Earthly Bodies: Embracing Animal Nature

by Vanessa Chakour

Examining the cultural belief that our animal instincts are to be corrected or corralled, nature advocate and rewilding facilitator Vanessa Chakour explores our inner and outer landscapes through the lens of wild animals.

How can wolves, misunderstood in myths but vital to ecosystems, teach us to rewrite dangerous stories and respect nature’s wisdom? How do the peaceful coexistence strategies of black bears offer insights into sharing resources? How can the engineering feats of beavers guide us in fostering regenerative building solutions and vibrant ecosystems? What can the loyal partnership of seahorses teach us about nurturing and love?

In Earthly Bodies, Vanessa draws parallels from struggles she has weathered in her own life to those endured by twenty-three wild animals—from wolves to sea lions—exploring our unease of feeling like prey; challenging the entrapment of our limiting beliefs; contextualizing the turmoil of fractured landscapes; and affirming our primal ache to belong.

Vanessa’s pivotal encounters with creatures in sync with their primal rhythms and demands illustrate the necessity of relying on the intelligence of gut instinct; of the magnetic pull of attraction; of the body’s mandate for restorative rest; and of the sacred bonds of love. We often cut ourselves off from identifying with wild animals—like wolves, foxes, bats and bears, and other animal relatives—out of fear, ignorance, disgust, or misunderstanding, yet our earthly human bodies can lead us in our pursuits of pleasure, love, wonder, healing, and connection.

With each section containing an aspect of injured animal’s return home to their natural habitat, and—in our case—to an embodied, instinctual self, Earthly Bodies meditates on how this journey from enclosures, to rehabilitation, to soft release, and finally to homing raises questions about our humanity. In so learning, we understand how we might benefit from embracing our own animal nature to gain deeper self-actualization, find common ground with our fellow animals, and learn to thrive together.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Animals, Science

336 pages, Paperback

Published September 24, 2024

About the author

Nature as Self is at the core of Vanessa Chakour’s work. A fierce advocate of Earth, she founded Sacred Warrior to inspire ecological awareness — from medicinal plant walks and herbalism courses in Brooklyn to partnerships with the Wolf Conservation Center in New York, The Jaguar Rescue Center in Costa Rica, and Alladale Wilderness Reserve in the Scottish Highlands. Her teaching and work experience spans herbalism, competitive boxing, nature connection, writing, and visual art. Practices that have helped her heal, peel back layers of conditioning and connect more deeply to her animal nature. Rooted in the belief that healing happens through reclaiming an intuitive connection to ourselves, the natural world, and our own “inner-wild,” Vanessa has been curating and facilitating rewilding retreats and workshops for over a decade.Vanessa’s writing and work have been featured in The Rumpus, The Journal of Medicinal Plant Conservation, Psyche/Aeon Magazine, Yes! Magazine, Ravenous Zine, and more, and she has been invited to share her work as an inspirational speaker at the United Nations, Brown University, the Muhammad Ali Center, and Harvard University. A life-long activist, Vanessa created events & non-profit initiatives on behalf of luminaries such as The Dalai Lama and Hip Hop Legend, KRS One. She is a long-time member of United Plant Savers, is on the external advisory committee of the Program For Evolution of Spirituality (PES) at Harvard Divinity School, and is an Artist Ambassador for Project Coyote.

Compelled to work on behalf of wild kin such as wolves and so-called weeds who cannot speak for themselves, she collaborates with wildlife organizations, speaks on behalf of the wild, and writes regular Weeds, Wolves & Wild Women essays on Substack. She recently founded Wild Voices Collective to amplify voices of artists and the wild. Her memoir, Awakening Artemis published in 2021 by Penguin Life in the US and UK, and Ullstein Press in Germany, shares her journey of healing through the lens of 24 medicinal plants. Her next book, Earthly Bodies: Embracing Animal Nature  (Penguin 2024) explores inner and outer landscapes through the lens of wild animals. 

A USA Boxing certified coach, Vanessa lives in Western Massachusetts where she coaches boxing and is part of United Plant Savers’ Botanical Sanctuary Network. In collaboration with her partner Enrique, (and a forthcoming local network of stewards) she promotes ecosystem diversity and resilience through forest stewardship and propagation of native and endangered plants and fungi.

Reviews

[EXR · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the privilege of reading an advance copy of Vanessa Chakour’s latest work. This book gently continues her memoir that begins with her debut Awakening Artemis. Here she illuminates the four steps of animal rehabilitation (enclosures, rehabilitation, soft release, and homing) through the lens of twenty three animals. Tracing her journey you’ll find yourself escorted through a possible path for your own healing. Free of established psychological gunk, her premise is straightforward, accept you are an animal, follow the path of rehabilitation and finally, find your home. A must read for nature lovers, and anyone interested in rehabilitating their own earthly body.

