The River Swimmer
by Jim Harrison

“Among the most indelible American novelists of the last hundred years. . . . [Harrison] remains at the height of his powers.”—Dwight Garner, The New York Times

“Trenchant and visionary.”—Ron Carlson, The New York Times Book Review

A New York Times best-seller, enthusiastically received by critics and embraced by readers, The River Swimmer is Jim Harrison at his most memorable: two men, one young and one older, confronting inconvenient loves and the encroachment of urbanity on nature, written with freshness, abundant wit, and profound humanity. In “The Land of Unlikeness,” Clive—a failed artist, divorced and grappling with the vagaries of his declining years—reluctantly returns to his family’s Michigan farmhouse to visit his aging mother. The return to familiar territory triggers a jolt of renewal—of ardor for his high school sweetheart, of his relationship with his estranged daughter, and of his own lost love of painting. In “The River Swimmer,” Harrison ventures into the magical as an Upper Peninsula farm boy is irresistibly drawn to swimming as an escape, and sees otherworldly creatures in the water. Faced with the injustice and pressure of coming of age, he takes to the river and follows its siren song all the way across Lake Michigan. The River Swimmer is an exceptional reminder of why Jim Harrison is one of the most cherished and important writers at work today.

“[The River Swimmer] deepens and broadens [Harrison’s] already openhearted and smart-minded sense of the way we live now, and what we might do to improve it.”—Alan Cheuse, NPR

Celebrate National Biochar Week by joining us for a free Zoom presentation all about biochar on Thursday, December 10 at 7:00pm!
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Blue Mind by Wallace Nichols
Water is medicine for those who need it most...and everyone else.

Blue Mind is landmark best-selling book by marine biologist Dr. Wallace J. Nichols on the remarkable effects of water in all of its shapes and forms on our health and well-being.
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Why are we drawn to lakes, rivers, oceans and pools each summer? Why does being near water set our minds and bodies at ease? In Blue Mind, Dr. Nichols revolutionizes how we think about these questions, revealing the remarkable truth about the benefits of being in, on, under, or simply near water.
Combining cutting-edge neuroscience with compelling personal stories from top athletes, leading scientists, military veterans, and gifted artists, he shows how proximity to water can improve performance, increase calm, diminish anxiety, and increase professional success.
Blue Mind not only illustrates the crucial importance of our connection to water-it provides a paradigm shifting "blueprint" for a better life on this Blue Marble we call home.