A Year in the Maine Woods

by Bernd Heinrich

Book Overview

Escapist fantasies usually involve the open road, but Bernd Heinrich's dream was to focus on the riches of one small place--a few green acres along Alder Brook just east of the Presidential Mountains. The year begins as he settles into a cabin with no running water and no electricity, built of hand-cut logs he dragged out of the woods with a team of oxen. There, alone except for his pet raven, Jack, he rediscovers the meaning of peace and quiet and...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0201489392
• ISBN13: 9780201489392
• Release Date: November 1995
• Publisher: Da Capo Press
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.84 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Looking Close

To appreciate Bernd Heinrich, you have to be prepared to slow down and look close. After all, the author himself has taken a year's leave of absence from a fast-paced university job to do just that. He wants to spend time in his beloved woods, study the creatures that live there and see where long rambles will take him. It not the sort of book to begin with an agenda in mind. That said, I found A Year in the Maine Woods a quixotic mix of science and human exploits - a glimpse at the lives of a whole host of insects, birds, mammals and plant life I never knew existed, and a chance to share in one person's approach to learning. Examples? Let's take Heinrich's penchant for climbing trees. For a full-grown, adult male he really does spend a lot of time in them, and as a result has some interesting stories to tell. There's the day he finds himself scrambling up a tree to avoid a moose who refuses to yield the right of way on a trail, and the time a doe wanders under the apple tree he is sitting in and proceeds to munch away. No amount of noise or movement on Heinrich's part seems to disturb her until he descends from the tree. Then she's off like a shot!Here's another example. Heinrich loves ravens. He is fascinated by their intelligence, close-knit family systems, their flying ability and survival skills, and is not above combing the countryside for roadkill in order to provide food for them. Heinrich's exploits with a pet raven are both hilarious and revealing. Here is a man who delights in life itself and is willing to put up with a fair amount of discomfort and irritation to learn about it.If you enjoy learning about special places on our planet, and the creatures that inhabit them, through the eyes of those who have studied and know them intimately, then this book will delight you. If, on the other hand you like your reading to be full of fast-paced action and spine-tingling climaxes, this is not the book for you. Be prepared to read slowly and savor the pictures Heinrich offers.

a book to go back to with each new season

Like Aldo Leopold's "Sand County Almanac",Heinrich has written a book that I find myself going back to with each changing season. His descriptions are those of an experienced naturalist who finds immense pleasure in the diversity and detail of nature. I especially enjoyed the many passages on bird song and his observations of the myriad colours and patterns in Red Maples in the fall. To fully appreciate this book, however, the reader needs to be knowledgeable about natural history. Whereas some other reviewers have said that they found the long passages about a particular plant or animal tiresome, these were the parts of the book that I enjoyed the most.

taught me how to look and see "mundane" things more clearly

We just took a vacation to Maine, in the same area the author stays for a year. It was great to see the descriptions of the countryside over the 4 seasons - not just the one that we saw. The author clearly describes nature and the intricate workings and interactions of all the plants and animals - especially insects and ravens. I felt sad that he saw so much so clearly, but did not (I am guessing) see God's hand in the creation of the finely tuned machine of nature. I never thought of lumbering as an environmental tool, so that was interesting. Loved the drawings of the plants and insects. Next walk I take will be a longer, more conscious one, thanks to this book.