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A Walk With Me
Poetry about nature and the outdoors of Michigan.
60 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1958
2 people are currently reading
66 people want to read
About the author
Gwen Frostic
34 books36 followersSara Gwendolen Frostic
"was born in Sandusky, Michigan to Sara and Fred Frostic. When she was 8 months old she suffered from an unknown illness which left her with lifelong symptoms similar to cerebral palsy. Despite physical difficulties Frostic showed an early interest and aptitude for art. In June 1924 she graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in Wyandotte, where she was known for using a band saw to create event posters for her school. She continued her studies at Eastern Michigan University earning her teacher's certificate and gaining membership in Alpha Sigma Tau sorority. In 1926 she transferred to Western Michigan University and left in 1927 without completing her degree. She continued her artistic endeavors in metal and plastic, while occasionally teaching, but with the war came a lack of metal to work with and she turned to linoleum block carving. Frostic then turned her linoleum block carving into stationery goods and prints which led to her starting her own printing company, Presscraft Papers. In the early 1950s Frostic opened up a shop selling her prints, books, and other items in Frankfort and in 1960 she bought 40 acres (160,000 m2) of land in Benzonia with the intention of moving her and her shop. On April 26, 1964 her new shop was open for business and she lived there until her death in 2001." ~ wikipedia
"Over the years Gwen had been awarded honorary degrees from many colleges and universities. In 1978 Michigan Governor William Milliken proclaimed May 23rd as Gwen Frostic Day in Michigan, and in 1986 she was inducted into the Michigan Woman's Hall of Fame.
Long before her death she wrote her epitaph:
"Here lies one doubly blessed.
She was happy and she knew it."" ~ http://www.gwenfrostic.com/
"was born in Sandusky, Michigan to Sara and Fred Frostic. When she was 8 months old she suffered from an unknown illness which left her with lifelong symptoms similar to cerebral palsy. Despite physical difficulties Frostic showed an early interest and aptitude for art. In June 1924 she graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in Wyandotte, where she was known for using a band saw to create event posters for her school. She continued her studies at Eastern Michigan University earning her teacher's certificate and gaining membership in Alpha Sigma Tau sorority. In 1926 she transferred to Western Michigan University and left in 1927 without completing her degree. She continued her artistic endeavors in metal and plastic, while occasionally teaching, but with the war came a lack of metal to work with and she turned to linoleum block carving. Frostic then turned her linoleum block carving into stationery goods and prints which led to her starting her own printing company, Presscraft Papers. In the early 1950s Frostic opened up a shop selling her prints, books, and other items in Frankfort and in 1960 she bought 40 acres (160,000 m2) of land in Benzonia with the intention of moving her and her shop. On April 26, 1964 her new shop was open for business and she lived there until her death in 2001." ~ wikipedia
"Over the years Gwen had been awarded honorary degrees from many colleges and universities. In 1978 Michigan Governor William Milliken proclaimed May 23rd as Gwen Frostic Day in Michigan, and in 1986 she was inducted into the Michigan Woman's Hall of Fame.
Long before her death she wrote her epitaph:
"Here lies one doubly blessed.
She was happy and she knew it."" ~ http://www.gwenfrostic.com/
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
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September 8, 2022This is the most beautiful little book that I have ever held. Will be keeping an eye out for more work from Gwen Frostic.
March 28, 2025
A lovely collection of nature poems.
January 26, 2026
My grandparents received this book as a wedding gift and I keep it on my night stand. I read it every few months and I just love the little poems. I imagine my grandma read it over and over too.
July 30, 2021
Gorgeous poetry that vividly sketches nature, regardless of the illustrations, which are gorgeous in themselves.
2021 Reading Challenge: owned but haven't read
2021 Reading Challenge: owned but haven't read
April 1, 2020
I found this book used, and it felt very special to me... especially when I realized it was already 60 years old. It was like new. The original illustrations, the book binding, the writing, all cast a spell. Finding the website for the author, illustrator, publisher Gwen Frostic, I found that she passed in 2001... but her legacy is alive, well, and apparently, in very good hands. I hope to have the good fortune of finding more of her books in future searches.
