Rating: 
Summary: Thoreau shows his true genius!
Review: As anyone should know, from reading my previous reviews (regarding the works of a certain American writer, novelist, botanist and downright genius, i.e., Henry David Thoreaus) is that I do consider him to be one the greatest writers ever to have come/lived in the US. His wide array of knowledge is astounding, e.g., botany, history, linguistics et al; so that everyhting that he states, writes and says in his book is with the voice of authority. For anyone whom is even remotely interested in botany, ecology or enviromentalism; then this book is a must have. Since Thoreau can be and should be seen as the first true enviromentalist in the US. However, for the scholar, this book in question ,i.e.,Wild Fruits : Thoreau's Rediscovered Last Manuscript by Henry David Thoreau, et al, is a must have and I would defenitely recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful journal....
Review: At this time of the year, I am off to the local forests, parks, etc. with my dogs, to walk along and fill my lungs with hopefully clean air. The dogs and I like to kick up the leaves, and they sniff about a great deal, undoubtedly detecting one animal or another. As I look up, I see the walnuts clinging to their mother branches, standing out against the sky as Thoreau said they would. Many nuts fall long after the leaves. This is a lovely book, and the next best experience you can have to a long walk in the woods. Bradley Dean, the Editor, could have called it "A Walk in the Woods with Henry David Thoreau." Thoreau sniffs, he tastes, he feels, he draws what he sees. And he invites the reader to do the same. Walden Forest and the surrounding countryside Thoreau knew are threatened, but some are trying to conserve what remains. Among other bits of information the reader can find in this book is how to join the crusade to save Waldon Forest. Sadly, the American countryside Thoreau describes has been disappearing. Even 50 years ago, small farms were the norm, and hedgerows and creeks between farms harbored all sorts of wild things. Although DDT introduced after WWII had done a bit of damage to some of the wildlife, herbicides, pesticides, and huge commercial farms had not yet driven everything except a monocrop out of existence. One could walk along the country lane and find blackberries, chokeberries, cranberries, gooseberries, and blueberries in their many forms. Wild cherries and crabapples were abundant. Have you found crabapple jelly at the supermarket lately? I had to send off to a mail order company to buy it. Crabapples are native species, but they are in decline. Wild fruits we took for granted have been driven to the brink of extinction. When I was in fourth grade, our teacher Mrs. Bryant took us to visit a brook that ran through our neighborhood. The brook was lined with a small forest, even though it backed up onto housing. There we found wild Trilliums and Mandrakes, signs of the Ovenbird, and a creek filled with Crawfish who scurried away when you moved the rocks that hid them. The creek was clear as glass, and we did not hesitate to drink the water--the thought we might become sick never entered our minds. A creek runs through my grandchildren's neighborhood, and it's lined with concrete where it doesn't run through a culvert--flood control to protect housing built where it ought not be built. Thoreau writes beautifully, as everyone who ever read him knows. In "Wild Fruits" -- his last known work -- he describes the excursions he made into the woods, thickets, swamps, and fields during the last years of his short life (d. age 44). The journal entries/essays cover the seasons of the year, and are arranged by type of fruit--for the most part. Thoreau is humorous, thoughful, and instructive. In the section on autumn fruits, Thoreau describes his friend who suggested they wear the stick-tights acquired on their pantaloons on an afternoon walk until they fell off naturally. His friend shows up a day or two later still coverd with little green seeds. Thoreau is somewhat given to making political and philosophical comments, and he refers to the troubles in the bloody Kansas of the 1850s and other troubles associated with slavery. But, he can make your heart sing when he describes the bluejay hammering a nutcase like a woodpecker as he estracts his supper, or the complexity of the Asclepia seed pod that launches it's silky parachutes on the wind. Finally, he reminds us how easy it would be to leave the natural world entact where trees rise toward heaven like the pillars of a cathedral -- and refrain from building the man-made edifices to worship God that are so inferior to those Nature erected.
Rating:
Summary: hats off to Dean
Review: Dean Bradley needs to be commended for taking on the challenge of resorting and reorganizing Thoreau's lost manuscript, for if he had not we would not have the beautiful language of Thoreau to savor once again. With this manuscript we see Thoreau as he meanders through his beloved Walden Pond area and we learn of his intellect as he quotes from the ancient authors as well as his contemporaries. The descriptions soothe one on a stressful day and once again make us see just how great a writer Thoreau was. Hats off to Dean Bradley for his work!
Rating:
Summary: hats off to Dean
Review: Dean Bradley needs to be commended for taking on the challenge of resorting and reorganizing Thoreau's lost manuscript, for if he had not we would not have the beautiful language of Thoreau to savor once again. With this manuscript we see Thoreau as he meanders through his beloved Walden Pond area and we learn of his intellect as he quotes from the ancient authors as well as his contemporaries. The descriptions soothe one on a stressful day and once again make us see just how great a writer Thoreau was. Hats off to Dean Bradley for his work!
Rating: 
Summary: Wait for a better edition!
