Accented with snatches of verse and a mix of scientific and Christian insight, University of Iowa professor Lazell takes us on vivid nature walks through the rural areas of the Plains state. - Summary by Matt Pierard

In "Some Winter Days in Iowa," Frederick John Lazell presents a contemplative and evocative narrative that captures the stark beauty of Iowa's winter landscape. Through lyrical prose and vivid imagery, Lazell explores themes of solitude, resilience, and the interplay between nature and human experience. The text is imbued with a sense of introspection, as the author reflects on the quiet moments that define the winter season, masterfully interweaving autobiographical elements with broader ...

I am glad to have the privilege, thus in advance, of looking over Mr. Lazell's delightful essays. He has surely a gift in this sort of thing. We are grateful to the man who shows us what he sees in Nature, but more to the man who like our present author shows us how easy and blessed it is to see for ourselves. Mr. Lazell reminds me of Thoreau and Emerson, and I can suggest no better foreword than the passage from the last named author, from the Method of Nature, as follows: "Every earnest ...

"Some Winter Days in Iowa" by Frederick John Lazell is a reflective exploration of the beauty and challenges of winter in the Midwest. Through vivid descriptions and poignant observations, Lazell captures the essence of the season, portraying the stark landscapes and the quiet moments that define winter days. The book invites readers to appreciate the stillness and solitude that winter brings, while also acknowledging the hardships faced by those living in harsh climates. Lazell's prose is...

It is indeed a pleasure thus to open the gate while my friend leads us away from the din and rush of the city into “God’s great out-of-doors.” Having walked with him on “Some Winter Days,” one is all the more eager to follow him in the gentler months of Spring—that mother-season, with its brooding pathos, and its seeds stirring in their sleep as if they dreamed of flowers. Our guide is at once an expert and a friend, a man of science and a poet. If he should sleep a year, like dear old Rip...

Like the two preceding little volumes of this series, this book seeks to show something of what Iowa has to offer to the man who loves the out-of-doors. There is nothing very unusual in it. The trees and the flowers, the birds and the small wild animals which it mentions and describes are such as may be seen in the Iowa fields and woods by anyone who cares enough about them to walk amid their haunts. The illustrations are such as the ordinary nature lover may "take" for himself with his po...

"Some Spring Days in Iowa" by Frederick John Lazell is a reflective exploration of the beauty and simplicity of rural life. The narrative captures the essence of springtime in Iowa, painting vivid pictures of blooming landscapes and the awakening of nature. Lazell's prose is rich with imagery, evoking the sights and sounds of the season, while also delving into the emotional resonance of these experiences. The book serves as a reminder of the tranquility found in nature and the joy of obse...

"Some Summer Days in Iowa" by Frederick John Lazell is a captivating exploration of the beauty and simplicity of rural life. Through vivid descriptions and heartfelt narratives, Lazell captures the essence of summer in Iowa, painting a picture of lush landscapes, vibrant communities, and the joys of nature. The book invites readers to immerse themselves in the tranquil moments of summer, where time seems to slow down, and the connection to the land and its people is deeply felt. Lazell's p...

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize“The book is a form of meditation, written with headlong urgency, about seeing. . . . There is an ambition about [Dillard's] book that I like. . . . It is the ambition to feel.” — Eudora Welty, New York Times Book ReviewPilgrim at Tinker Creek is the story of a dramatic year in Virginia's Roanoke Valley, where Annie Dillard set out to chronicle incidents of "beauty tangled in a rapture w...

PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • From one of today's best poets—a stunningly poignant sequence of poems that tells the story of a divorce, embracing strands of love, sex, sorrow, memory, and new freedom.In this wise and intimate telling—which carries us through the seasons when her marriage was ending—Sharon Olds opens her heart to the reader, sharing the feeling of invisibility that comes when we are no longer standing in love’s sight; the surprising physical bond that sti...

Henry David Thoreau’s Journal was his life’s work: the daily practice of writing that accompanied his daily walks, the workshop where he developed his books and essays, and a project in its own right—one of the most intensive explorations ever made of the everyday environment, the revolving seasons, and the changing self. It is a treasure trove of some of the finest prose in English and, for those acquainted with it, its prismatic pages exercise a hypnotic fascination. Yet at roug...

This paperback edition contains the complete text of Roethke's seven published volumes in addition to sixteen previously uncollected poems. Included are his Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners The Walking, Words for the Wind, and The Far Field.These two hundred poems demonstrate the variety of Roethke's themes and styles, the comic and serious sides of his temperament, and his breakthroughs in the use of language. Together they document the development ...