Cranston Public Library

"As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowledge together to take us on "a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise" (Elizabeth Gilbert)....

"As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowledge together to take us on "a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise" (Elizabeth Gilbert)....

"An engaging look at how the animals, people, and seasons within an ecosystem are intertwined. To the Gitxsan people of Northwestern British Columbia, the eagle is an integral part of the natural landscape. Together, they share the land and forests that the Skeena River runs through, as well as the sockeye salmon within it. Follow the eagle mother as she teaches her eaglets what they need to survive on their own. The Mothers of Xsan series uses striking...

Through carefully chosen stories from the olden days and art that meticulously reflects traditional designs and colors, Goble provides wonderful insights into the spiritual life of the Plains Indians. His intimate knowledge of their world transports the reader into a vision of the sacred beauty and wisdom that defined traditional Native America.

"The ecological and cultural researcher discusses indigenous communities throughout the world and their creative efforts to deal with climate change, arguing that biological and cultural diversity are key to resilience." --

In Rooted in the Earth, environmental historian Dianne D. Glave overturns the stereotype that a meaningful attachment to nature and the outdoors is contrary to the black experience. In tracing the history of African Americans' relationship with the environment, emphasizing the unique preservation-conservation aspect of black environmentalism, and using her storytelling skills to re-create black naturalists of the past, Glave reclaims the African American...

"Winona LaDuke focuses on Enbridge's pipelines for fracked oil, it's dangers and how the shale oil boom is adversely affecting Indian Country. She gathers musicians, young people and native leadership, puts them on horses, organizes in northern Minnesota lake communities and creates a movement." --

The Bushmen of the Kalahari provide a cautionary tale about water in the 21st century--and offer unexpected solutions for our time. Author James G. Workman chronicles the saga of the Bushmen--remnants of one of the world's most successful cultures, today at the epicenter of Africa's drought--in their widely publicized recent battle with the government of Botswana, in the process of exploring the larger story of what many feel has become the primary...