Though I read a few scattered essays first and a book of short stories (Fidelity), it was Berry's poetry which first grabbed me. Then I fell in love with his fictional town of Port William and his characters. Only then did I re-engage with his essays with renewed interest. As a shepherd without a sheep, I read Berry's agrarian essays in the bastardized way commended by Eugene Peterson, adjusting what Berry says on farming to the realm of pastoral ministry. This book requires no such adjustment, because it is primarily an exploration of his other vocation, writing.

Berry's life work is as an author and farmer who thoughtfully explores his place in the world. He does not 'use' the place in his writing so much as he cultivates and is cultivated by the land he stands on. The essays in this book, explore the world of like-minded writers, poets and short-fiction writers who are friends of Berry. A good number of these, memorialize friends who have passed on, extolling them as much for their literary gifts as for their humanity and friendship.

I would say the chapters are uneven, but there are some real gems here. I especially enjoyed: "My Friend Hayden" "Sweetness Perserved" and Against the Nihil of the Age" (these chapters speak of Hayden Carruth, Donald Hall & Jane Kenyon and Kathleen Raine, respectively. The final two essays are also brilliant. "The Use of Adversity" provides a reading of King Lear which is neither dark nor nihilistic (as it is sometimes read) and in "God, Science, and Imagination" Berry sets his sights on scientific and religious fundamentalism and urges a generous imagining (and respect) from both sides.

Good book, and the last book of 2011 for me.

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