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Wendell Berry and the Given Life
We drive to work on the stored energy of ten thousand years of sunlight. Our daily bread seems to generate miraculously from store shelves. And our communities can be connected with a billion ones and zeros over fiber optic cables. For us, the idea of being a creature can seem passé. Yet in this lonely world of mastery, in a time so dominated by human desire and design that it has been dubbed the “anthropocene,” the human age, many of us feel that we are missing some essential truth about who we are.
The glimpses of this truth come when we lose cell reception on a long hike in the forest and our eyes are lifted to the simple marvel of trees. We feel this truth when we take up a shovel and sense the satisfying heave of dirt as we plant a modest garden. We hear this truth when we tune out the traffic and listen to the song sparrow’s melody, eavesdropping on a beauty that serves no human economy. In all this we hear a whisper of the truth that we are creatures—and we long to live in this reality. But how can we, when we have moved so far from our life source in the soil?
For the past 50 years, Wendell Berry has been helping seekers chart a return to the practice of being creatures. Through his essays, poetry and fiction, Berry has repeatedly drawn our attention to the ways in which our lives are gifts in a whole economy of gifts.
Berry presents us with the sort of coherent vision for the lived moral and spiritual life that we need now. His work helps us remember our givenness and embrace our life as creatures. His insights flow from a life and practices, and so it is a vision that can be practiced and lived—it is a vision that is grounded in the art of being a creature.
Wendell Berry and the Given Life articulates his vision for the creaturely life and the Christian understandings of humility and creation that underpin it.
The audio edition of this book can be downloaded via
The glimpses of this truth come when we lose cell reception on a long hike in the forest and our eyes are lifted to the simple marvel of trees. We feel this truth when we take up a shovel and sense the satisfying heave of dirt as we plant a modest garden. We hear this truth when we tune out the traffic and listen to the song sparrow’s melody, eavesdropping on a beauty that serves no human economy. In all this we hear a whisper of the truth that we are creatures—and we long to live in this reality. But how can we, when we have moved so far from our life source in the soil?
For the past 50 years, Wendell Berry has been helping seekers chart a return to the practice of being creatures. Through his essays, poetry and fiction, Berry has repeatedly drawn our attention to the ways in which our lives are gifts in a whole economy of gifts.
Berry presents us with the sort of coherent vision for the lived moral and spiritual life that we need now. His work helps us remember our givenness and embrace our life as creatures. His insights flow from a life and practices, and so it is a vision that can be practiced and lived—it is a vision that is grounded in the art of being a creature.
Wendell Berry and the Given Life articulates his vision for the creaturely life and the Christian understandings of humility and creation that underpin it.
The audio edition of this book can be downloaded via
- GenresNonfictionBiography
192 pages, Hardcover
Published March 24, 2017
About the author
Ragan Sutterfield
9 books34 followersRagan Sutterfield (M.Div. Virginia Theological Seminary) is ordained in the Episcopal Church and serves a parish in his native Arkansas. His writing has appeared in a variety of magazines including The Christian Century, Sojourners, The Oxford American, Men’s Journal, The Englewood Review of Books, Christianity Today and Books & Culture.
Ragan is the author of Wendell Berry and the Given Life (Franciscan Media 2017), This is My Body: From Obesity to Ironman, My Journey into the True Meaning of Flesh, Spirit and Deeper Faith (Convergent/Random House 2015), Cultivating Reality: How the Soil Might Save Us (Cascade 2013), and the small collection of essays Farming as a Spiritual Discipline. He also contributed the opening chapter to the book Sacred Acts: How churches are working to protect the Earth’s climate.
Ragan is the author of Wendell Berry and the Given Life (Franciscan Media 2017), This is My Body: From Obesity to Ironman, My Journey into the True Meaning of Flesh, Spirit and Deeper Faith (Convergent/Random House 2015), Cultivating Reality: How the Soil Might Save Us (Cascade 2013), and the small collection of essays Farming as a Spiritual Discipline. He also contributed the opening chapter to the book Sacred Acts: How churches are working to protect the Earth’s climate.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
July 9, 2023
A must read for every Wendell Berry fan. Beauty, goodness, love and lament - readers of Berry will recognize the deep rooted seeds he plants in all of his writing. Ragan Sutterfield does a beautiful job of weaving the life and witness of Berry into a language that is easy to understand.
When you have a front row seat to see the world through Berry’s eyes, it is strenuous to remain comfortable, much less unchanged. Berry, like a true prophet, shows us how far we have drifted from our human vocation - living in abundance, a satiation for violence and greed - and helps us wake up to lament for change. His desire is for all of us to to embrace what Walter Brueggemann calls a “prophetic imagination”.
