"Profound love demands a deep conception and out of this develops reverence for the mystery of life. It brings us close to all beings," Albert Schweitzer wrote. Intimate Nature is an elegantly conceived anthology of stories, essays, poems, and meditations reverencing animals as peers, teachers, and kindred allies. The three editors — Linda Hogan, Deena Metzger, and Brenda Peterson, all wonderful nature writers — have brought together the works of well-known writers, indigenous women, field scientists, journalists, poets, and wildlife workers who share a common interest in "the reconciliation between the human family and our sister creatures."
In the section on "First People," Hogan, Leslie Silko, Joy Harjo, and others reveal the shared histories of native women and animals. "Deep Silence: Living in the Field" presents accounts by Dian Fossey, Cynthia Moss, Birute M. F. Galdikas, and others on the importance of empathy and compassion in the study of animals. In "Borderlines: The Domesticated Wild," Gretel Ehrlich, Susan Boucher, and others write about intimacy with their animal companions. Barbara Kingsolver, Judith Freeman, Diane Ackerman, and others explore what they have learned from animals in a section titled "Relationships." Poets, including Denise Levertov and Judith Minty, bear witness to our kinship with various creatures in "Come into Animal Presence." And in "Restoration: Bringing Back the Animals," there are stirring essays by Peterson, Metzger, Terry Tempest Williams, and Jane Goodall. Intimate Nature is an enthralling book that will enable you to enter fully into the spiritual practice of reverence.