Essential Muir by Fred White
Essential Muir is a book that takes the best of John Muir’s writings on nature and places them alongside his musings on religion, society, and his fellow humans.
The book asks the reader to consider how these connect and what that means for Muir’s legacy in environmentalism today. The book presents a fresh look at one of California’s greatest figures, who was a literary naturalist and founder of the Sierra Club and Yosemite National Park.
The main themes of the book are John Muir’s love for nature, his advocacy for the protection of wild places, and his influence on the modern conservation movement. The book highlights Muir’s charms and confronts his flaws, which is vital for understanding the history of environmental thought. The book also includes Muir’s thoughts on religion and society, which adds depth to his character and legacy.
Useful takeaways from the book include:
- John Muir’s love for nature was so powerful and his description of it so compelling that it still inspires us a century later.
- Muir’s advocacy helped create several national parks, including Sequoia, Mount Rainier, and Grand Canyon.
- Muir’s belief that the government should designate and maintain wilderness areas for the enjoyment of all citizens regardless of economic or social standing led to the creation of the National Park Service in 1916.
- Muir wrote and had published over 300 magazine articles and 12 books, which bubble over with his love of adventure, nature, wildness, and the inter-connectivity of it all.
- Muir’s passion for nature brought him to every continent except Antarctica.
What I Liked
I loved being able to read Muir’s best, most impactful writings in a single collection. Muir was a force of nature with an incredible ability to descriptively write about nature. Also – I have no idea how he did some of the trips that he did. He’s a real inspiration for the ability of someone to make a massive impact with nothing but a pen and paper.
What I Did Not Like
I wish that the preface & foreword had dug into just how complicated and weird Muir was.
