This was my very first ebook from the library. I was on the wait list for the hard copy and it pushed me over the edge to download the Overdrive software, attend a class (thank you so much Pam for walking me through this!) and finally learn how to e-read.
I also reread it when it arrived in hardback as it is a profound, moving, elegant novella. I continue to think about this book several weeks after having first discovered it. And indeed that is a story in itself. I recommend so many books (and love doing so, especially when I read one that I know will suit a particular person). The English daughter of a friend of mine gave it to his wife for Christmas. She was slowly reading it when he became curious of its title. When he recommends a book to me, I must find it, as we share a deep appreciation for nature and good writing.
There are so many aspects of this book to recommend it. The writing is engaging, the observations of both humble woodland snail and human frailties are revealing, the thought provoking nature of the book will haunt you for weeks and involve an examination of your own life. This is an appreciation of what it means to be fully alive - and here and now, in spring, we need to reaffirm this within ourselves. Her endurance through her illness, aided with the companionship of this woodland snail, confronts our daily chaotic lives - and forced me to reexamine myself. I learned far more than I ever expected to know about snails, but more importantly, was reconnected with my own natural world. Carpe Diem.
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