Can a book be cozy, loving, encouraging, compassionate, AND a threat to the brutal and cutthroat consumer capitalism of our era? I present to you Robin Wall Kimmerer’s first book since her surprise mega-bestselling sleeper hit Braiding Sweetgrass. The serviceberry is a bushy, underappreciated fruit tree native to Eastern North America that Kimmerer uses as inspiration to muse broadly on “abundance and reciprocity in the natural world.” The tree embodies the values of gratitude, interconnectedness, and mutual aid. Strikingly, the serviceberry’s broad and generous distribution of its wealth ensures its own flourishing! Let’s all read this small, beautiful, and powerful little book and talk about how we can reimagine modern economic life to be a little more sane and humane!
The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer, (List Price: $20, Scribner, 9781668072240, November 2024)
Reviewed by Josh, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia