Publisher Description

Every Natural Fact: Five Seasons of Open-Air Parenting is a narrative of mother-and-son nature outings across the state of Wisconsin. In a style that blends the voices of Janisse Ray and Annie Dillard, a mother and son explore parallels in the world of people and nature. The interconnected chapters stand on their own and build upon each other. These explorations of natural history, flora and fauna, and parenting themes demonstrate that the mythic thread that winds through everything can still be found, even in a world of wounds. Amy Lou Jenkins' award-winning writing is rich in sensory immediacy, characterization, natural history, and humor.Amy Lou Jenkins holds a MFA in literature and creative writing from Bennington College. She has taught writing at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and has presented at multiple writing conferences and workshops. Selections from her manuscript have placed in regional and national contests, including The Florida Review Editor's Award in Nonfiction, Literal Latte Essay Awards, Flint Hills Review Nonfiction Award, XJ Kennedy Award for Nonfiction, and the Ellis Henderson Outdoor Writing Award.

Author Biography

Amy Lou Jenkins holds a MFA in Literature and Creative Writing from Bennington College. She teaches writing at Carroll College in Waukesha, WI, and has presented at multiple writing conferences. Selections from her manuscript Every Natural Fact have placed in regional and national contests including The Florida Review Editors Award in Nonfiction, Literal Latte Essay Awards, and many others.

Review

"Any reader drawn to the outdoors will cherish Every Natural Fact and its author's sensual intelligence potted in the fertile soil of a boundless curiosity for the world. Amy Lou Jenkins is the Anna Quindlen of the north woods, the Rachel Carson of the good land of Wisconsin, bequeathing to her son and to all of us an indestructible sense of wonder."--Bob Shacochis, National Book Award-winning author of Easy in The Islands and The Immaculate Invasion"If you combined the lyricism of Annie Dillard, the vision of Aldo Leopold, and the gentle but tough-minded optimism of Frank McCourt, you might come close to Amy Lou Jenkins, a writer who obliterates the distinction between regional writing and actual, honest-to-god writing. I, for one, would follow her anywhere."--Tom Bissell, author of Chasing the Sea and The Father of All Things"What makes this book such a marvel is the way the human and the non-human are kept in perfect balance: the psychological dance of a mother and son, with all its funny, touching, realistic two-steps, intersects with the desire to be opened up to the mystery and rapture of the natural sublime. It is a splendid fusion, as much about parenting and education and generation gaps as it is about patient observation of landscapes in flux. Jenkins' polished literary style makes it, sentence by sentence, a joy to read."--Phillip Lopate, author of Waterfront and At the End of the Day"Braiding together history, memoir, gentle parenting guidance, and superb nature writing, Jenkins' prose illuminates the details of ordinary life."--Susan Cheever, author of Home before Dark and American Bloomsbury"Amy Lou Jenkins writes with complexity about the dance human beings do with nature, and with one another. . . . She puts together pieces of history, natural history, and parenting to make a touching and memorable whole. The whole thing rings true."--Michael Finley, judge of the Ellis Henderson Outdoor Writing Award"Her vivid imagery mixes a naturalist's precision with a spiritual seeker's poetry."--Robert Wake, author and editor of Cambridge Book Review Press and co-judge for the X.J. Kennedy Award for Nonfiction"Armed with a keen sense of geography, geology, and biology--as well as a delightful arsenal of regional folklore--Amy Lou Jenkins chronicles a series of Wisconsin nature walks with her adolescent son, determined to face her own foibles and learning to accept that D.J. will eventually leave her loving nest. In her cogent, smart book she holds on to her boy even as she lets him go, and in the process discovers--through the natural world, through her faith, and through guides such as Muir and Leopold--her own strength and vulnerability as a mother."--Debra Gwartney, author of Live Through This: A Mother's Memoir of Runaway Daughters and Reclaimed Love and co-editor of Home Ground: Language for an American LandscapeEndorsed by the PTPA (Parent Tested, Parent Approved)

Review Quote

"Any reader drawn to the outdoors will cherish Every Natural Fact and its author's sensual intelligence potted in the fertile soil of a boundless curiosity for the world. Amy Lou Jenkins is the Anna Quindlen of the north woods, the Rachel Carson of the good land of Wisconsin, bequeathing to her son and to all of us an indestructible sense of wonder."

Description for Sales People

Over 11 million Americans are outdoor or nature enthusiasts by virtue of belonging to an environmental organization. The National Parks claim about 300 million visits a year. The newspaper and evening news offer daily reminders about the need to reconcile our estrangement from nature. With 68% of books purchased by women, the female nature voice is underpublished; it's time to send a message about open-air parenting. The New York Times nonfiction bestsellers consistently include titles related to nature and the environment; recent top sellers include The World Without Us, by Alan Weisman, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver. Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder, is being translated to 17 languages, and has called the attention of parents and teachers who have adopted the term nature deficit disorder. Teachers, parents, and legislators have created National Nature Education week, as the week preceding Earth Day, a week for focus on children and nature. On the website for National Environmental Education Week, htm, educators encourage readers to take a survey to determine if they have nature deficit disorder. The US Government has even gotten on the bandwagon with their Take a Child Outside Week. There is a call to take children outdoors. Richard Louv has convinced his audience; Every Natural Fact: Five Seasons of Open-air Parenting goes outside, and this literature of place reveals the intimacies of parent and child outdoors. Nature writers tend to go east or

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