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"Expertly executed . . .
A lost classic of American nature writing, The Friendship of Nature is the crowning achievement of Mabel Osgood Wright--founder of the Connecticut Audubon Society, associate editor of Bird-Lore (now Audubon) magazine, and the organizing force behind one of the first privately owned bird sanctuaries in the United States. Originally published in 1894, her book is an elegant chronicle of a year in the life of the Connecticut countryside, a moving exploration of the passage of time as seen through the seasonal changes in New England's birds and flowers. For this new edition of The Friendship of Nature, published in celebration of the centennial of the Connecticut Audubon Society, Daniel J. Philippon places Wright's work within the tradition of American nature writing and deepens and extends our knowledge of her life, describing Wright's relationship to her influential father, discussing her gradual awakening as an author, and charting her growing involvement with the Audubon societies on both the state and national levels. In so doing, he reclaims her not only as one of the most significant women nature writers of the early twentieth century, but also as a forgotten hero of the American conservation movement. "Day is relentless, boundless, pushing in its thoughts and suggestions; one road opens upon another and every path has its branches. Walk in the fields; at each step you meet a new circumstance and a different idea is forced upon you. In the woods you are led by a strange leaf, a new flower, a mossed stone,-in themselves trifles,-into infinite mental detail. The flight of a bird opens vista upon vista, until you cease to follow, cease even to absorb, but are both possessed and absorbed by the power of Nature. Beauty becomes almost an oppression, and the sun-fed colour blinding, the sense of personal littleness humbling. How can we realize it all, how can we arrange ourselves in relation to it and interpret it rightly? There is so much to see, so much to learn, and so little time between the first consciousness of the eye and its closing."--from chapter seven, "Nature's Calm" "Before Daniel Philippon's expertly executed edition, The Friendship of Nature's only appearance was its original publication in 1894. That a work of nature writing as original, interesting, and accomplished as this could have languished for a century is yet more evidence that the recovery of this genre's history is important and rewarding work. Philippon's introduction and notes, both of which are based on primary sources and make original contributions to the study of Wright's work, serve as models for other scholars to emulate."--*ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment "Daniel J. Philippon's new edition of Mabel Osgood Wright's The Friendship of Nature: A New England Chronicle of Birds and Flowers (1894) is a welcome addition to a growing body of reprints of nineteenth- and twentieth-century American nature writing. Wright's book provides an important introduction to the early career of a forgotten champion of America's flora and fauna."--Environmental History "The Friendship of Nature would make an excellent gift for naturalists, birders, and gardeners who love books. Not too long, divided into 11 neat and clearly written chapters, and illustrated with Osgood Wright's own photographs, it is a quick and gratifying read."--The Canadian Field-Naturalist (Read the complete review.) "Mabel Osgood Wright . . . deserve[s] to be better known. . . . Her writing is remarkably uncluttered with late nineteenth century romantic naturalism. She prided herself on being a keen observer and on recording only what she experienced. She was a true daughter of the Progressive era, arguing for better stewardship of nature, and for the rights of 'citizen bird.' She acknowledged that she was not a scientist, but felt there was an important role for the serious amateur. . . . The reprint contains the author's photographs and a good introduction by Daniel J. Philippon, . . . who also includes a bibliography of work by and about Mrs. Wright."--American Studies International "The recent return of Mabel Osgood Wright's 1894 work The Friendship of Nature into print clarifies certain continuities in our literary tradition. It demonstrates a deeply rooted American lineage for that celebration of gardens now associated with such contemporary authors as Michael Pollan and Jamaica Kincaid. It displays the continuing and decisive influence of the Concord sages, as transmitted through her Unitarian-minister father, a student of William Ellery Channing. And it presents the example of a woman whose love of birds and the flowering world made her a remarkably effective advocate--through her Connecticut Audubon Society and other vehicles--for the protection of habitat, the regulation of hunting, and the establishment of national parks."--The Norton Book of Nature Writing, 2nd ed. "These graceful sketches reflect the changing aspects of the blooming and the waning year, and convince us that the author, though writing prose, is a true poet in the Emersonian sense, namely, in the power to see the miraculous in the common."--The Dial "Whether we like the author's treatment of flowers or birds the better we do not know, for both subjects are delicately handled. . . . The lady is always in touch."--The New York Times Daniel J. Philippon is assistant professor of rhetoric at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. 0-8018-6234-5 $42.00 hardcover |