February 5, 2025
“There is something mysteriously
beautiful about a dead tree
…as it stands no longer resisting
the winds that strip its bark
and twist its trunk
In sunshine, rain, or snow…
it seems to suggest a power
long after life has gone…”
—
“Up on the edge of the bluffs…
look far out over the waves
Out where the sky begins…
and white clouds form
Soon a gull drifts by in the wind…and little
sandpipers appear on the beach below…
…and you are not alone
In the open fields…
where sweet clover blows…
and Queen Anne’s lace and asters grow
A bumble bee hums among the flowers…
and little goldfinches fill the air…
…and you are not alone
In the deep woods…
all seems so still…
Leaves rustle a bit…and a chipmunk runs…
…a little toad sits
on the deep green moss…
…and you are not alone
It’s time like these
that you come to know
How much a part of everything you are…
… how much all things
are part of you”
—
“At night the full moon will be reflected by thousands
upon thousands of tiny crystals…and…
everywhere there will be beauty…mystery…stillness
…simplicity…and…life…”
—
“… and the years go by…as each stone travels ever toward the sea…it may move with extreme slowness or rest for ages in field or lake…it matters not…for nature has ample time on which to draw…but always…that which it has created must return…to be created anew…for that is the law of the universe…”
—
“The squirrels jump from limb to limb high in the trees that are ever the same…and…never the same… for each day…each hour…all things change… the trees…the flowers…rocks…the sand and the waters…the birds and all the animals of earth…yet life goes on unchanged…nothing is new…nothing is old…this is life…and this is eternity…”
beautiful about a dead tree
…as it stands no longer resisting
the winds that strip its bark
and twist its trunk
In sunshine, rain, or snow…
it seems to suggest a power
long after life has gone…”
—
“Up on the edge of the bluffs…
look far out over the waves
Out where the sky begins…
and white clouds form
Soon a gull drifts by in the wind…and little
sandpipers appear on the beach below…
…and you are not alone
In the open fields…
where sweet clover blows…
and Queen Anne’s lace and asters grow
A bumble bee hums among the flowers…
and little goldfinches fill the air…
…and you are not alone
In the deep woods…
all seems so still…
Leaves rustle a bit…and a chipmunk runs…
…a little toad sits
on the deep green moss…
…and you are not alone
It’s time like these
that you come to know
How much a part of everything you are…
… how much all things
are part of you”
—
“At night the full moon will be reflected by thousands
upon thousands of tiny crystals…and…
everywhere there will be beauty…mystery…stillness
…simplicity…and…life…”
—
“… and the years go by…as each stone travels ever toward the sea…it may move with extreme slowness or rest for ages in field or lake…it matters not…for nature has ample time on which to draw…but always…that which it has created must return…to be created anew…for that is the law of the universe…”
—
“The squirrels jump from limb to limb high in the trees that are ever the same…and…never the same… for each day…each hour…all things change… the trees…the flowers…rocks…the sand and the waters…the birds and all the animals of earth…yet life goes on unchanged…nothing is new…nothing is old…this is life…and this is eternity…”
May 25, 2023
This is a lovely little book.
I'm a poetry fiend. I am also a Michigander who grew up seeing a lot of Gwen's artwork. It's something that one recognizes as hers the instant they see it.
Her art throughout this book is simply breathtaking. The layers of colors vs pages of just one ink are fantastic. I was elated to see her put in a Petosky stone as well! The flora and fauna she describes and illustrates are all very familiar to me--and I love that. It could touch anyone, even so. One need not be from the Midwest of the United States to appreciate her artwork.
The reason for the 3 stars: I thought it was a poetry book. It is not. I would call it more her observations. They were lovely but didn't really move me in any way. If the art was not there, I wouldn't have read it, to be honest. The book is really about the art for me.
May I also just say how impressed I am with the quality of this book? The pages are cut purposefully to be uneven at the edges. I wish more books had this feel to them. It is definitely a work of love.
I'm a poetry fiend. I am also a Michigander who grew up seeing a lot of Gwen's artwork. It's something that one recognizes as hers the instant they see it.
Her art throughout this book is simply breathtaking. The layers of colors vs pages of just one ink are fantastic. I was elated to see her put in a Petosky stone as well! The flora and fauna she describes and illustrates are all very familiar to me--and I love that. It could touch anyone, even so. One need not be from the Midwest of the United States to appreciate her artwork.
The reason for the 3 stars: I thought it was a poetry book. It is not. I would call it more her observations. They were lovely but didn't really move me in any way. If the art was not there, I wouldn't have read it, to be honest. The book is really about the art for me.
May I also just say how impressed I am with the quality of this book? The pages are cut purposefully to be uneven at the edges. I wish more books had this feel to them. It is definitely a work of love.
July 4, 2025
Beautiful, artistically printed book combining poetry and art through the lens of nature.
A couple of my favorite lines:
Stones - - - - tumbled by the winds - - - - rubbed
by the sands - - - washed by the waters - - - ever so
slowly turning into sand . . . And the winds – the sands
and the waters sculpture some into beautiful forms - - - -
and working together etch wondrous designs on others . .
Birds always sing in the springtime - - -
wind ever blows through the trees - - -
and the sun shall rise each dawn - - -
yet - - this day in a new creation
in the pattern of constant change . . . .
[……]
. . . nothing is new
. . . . . . . nothing is old
this is life . . . . . . . .
and this is eternity . . . . . . .
