Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

DNF

I enjoyed the various anecdotes she wrote, especially ones involving the linguistic differences of the Native Americans. I was really engaged during the first half of the book, but I started losing interest after the 70% mark or so because it felt really repetitive. I do think this book could have been shorter and I definitely think she has poetic prowess. It is overall beautifully written, albeit dense.

Very informative from an Indigenous perspective.

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a citizen of the Potawatomi Nation, botanist, and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, is a treasure to us all. Reading her book has changed my life, by offering a unique perspective that equally honors the traditions of the indigenous peoples of Turtle Island (now commonly called the U.S.) and of the modern Western scientific method. This ode to the world and Ishmael by Daniel Quinn educated me to see that the biggest error of humans in this age has been trying to conquer and dominate other cultures, to the extent of believing there is only one right way to live. By dividing the world into “civilized” and other—by Othering in general—we delude ourselves into self-importance, and increase our destructiveness and isolation. In order to heal the world, we need not try to return to ancient ways, nor turn to new-fangled promises of technology-based solutions. We have indigenous wisdom and modern updates that can help us live in harmony with each other and Earth. It’s important we take the time and energy to learn the perspectives of those that work directly with the soil, the plants, the animals, and do not see these as separate from ourselves. Thank you Robin for many experiences shared on these pages. I’ve laughed, cried, and learned so much from you and the stories passed on through your writing.

In Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer uses Indigenous stories and history to explain how the people used to take care of the land and the land took care of the people. It was a balance and a mutually beneficial relationship. And now the American people just take take take from the land and it’s causing harm. We need to get back to that balance before it’s too late. Seems appropriate that I was reading this book while the Olympics were happening and all the discourse about the Siene River. I saw several comments saying something along the lines of “they wasted all that money” and I was tempted to ask “how is cleaning a river ever a waste?” But I don’t argue with strangers on the internet so I just went back to reading.