology. Language, she continually reminds us, is a ''great mirror that contains the reflections of everything that ever lived.'"

Anthony Doerr is the author of The Shell Collector and About Grace. His fiction has appeared in The Paris Review, The Atlantic Monthly, Zoetrope: All Story, among many other publications. He currently lives in Rome, Italy.

I've read far more than my share of nature- and outdoor-related books for personal and professional reasons. I wanted to keep most of them, but after some extremely tough negotiations -- with myself -- the compromise was to keep all the books I wanted, as long as they fit in the 40 linear feet of bookshelves dedicated to those books (and gardening ... and travel).

If the book space was full, something would have to go so I could add a new book. Sometimes, it feels as if I've outfoxed myself, but I have gamely stuck to the agreement.

After reading "Wolves & Honey: A Hidden History of the Natural World" ($13, Mariner Books), it looks like a book on the shelf will have to go. Sip at Susan Brind Morrow's 125-pager or read it in a sitting. Either way, it will be a book that stays with you all year.

She writes about two friends, a trapper and a beekeeper, and their relationship (and hers) to the natural world of the Finger Lakes region of New York state. But it magically shares the sense-of-place stories of spiritualism, women's rights, abolitionism, fur traders and agriculture.

Short sections in seven chapters weave and dart from literature to funerals, tragedy to Mormons, wolves to fishing, bees to personal sketches and poems, amazingly hanging together instead of triggering a headache.

"Wolves & Honey" is fine writing with subtle twists, everything a nature-related "memoir" should be.

Here are other contenders for your book shelf -- and mine:

# "North American Wildlife" ($30, Whitecap). David Jones has put together a hefty compendium of wildlife information and photographs in this paperback edition. Jones does an excellent job with relationships: one species to another, animals to environmental niches, body design and function, behavior to rewards, etc. Chapters are by theme: Overrun by Hooves, Committed Killers, Dividing the Spoils, Short Legs and Tempers, and a Day at the Beach.

# "The Ardent Birder: On the Craft of Birdwatching" ($15, Ten Speed press). Birdwatching is a state of mind, curiosity manifested in action. Writer Todd Newberry's 50 short pieces and Gene Holtan's whimsical and sometimes tickle-your-funny-bone illustrations are a perfect match for this birding exploration.

Newberry writes about birdwatching for the novice as well as the intense birder, sharing techniques that will make the experience more enjoyable in a light-hearted way.

# "Birds of Washington State" ($22, Lone Pine). If a bird-identification book with every species found in the U.S. is overwhelming, try this book by Brian Bell and Gregory Kennedy. They take the one-bird-a-page approach and narrow the options down to "merely" 320 species, each with an illustration, a map and text.

There's a quick guide on the back cover to lead you to the right section, color-coded family groupings, a birder's checklist, a 12-page illustrated reference guide and a top-50 list of in-state birding sites.

# "It's a Jungle Up There: More Tales from the Treetops" ($28, Yale). Meg Lowman follows up "Life in the Treetops" with "Jungle," more artfully told stories of her life as a tree-canopy biologist and single parent of two boys, who occasionally contribute words and drawings to the mix. Lowman is a straightforward writer, with stories about her and her children's years of involvement in research expeditions. Her sons are now at Princeton University, going for degrees in chemistry and engineering.

Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.

SOURCE The Olympian Online Published May 20, 2006