. . . as long as there are trees in tiny seeds - - -
there will be miracles on earth . . . .
A couple of my favorite lines:
Stones - - - - tumbled by the winds - - - - rubbed
by the sands - - - washed by the waters - - - ever so
slowly turning into sand . . . And the winds – the sands
and the waters sculpture some into beautiful forms - - - -
and working together etch wondrous designs on others . .
Birds always sing in the springtime - - -
wind ever blows through the trees - - -
and the sun shall rise each dawn - - -
yet - - this day in a new creation
in the pattern of constant change . . . .
[……]
. . . nothing is new
. . . . . . . nothing is old
this is life . . . . . . . .
and this is eternity . . . . . . .
. . . as long as there are trees in tiny seeds - - -
there will be miracles on earth . . . .
October 23, 2022
Gwen Frostic shares her unique and charming observations of the natural world in a way that makes the reader want to go take a walk by the river or out in the woods. Gwen sees beauty in things most of us walk by without ever noticing like stones, a dead tree, abandoned birds nests and mushrooms. I especially enjoyed the page about gulls. "Gulls standing like little ritualistic statues each facing whatever gale may blow . . ." because we have a statue of a sea gull in our back yard. His name is Jonathan Seagal.
April 4, 2025
Someone donated this for the library book sale. I'm not particularly struck by the "poetry", but I really like the artwork. The use of layers and colors and texture is inspiring. I wish that I had seen similar examples in high school when we were learning to carve sheets of linoleum.
If I had more copies I would mail them to my art teacher, brother, high school best friend, and current pen pal.
If I had more copies I would mail them to my art teacher, brother, high school best friend, and current pen pal.
December 6, 2025
This is such a beautiful little book. It’s a journey through the year in nature with lovely, handmade paper and lovely illustrations. I was immediately hooked with her writing, instantly remembering various hikes through the woods and moments in nature. In that way it’s a meditative book.
Only downside is it is an old book and not reprinted. Books of this time have a distinct “old book smell” (as in the negative, not vanilla smell of REALLY old books). It’s a bummer but not horrible.
Only downside is it is an old book and not reprinted. Books of this time have a distinct “old book smell” (as in the negative, not vanilla smell of REALLY old books). It’s a bummer but not horrible.
January 1, 2026
something about the Michigan wilderness will always be etched into my soul and Frostic perfectly elucidates that here.
Her illustrations are so beautiful and accompanying poems capture the mythic transience of the midwestern wilds, from the wind hewn beaches to the buzz of the forests in the summers and cold silence of the winters. I will treasure this book forever.
Her illustrations are so beautiful and accompanying poems capture the mythic transience of the midwestern wilds, from the wind hewn beaches to the buzz of the forests in the summers and cold silence of the winters. I will treasure this book forever.
August 9, 2025
So lucky to have stumbled upon this gem at a antique store. Such a beautiful collection of nature musings and life ponderings. Not to mention the stunning linocut details. Keeping this one in my collection forever.
September 17, 2017
Short sweet book of poetry
October 7, 2018
Minimalistic, poetic words & wonderful sketches.
January 19, 2020
the illustrations were beautiful and the poems were very simple and pretty
March 7, 2021
Beautiful illustrations and magical poetry.
December 29, 2023
It's so pretty. Not much more than the beauty of nature, but that's enough.
June 26, 2023
A sweet inspirational about the quiet of nature with wonderful illustrations.
July 17, 2025
This is a thing of beauty; wonderful craft.
________
Reread this before I send it to a family member to hopefully appreciate. I am still impressed with the gorgeous prints, the choice of color, how some pages are a single gull while another is an entire bayou.
There are also delicious word pairings: prismatic dragonflies, mysteriously beautiful (referring to a dead tree), pageant of color, multitude of snowflakes, exquisite winged nuts of the birch, migration of trees (referring to seeds), majestic individuality, and on and on.
________
Reread this before I send it to a family member to hopefully appreciate. I am still impressed with the gorgeous prints, the choice of color, how some pages are a single gull while another is an entire bayou.
There are also delicious word pairings: prismatic dragonflies, mysteriously beautiful (referring to a dead tree), pageant of color, multitude of snowflakes, exquisite winged nuts of the birch, migration of trees (referring to seeds), majestic individuality, and on and on.
January 23, 2010
a sentimental favorite from long ago
February 6, 2012
I found the illustrations more engaging than the meditations.
February 27, 2013
A love poem to nature --- beckoning the reader for a jaunt into it.
August 26, 2013
I created a blog post as I read and shortly afterward...
http://lunawings.blogspot.com/2013/08...
http://lunawings.blogspot.com/2013/08...
July 20, 2016
such a wonderful book
March 1, 2015
Short, simple and utterly beautiful!!
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews