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The War against the Beavers Learning to Be Wild in the North Woods Verena Andermatt Conley |
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A beguiling tale of the ups and downs of backwoods living—now in paperback! A lifelong city dweller, Verena Andermatt Conley had long harbored romantic ideals about the natural world and dreamed of a wilderness retreat for herself and her husband, Tom. When a sizable tract of land along the Vermilion River on the edge of Minnesota’s Boundary Waters—complete with two primitive log cabins—became available, they jumped at the chance to own a piece of paradise. The War against the Beavers is a wry and funny account of two people’s ten-year apprenticeship in backwoods living, from their arrival as naive babes in the woods to their education in the ways of nature as they face plagues of insects, fungus, storms, and droughts, and embark on a lengthy campaign to eradicate a colony of beavers that threatens the peace and beauty of their forest refuge. It is only the coming of a mechanized and much more menacing threat—bulldozers and other heavy machinery clear-cutting the woods—that restores perspective to the obsessed cabin dwellers. “The War against the Beavers is Verena Andermatt Conley’s humorous account of her backwoods life along the Vermilion River and how she and her husband dealt with beavers.” —Duluth News Tribune “This is a fascinating story about the difference between the destructive forces of nature and the destructive forces of humans. It begins with a charming naivete and ends with a clear-eyed wisdom.” —Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature “Following in the footsteps of Thoreau, Verena Conley gives us a vivid and good-humored account of the pleasures and frustrations of learning her place in the natural world. Her Minnesota Walden is resplendent but also beset by natural and manmade plagues that continually threaten her serenity. The book's wisdom is that it reveals how she finally triumphs over her complex environment by recognizing that for the most part she doesn't have to.” —Ross McElwee, director of Sherman's March and Bright Leaves “Verena Conley's book is written with a wonderful attention to the details of life -- the smells, touches, sights of the world. Her humor and common sense about the quest for a personal arcadia delight and inform. A great book to read aloud—especially in a car escaping a city.” —David Black, award winning screenwriter, journalist, novelist, and producer Verena Andermatt Conley was born and raised in Switzerland, where she grew up reading picturesque and adventurous portrayals of the great American wilderness. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 192 pages | 5 3⁄8 x 8 1⁄2 | May 2005 |
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$15.95 Paper