This book gets to the Christian backbone of Berry’s work and functions as a glimmer of hope during dark times. Berry calls for a move toward a more fulfilled and simple life.
What are you waiting for?
When you have a front row seat to see the world through Berry’s eyes, it is strenuous to remain comfortable, much less unchanged. Berry, like a true prophet, shows us how far we have drifted from our human vocation - living in abundance, a satiation for violence and greed - and helps us wake up to lament for change. His desire is for all of us to to embrace what Walter Brueggemann calls a “prophetic imagination”.
This book gets to the Christian backbone of Berry’s work and functions as a glimmer of hope during dark times. Berry calls for a move toward a more fulfilled and simple life.
What are you waiting for?
December 7, 2019
Brilliant!
I am excited when I see scholarship about Wendell Berry’s thought and work published. Berry’s writing (especially his fiction for me) has greatly impacted my own thinking. The greatest endorsement that I can give to Sutterfield’s ‘Wendell Berry and the Given Life’ is the fact that it systematizes, to a degree, Berry’s thought and does so without relegating Berry to academia or reducing his works to folksy, antiquarian truisms.
Wendell Berry teaches me how to be a creature and a steward and how to live in a world with other creatures. Sutterfield’s volume shows me how Berry teaches me that. I will return to this volume again and again because it makes my experience of reading Berry more pleasurable and more profitable.
ARC provided.
I am excited when I see scholarship about Wendell Berry’s thought and work published. Berry’s writing (especially his fiction for me) has greatly impacted my own thinking. The greatest endorsement that I can give to Sutterfield’s ‘Wendell Berry and the Given Life’ is the fact that it systematizes, to a degree, Berry’s thought and does so without relegating Berry to academia or reducing his works to folksy, antiquarian truisms.
Wendell Berry teaches me how to be a creature and a steward and how to live in a world with other creatures. Sutterfield’s volume shows me how Berry teaches me that. I will return to this volume again and again because it makes my experience of reading Berry more pleasurable and more profitable.
ARC provided.
May 26, 2017
This book provides a very clear and inspiring introduction to twelve key themes in the writing of Wendell Berry. Of course, nothing takes the place of reading Mr. Berry's actual work, but Ragan Sutterfield offers a very useful portal to the spirituality of this great agrarian thinker and cultural critic.
May 30, 2017
I have been trying to remember when I first heard of Wendell Berry. Was it for his fiction or his essays or his poetry? Was it from a conservative who believed in his prophetic voice or a liberal who quoted his environmental ideas in an article? However it was, ever since I was introduced to him, I've begun to see his words everywhere.
Wendell Berry is, as the last chapter of this book claims, a prophet. He persists in cherishing his vision of the way things used to be: the small-town, Mayberry-esque life that used to be commonplace but is disappearing under the encroaching shadow of Industrialism. It is easy to idealize this era, especially for those of use who have never known anything but a post-industrial life, a life where "the manufactured spaces of consumer society"--the shopping malls and chain restaurants-- are practically the only kinds of community we have ever known. I don't know that his prophetic vision is one any of us can claim to live up to. Berry himself laments his own dependence on the electric company and the coal they burn after plundering it from the nearby hills.
Yet, his vision is valuable even if it is too idealistic because it helps us to see the water we're swimming in. If you haven't met Berry yet, this book is a great place to start because it gives a bird's eye view of his prolific work by capturing 12 themes that are woven into his fiction, poetry, and essays. Sutterfield is perhaps too liberal in promoting his own efforts to live up to Berry's ideas, but he does a really thorough job of defining and explaining Berry's ideology. After reading chapters like economics, sabbath, membership, language, and givenness, I got a very good overview on Berry and how his ideas touch all aspects of life. His ideas feel so fresh and new even though they are rooted in something very old.
The very concept of the given life is a perfect summation of his work. He believes that the life we have and the world around us is all given to us. We don't deserve it, couldn't plan it, and dare not claim it for our own ends. Berry reminds us that "we must not use the world as though we created it ourselves." In fact, he implores us to value the world in a way that completely disregards the "value" assigned to it by the industrial economy: "Our life of need and work forces us inescapably to use in time things belonging to eternity, and to assign finite values to things already recognized as infinitely valuable" (44). This theme of appreciation for things as they are given to us (and not as they can be used) and loving them properly is the heartbeat of the book. I don't think I'll ever stop using the idea of the given life as a way of describing the miracle of existence. It's the perfect phrase because it keeps me humble and appreciative.
This book will enrich every future encounter with Berry. It is a great introduction to Berry or a great review for those who've read and enjoyed Berry and want to see it all neatly summarized. I will continue to read Berry casually, checking off a novel every year or so and an essay or two when I find them compelling. I read his Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community last year and was stunned by the parallels and insights he found that connected these four seemingly disparate topics.
