Synopses & Reviews
A powerful chronicle of a wounded womans exploration of nature and self After nature writer Gretel Ehrlich was struck by lightning near her Wyoming ranch and almost died, she embarked on a painstaking and visionary journey back to the land of the living. With the help of an extraordinary cardiologist and the companionship of her beloved dog Sam, she avidly explores the natural and spiritual world to make sense of what happened to her. We follow as she combs every inch of her new home on the California coast, attends a convention of lightning-strike victims, and goes on a seal watch in Alaska. Ehrlich then turns her focus inward, exploring the tiny but equally fascinating ecosystem of the human heart, and culminated in a stunningly beautiful description of open-heart surgery.
Review
"In 1991 the author of this lyrical narrative of resurrection was struck by lightning near her Wyoming ranch. The effects of this electrocution were long-lasting, requiring intensive medical attention for the physical and mental trauma that included sensory impairment....Ehrlich's inspirational self-discovery calls attention to other lightning survivors as, 'carved from a ruined body,' she returns to the ranch with new life." Publishers Weekly
Review
"Acclaimed for The Solace of Open Spaces, Ehrlich here reveals that scary things can happen in open spaces, too. She recounts being struck and momentarily killed." Library Journal
Review
"This eclectic chronicle of recovery offers excursions into neurobiology, cardiology, the lore and science of lightning, and the medical literature of lightning injury....Evocative writing and lots of interesting facts." The New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
After nature writer Gretel Ehrlich was struck by lightning near her Wyoming ranch and almost died, she embarked on a painstaking and visionary journey back to the land of the living. With the help of an extraordinary cardiologist and the companionship of her beloved dog Sam, she avidly explores the natural and spiritual world to make sense of what happened to her. We follow as she combs every inch of her new home on the California coast, attends a convention of lightning-strike victims, and goes on a seal watch in Alaska. Ehrlich then turns her focus inward, exploring the tiny but equally fascinating ecosystem of the human heart, and culminates in a stunningly beautiful description of open-heart surgery.
About the Author
Gretel Ehrlich is a poet and writer whose work includes This Cold Heaven; The Solace of Open Spaces; Islands, the Universe; the novel, Heart Mountain; and the memoir A Match to the Heart. She is the recipient of the Whiting Writers Award and the Henry David Thoreau Prize.