Review: Despite the praise for this book, I was greatly disappointed but what I see as a sloppily edited text, and long for a properly and more carefully edited one. Thoreau deserves better. Just to cite a few examples: On pages 19, 162, 185 and 200 the word "river" is inserted after Assabet, but Dean did not do the same on page 123 or 168. In many places Dean interprets parentheses as meaning Thoreau intended a delete a word or phrase, but leaves many instances of similar parentheses in the text. There is no indication in the notes explaining how Dean is able to intuit Thoreau's using parentheses for a deletion versus a parenthetical statement. On page 61 Dean emends the acceptable 19th century word "spiritist" to "spiritualist" based on a journal passage, which would be a similar editorial technique to editing Walden back to an earlier draft forms. On pages 126 and 216 Dean has the name Sophia, who is according to the notes Thoreau's sister, but on page 202 Dean will "emend by replacing 'Sophia' in the MS with 'My sister,' which would conform with Thoreau's practice of not using proper names of individuals in his published writings." I do not understand why this editor chooses to follow Thoreau's practice in some places but not in others, or why he failed to identify so famous a person as the magician Signor Blitz (page 147) who was renowned for his bullet-catching act, but I think I do understand why this book has been remaindered. Wait for something better!
Rating:
Summary: Wait for a better edition!
Review: Despite the praise for this book, I was greatly disappointed by what I see as a sloppily edited text, and long for a properly and more carefully edited one. Thoreau deserves better. Just to cite a few examples: On pages 19, 162, 185 and 200 the word "river" is inserted after Assabet, but Dean did not do the same on page 123 or 168. In many places Dean interprets parentheses as meaning Thoreau intended a delete a word or phrase, but leaves many instances of similar parentheses in the text. There is no indication in the notes explaining how Dean is able to intuit Thoreau's using parentheses for a deletion versus a parenthetical statement. On page 61 Dean emends the acceptable 19th century word "spiritist" to "spiritualist" based on a journal passage, which would be a similar editorial technique to editing Walden back to an earlier draft forms. On pages 126 and 216 Dean has the name Sophia, who is according to the notes Thoreau's sister, but on page 202 Dean will "emend by replacing 'Sophia' in the MS with 'My sister,' which would conform with Thoreau's practice of not using proper names of individuals in his published writings." I do not understand why this editor chooses to follow Thoreau's practice in some places but not in others, or why he failed to identify so famous a person as the magician Signor Blitz (page 147) who was renowned for his bullet-catching act, but I think I do understand why this book has been remaindered. Wait for something better!
Rating:
Summary: Wild at Heart
Review: Do we have a preference for our Thoreau? ABSOLUTELY! But even the adulterated varietal will do in a pinch. The long lost diary of HD's romps in the woods serve well to remind us why some fruits are forbidden. Thoreau's posthumously edited musings over cattails, gladiolas, and other seductive succulents put the reader in the mood, apparently, for wanton strolls in a wooded glen savoring everything from unbridalled grapes (of wrath?) to the odd jack-in-the-pulpit. 'Tis better to give than to receive and this new work by an old friend makes a great gift when you want it known that you are in the mood for fruit more private than Publix.
Rating:
Summary: Wild at Heart
Review: Do we have a preference for our Thoreau? ABSOLUTELY! But even the adulterated varietal will do in a pinch. The long lost diary of HD's romps in the woods serve well to remind us why some fruits are forbidden. Thoreau's posthumously edited musings over cattails, gladiolas, and other seductive succulents put the reader in the mood, apparently, for wanton strolls in a wooded glen savoring everything from unbridalled grapes (of wrath?) to the odd jack-in-the-pulpit. 'Tis better to give than to receive and this new work by an old friend makes a great gift when you want it known that you are in the mood for fruit more private than Publix.
Rating:
Summary: Wild Fruits - Finally
Review: Having read a good portion of Thoreau's diaries, I expected to find little else in this new manuscript. I was wrong. I found more and better observations on nature - specifics on white pine cone seed disbursement is hardly water cooler talk and not for everyone - written in a manner that is interesting and relevant. Intertwined with the topic of wild fruit and seed information is more of Thoreau's philosophy, that which has driven me to read him for all these years. If you like Thoreau, you simply cannot fail to read this piece of his puzzle. I can't wait for someone to tackle and publish what remains of his unpublished work. Finally, I must say that while closing the final page I was struck with a deep appreciation for the immense effort involved in publishing this book, given the quality of his handwriting and the poor organization of the manuscript. It is indeed appreciated.
Rating:
Summary: Wild Fruits - Finally
Review: Having read a good portion of Thoreau's diaries, I expected to find little else in this new manuscript. I was wrong. I found more and better observations on nature - specifics on white pine cone seed disbursement is hardly water cooler talk and not for everyone - written in a manner that is interesting and relevant. Intertwined with the topic of wild fruit and seed information is more of Thoreau's philosophy, that which has driven me to read him for all these years. If you like Thoreau, you simply cannot fail to read this piece of his puzzle. I can't wait for someone to tackle and publish what remains of his unpublished work. Finally, I must say that while closing the final page I was struck with a deep appreciation for the immense effort involved in publishing this book, given the quality of his handwriting and the poor organization of the manuscript. It is indeed appreciated.
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