Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer explores our relationship with plants, nature and the living world.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer brings together Indigenous knowledge, scientific understanding and personal experience throughout the book.\u00a0\u00a0As a botanist, she approaches the natural world through the methods of science.\u00a0\u00a0As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she also draws upon Indigenous knowledge and traditions.<\/p>\n
The book explores what plants can teach us about relationships, responsibility and our place within nature.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer considers plants and animals as teachers rather than simply resources for human use.\u00a0\u00a0She explores the many gifts that the natural world provides.\u00a0\u00a0These include food, medicine, materials, knowledge and connections between living things.\u00a0\u00a0The book encourages readers to consider how people can respond to those gifts.<\/p>\n
A central theme is the relationship between Indigenous knowledge and scientific understanding.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer brings these perspectives together throughout a series of connected essays.\u00a0\u00a0She explores how different ways of understanding nature can complement one another.<\/p>\n
The book considers ecology, botany, Indigenous philosophy and personal experience.\u00a0\u00a0It also examines the relationships between people, plants and wider ecosystems.<\/p>\n
Plants feature prominently throughout Kimmerer’s reflections.\u00a0\u00a0She writes about species including asters, goldenrod, strawberries, squash, water lilies and sweetgrass.\u00a0\u00a0She also explores relationships involving salamanders, algae, lichens and other forms of life.\u00a0\u00a0These examples provide a way to consider wider questions about nature and human responsibility.<\/p>\n
The book asks readers to reconsider how they understand their relationship with the natural world.<\/p>\n
Reciprocity is an important theme throughout\u00a0Braiding Sweetgrass<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer explores what it means to receive gifts from the natural world.\u00a0\u00a0She also considers how people might respond through gratitude, care and responsibility.<\/p>\n The book connects these ideas with broader questions about ecological awareness.\u00a0\u00a0It encourages a more attentive relationship with the living world around us.<\/p>\n Robin Wall Kimmerer is a botanist, professor, writer and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.\u00a0\u00a0She is a SUNY Distinguished Professor of Environmental Biology.\u00a0\u00a0She founded the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer combines scientific knowledge with Indigenous perspectives throughout her work.<\/p>\n She is also the author of\u00a0Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses<\/em>.<\/p>\n Braiding Sweetgrass<\/em>\u00a0was first published by Milkweed Editions in\u00a02013.\u00a0\u00a0The book has since become a widely read work of nature writing.\u00a0\u00a0It has appeared on bestseller lists and received major recognition for its contribution to nature writing.<\/p>\n The book was awarded the\u00a0John Burroughs Medal for Natural History Writing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer explores our relationship with plants, nature and the living world.\u00a0\u00a0Kimmerer brings together Indigenous knowledge, scientific understanding and personal experience throughout the book.\u00a0\u00a0As a botanist, she approaches the natural world through the methods of science.\u00a0\u00a0As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she also draws upon Indigenous knowledge and traditions. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":44204,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[66,65,367],"product_tag":[],"class_list":["post-44203","product","type-product","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","product_cat-books","product_cat-garden-gift-shop","product_cat-nature-ecology-conservation","first","instock","shipping-taxable","purchasable","product-type-simple"],"group_of_quantity":0,"min_quantity":0,"max_quantity":"","exclude_order_quantity_value_rules":"no","exclude_category_quantity_rules":"no","combine_variations":"no","exclude_global_add_ons":[],"addons":[],"acf":[],"meta_data":[],"yoast_head":"\nAbout the Author<\/h3>\n
About the Book<\/h3>\n