FanFare

Journalist Mark Woods gets a grant to visit 12 US National Parks over a year to write about the future of the National Park System. Life throws in a curve ball as his mother gets a terminal cancer diagnosis early in the year. Part travelogue, part reflection on family, part essay on the past and future of the National Park Service, this was a really enjoyable book to read, especially in January when my camper is in winter storage.
posted by COD on Feb 9, 2022 - 0 comments

The story of a family in Waco, Texas in 1956. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents' conflicting teachings.
posted by ob1quixote on Apr 15, 2020 - 6 comments

From medieval bestiaries to Borges’s Book of Imaginary Beings, we’ve long been enchanted by extraordinary animals, be they terrifying three-headed dogs or asps impervious to a snake charmer’s song. But bestiaries are more than just zany zoology—they are artful attempts to convey broader beliefs about human beings and the natural order. Today, we no longer fear sea monsters or banshees. But from the infamous honey badger to the giant squid, animals continue to captivate us with the things they can do and the things they cannot, what we know about them and what we don’t. [more inside]
posted by Homo neanderthalensis on Nov 9, 2019 - 1 comment

The true story—and true glories—of the plants we love to hate From dandelions to crabgrass, stinging nettles to poison ivy, weeds are familiar, pervasive, widely despised, and seemingly invincible. How did they come to be the villains of the natural world? And why can the same plant be considered beautiful in some places but be deemed a menace in others? [more inside]
posted by Homo neanderthalensis on Apr 16, 2019 - 1 comment

Honey bees get all the press, but the fascinating story of North America’s native bees—several endangered species essential to our ecosystems and food supplies—is just as crucial. Through interviews with farmers, gardeners, scientists, and bee experts, Our Native Bees explores the importance of native bees and focuses on why they play a key role in gardening and agriculture. [more inside]
posted by Homo neanderthalensis on Mar 8, 2019 - 2 comments

Forests feel like a place of great stillness but dig deeper and there's a hidden world beneath your feet as busy and complicated as a city. [more inside]
posted by jazon on Jul 31, 2016 - 3 comments

This episode contains a handful of stories that show how every time we think we've settled on a price for something, it slips out of our grasp. [more inside]
posted by jazon on Dec 25, 2014 - 1 comment

Jake turns into a brick to fulfill a childhood fantasy of being a brick in a wall as it collapses, but ends up narrating the drama of a rabbit caught in a storm.
posted by Small Dollar on Nov 26, 2014 - 13 comments