I think everyone should have to wrestle with his ideas and pose answers to the questions he raises. He is a voice crying in the wilderness, an outsider poised to help us better understand ourselves and our choices. Even if we choose not to join him, or find we have no option to join him, we ought to at least listen to what he's telling us about ourselves from his vantage point out there beyond where the city ends.
Wendell Berry is, as the last chapter of this book claims, a prophet. He persists in cherishing his vision of the way things used to be: the small-town, Mayberry-esque life that used to be commonplace but is disappearing under the encroaching shadow of Industrialism. It is easy to idealize this era, especially for those of use who have never known anything but a post-industrial life, a life where "the manufactured spaces of consumer society"--the shopping malls and chain restaurants-- are practically the only kinds of community we have ever known. I don't know that his prophetic vision is one any of us can claim to live up to. Berry himself laments his own dependence on the electric company and the coal they burn after plundering it from the nearby hills.
Yet, his vision is valuable even if it is too idealistic because it helps us to see the water we're swimming in. If you haven't met Berry yet, this book is a great place to start because it gives a bird's eye view of his prolific work by capturing 12 themes that are woven into his fiction, poetry, and essays. Sutterfield is perhaps too liberal in promoting his own efforts to live up to Berry's ideas, but he does a really thorough job of defining and explaining Berry's ideology. After reading chapters like economics, sabbath, membership, language, and givenness, I got a very good overview on Berry and how his ideas touch all aspects of life. His ideas feel so fresh and new even though they are rooted in something very old.
The very concept of the given life is a perfect summation of his work. He believes that the life we have and the world around us is all given to us. We don't deserve it, couldn't plan it, and dare not claim it for our own ends. Berry reminds us that "we must not use the world as though we created it ourselves." In fact, he implores us to value the world in a way that completely disregards the "value" assigned to it by the industrial economy: "Our life of need and work forces us inescapably to use in time things belonging to eternity, and to assign finite values to things already recognized as infinitely valuable" (44). This theme of appreciation for things as they are given to us (and not as they can be used) and loving them properly is the heartbeat of the book. I don't think I'll ever stop using the idea of the given life as a way of describing the miracle of existence. It's the perfect phrase because it keeps me humble and appreciative.
This book will enrich every future encounter with Berry. It is a great introduction to Berry or a great review for those who've read and enjoyed Berry and want to see it all neatly summarized. I will continue to read Berry casually, checking off a novel every year or so and an essay or two when I find them compelling. I read his Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community last year and was stunned by the parallels and insights he found that connected these four seemingly disparate topics.
I think everyone should have to wrestle with his ideas and pose answers to the questions he raises. He is a voice crying in the wilderness, an outsider poised to help us better understand ourselves and our choices. Even if we choose not to join him, or find we have no option to join him, we ought to at least listen to what he's telling us about ourselves from his vantage point out there beyond where the city ends.
October 14, 2017
Positives
This is the first book I read by Sutterfield, and I was very impressed. Though Sutterfield was synthesizing works by Berry and sharing writing from others, this book read very smoothly. In fact, the writing was so cohesive, there were a few times I had to stop and re-read because I had missed where Berry’s quote ended and Sutterfield’s writing began. I also thought this was a really thought-provoking book and shared some compelling points.
Negatives
My biggest criticism is that the book bordered on over-spiritualization of concern for the environment, which I will address in the Catholic Perspective section.
Though I felt it was overly idealistic or bordered on unrealistic, I think that it is understandable because it was setting a vision for what we should strive for, not necessarily a “let’s drop everything and do this now.”
The remainder of my criticisms come down to personal preferences. I had some disagreements with points he made and there were a few side comments made that threw me off like broad dismissal of GMOs. As someone with a chronic illness, it was also difficult to read the section on health. I understand the overall point he was trying to make by saying health was wholeness, but it was still a little frustrating.
Catholic Perspective
I was surprised that this book wasn’t outright religious. I actually think this was a good approach, though. The focus was on living Christian values and letting that speak for itself rather than outright saying “Christians believe X, therefore Y.” I think this allows the book to have a much broader appeal than to just Christians, which is an advantage.
I enjoyed seeing the connections between Christian faith and Berry’s thoughts. Overall, it made a lot of sense, but there were a few points where it felt like a stretch. The book said early on that Berry called himself a “forest Christian” and “bad-weather churchgoer,” and this was evident by some of the criticism of religion and the weird spiritual components.
As I mentioned earlier, my biggest criticism was the over-spiritualization of concern for the environment. The descriptions ranged from “hippy-dippy” to broaching on New Age. There were several points where it seemed like he was equating the value of human life to animal life or nature. There were also lines like “[b]y working the soil and growing food from it, we are participating in ‘a sacrament…’”
Despite these criticisms, I do think the underlying Christian themes were good. In fact, my favorite section was the one on the Sabbath. It was really interesting approach combining Jewish background, the Christian faith, philosophy, and modern practicality.
