Soil
Book description
A seminal work that expands how we talk about the natural world and the environment as National Book Critics Circle Criticism finalist Camille T. Dungy diversifies her garden to reflect her heritage.
In Soil: The Story of a Black Mother’s Garden, poet and scholar Camille T. Dungy recounts the seven-year…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Soil as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Dungy’s beautiful book demonstrates that the wild doesn’t have to be a pristine mountain wilderness, far removed from other people. The wild in her book is a place she creates herself by turning a suburban yard into a refuge of wild plants and critters.
As a lazy gardener, I admired the astonishing amount of labor she put into replacing rocks and lawns with beautiful blooms while battling bindweed and other undesirables. I related to her struggles with parenting and writing through the pandemic, and I appreciated her musings on colonialism and racial violence. Having read her book, I might even…
From Andrea's list on women in the wild.
Camille T. Dungy offers a memoir of her Fort Collins garden, the soil and the history it holds, and her experiences as a mother, a Black woman, and a gardener.
I, too, love gardens, and restoring my plot of earth to something more sustainable. The soil holds so much more than plants, and I love this book for revealing that to me.
Want books like Soil?
Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Soil.
5 book lists we think you will like!
Interested in gardening, Colorado, and home?
10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about gardening, Colorado, and home.