[OhioanGiraffe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earthly Bodies: Embracing Animal Nature by Vanessa Chakour blends personal reflection with lessons from the animal kingdom. The book explores how humans often suppress their natural instincts—such as trusting our gut feelings or honoring our need for rest—when these instincts might actually offer guidance and healing. Chakour uses the lives of 23 animals, from wolves to sea lions, to illustrate the value of embracing our "animal" nature and reconnecting with the earth.

A key theme in the book is the idea that we can learn important life lessons from the behaviors of wild animals. For example, Chakour shows how the misunderstood wolf teaches us about community and the importance of rewriting harmful stories, while black bears offer wisdom on peaceful coexistence and resource-sharing. The loyalty of seahorses highlights the power of love and commitment in relationships. Chakour connects these animal stories to her own experiences of struggle and healing, suggesting that, like animals, we can find restoration by reconnecting with our authentic selves and embracing our instincts.

Chakour's writing is personal and accessible, making complex ideas easy to understand. Earthly Bodies isn’t a scientific study but a thoughtful exploration of how connecting with nature and our animal instincts can lead to greater peace, self-awareness, and a sense of belonging.

[Shoshanna Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book - it was deeply moving and challenged me to think about animals, the earth and my relationship to, and with, the natural world in a deeper way.

Vanessa Chakour is an incredibly gifted writer - this is both a memoir and an education on various wild animals that reminds you that we too, are wild animals and share much in common with our animal siblings. I finished this book thinking this is the kind of book people should first read in high school, it would open folks up to how to care for our earth, and how we are not separate from the natural world or the wild. I thought the author delved into her personal life with clarity and true vulnerability we need more books like this that focus on the tenderness of being alive not just as humans but with all the other creatures that inhabit the earth.

[Colette · Rating 2 out of 5]

I set a goal for myself this year to finish every book that I start which. was the only reason I was able to power through this book. The content of this book is not accurately represented by the description that I was looking forward to reading. This book was more an autobiography of Vanessa than the science/biology based content I was expecting. It was extremely difficult to get past all of her personal and political biases that had absolutely nothing to do with nature, animal instincts, biology, ecology, etc. 2 stars only because I believe some of the work she does is essential and important to support.

[Christine Bolton · Rating 5 out of 5]

On my shelf, I have the important nonfiction that I know I should read, and then the juicy memoirs and novels that I end up devouring in just a few days. Vanessa's books seem to deftly combine both those genres into works that are meaningful, urgent, enlightening, and yet so easy to read. Each chapter focuses on an animal and a theme, and through these chapters Vanessa weaves her personal story and experiences relative to that animal/theme, while also sharing the intimate lives of these animals and the crucial roles they play in their ecosystems. The chapter on vultures blew my mind! I learned so much from it, and it helped me return again to my own deep empathy for animals and for my own animal body/self. Highly recommend this one for an enjoyable and moving read.

[Mallory Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earthly Bodies is a page-turner that grapples with the questions of our time. In a technology-driven world where we're barraged by information about humans' impact on the globe, how can we look to our animal kin to reconnect to our natural rhythms and live as good stewards of the Earth? Chakour's personal narrative is interwoven with animal stories as she finds love, tenderness, and meaning as a human animal looking to fellow creatures for guidance and direction. Highly recommend this and Vanessa's previous book, Awakening Artemis.

[Megan Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I put this book on my favorite list of 2024 even before I finished because I love this work. The intimate relationship the author has with the natural world is the same depth of which I also experience this connection. More stories like this need to be published. Women seem to be able to tap into the conversation with nature, systemic oppression, and our individual health. Much much love to this author and definitely deserves a spot on any nature lover's shelf.

[Spencer Linton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book, really hit home on a lot of topics. Liked the way it seamlessly swapped between personal anecdotes and studies on animals, though forced at times. Found the topics a bit redundant and felt it could be 3-5 chapters shorter

[Haley Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book! It was the most peaceful, connecting book to pick up before bed. Reminds me of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s writing the way she weaves her story in with nature and the world around her. Bravo! I’ll be telling people to pick up this book for years to come!

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book so much. The poetic flow was so comforting and all of her experiences and perspectives caused me to pause often and reflect on my own practices and views. This book also urged me to reconnect both with nature and my own personal relationships in a gentle yet authentic way.

[Jenn]

DNF @ 20%, i loved the author’s note in the very beginning so we were off to a great start, but then my interest fizzled out as it went on

[Sam jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

A humbling read. We walk this earth far too heavily. This is a good reminder of our inner wild and our responsibility to the earth

[Gail Kennon · Rating 2 out of 5]

towards the end i could not stand listening to her humorless reporting on herself with tidbits of info on animals before each chapter. felt