First published 2017
Janet Kauffman confronts what she terms "eco-dementia," humanity's paradoxical relationship with the natural world. We love the living environment yet simultaneously destroy it and suffer from that destruction. Kauffman argues this condition mirrors other forms of dementia. We lose connection, forget our origins, and fail to recognize our own habitat. The author questions what drives humans to exploit resources even when facing potential self-destruction. Her work rejects traditional nature poetry in favor of immersive language that tangles with the living world. The collection spans one decade of Kauffman's life across three sections. She examines devastation from personal to global scales, connecting her father's Alzheimer's disease to environmental disasters like Hurricane Katrina and Lake Erie's contamination. Despite widespread destruction, moments of joy persist when touching tall grasses or stepping into water and shade. Kauffman captures both the elemental richness that brings bliss and the violent distortions that cause grief. Her father's words echo the confusion: "I know where you live, but I don't know who you are."
Genres: nature, literary-fiction, environment, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief
Setting: Hurricane Katrina, Lake Erie
Period: one decade
120 pages · Paperback · Wayne State University Press
Content warnings: mental-illness