Final Thoughts
Though I have several criticisms, I sincerely believe others may enjoy it. If this is a topic you’re interested in, whether you are Christian or not, I encourage you to give the book a chance. It’s just not my cup of tea.
Note: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This is the first book I read by Sutterfield, and I was very impressed. Though Sutterfield was synthesizing works by Berry and sharing writing from others, this book read very smoothly. In fact, the writing was so cohesive, there were a few times I had to stop and re-read because I had missed where Berry’s quote ended and Sutterfield’s writing began. I also thought this was a really thought-provoking book and shared some compelling points.
Negatives
My biggest criticism is that the book bordered on over-spiritualization of concern for the environment, which I will address in the Catholic Perspective section.
Though I felt it was overly idealistic or bordered on unrealistic, I think that it is understandable because it was setting a vision for what we should strive for, not necessarily a “let’s drop everything and do this now.”
The remainder of my criticisms come down to personal preferences. I had some disagreements with points he made and there were a few side comments made that threw me off like broad dismissal of GMOs. As someone with a chronic illness, it was also difficult to read the section on health. I understand the overall point he was trying to make by saying health was wholeness, but it was still a little frustrating.
Catholic Perspective
I was surprised that this book wasn’t outright religious. I actually think this was a good approach, though. The focus was on living Christian values and letting that speak for itself rather than outright saying “Christians believe X, therefore Y.” I think this allows the book to have a much broader appeal than to just Christians, which is an advantage.
I enjoyed seeing the connections between Christian faith and Berry’s thoughts. Overall, it made a lot of sense, but there were a few points where it felt like a stretch. The book said early on that Berry called himself a “forest Christian” and “bad-weather churchgoer,” and this was evident by some of the criticism of religion and the weird spiritual components.
As I mentioned earlier, my biggest criticism was the over-spiritualization of concern for the environment. The descriptions ranged from “hippy-dippy” to broaching on New Age. There were several points where it seemed like he was equating the value of human life to animal life or nature. There were also lines like “[b]y working the soil and growing food from it, we are participating in ‘a sacrament…’”
Despite these criticisms, I do think the underlying Christian themes were good. In fact, my favorite section was the one on the Sabbath. It was really interesting approach combining Jewish background, the Christian faith, philosophy, and modern practicality.
Final Thoughts
Though I have several criticisms, I sincerely believe others may enjoy it. If this is a topic you’re interested in, whether you are Christian or not, I encourage you to give the book a chance. It’s just not my cup of tea.
Note: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
September 6, 2019
This may have been a good book, but the author narrated it and spoke slowly and choppily. Plus, his pronunciation of some everyday words caused me to wonder what he was saying, resulting in my brain wandering off to work on the word spoken. For example, "heals" he pronounced as "hills." Also in a discussion of power tools to do yard work, the narrator seemed to be discussing the use of a sai to cut grass instead of a weed whacker. I still don't know what he wanted to say there, perhaps "scythe?" I suppose it's an accent, but there were a number of words that just off threw me off track. I tried to think kind thoughts; perhaps the author has a disability? But kind thoughts did not make the listening any easier.
The second problem was totally my fault. For some time I had wanted to read something by Berry. I don't really know why, it must have been because of hearing about him somewhere along the line. I should have read something, or maybe many things, by Berry before reading about his writings and philosophy. However, the book made me hunger to read a work or two by him, so that's a plus.
Berry might be called a Luddite by someone like me who embraces technology, but in learning more about him, I understand his reasoning. Our distance from the growing of food, the use of giant supermarkets, the lack of meal preparation, and our reliance on fast food, distances us from the Earth and causes a separation from our position of stewards. As well, it encourages factory farms, and entire industries created in the packaging, shipping, marketing, and selling of products. Berry sees this as unsustainable. And when I look at the process, it is.
There are many topics explored here, and now I have to pick just one book by Berry to get a clearer idea of his philosophy. I wish the author/narrator had not caused me to rate the book as average. It might actually be good, but Sutterfield was a distraction to the topic.
The second problem was totally my fault. For some time I had wanted to read something by Berry. I don't really know why, it must have been because of hearing about him somewhere along the line. I should have read something, or maybe many things, by Berry before reading about his writings and philosophy. However, the book made me hunger to read a work or two by him, so that's a plus.
Berry might be called a Luddite by someone like me who embraces technology, but in learning more about him, I understand his reasoning. Our distance from the growing of food, the use of giant supermarkets, the lack of meal preparation, and our reliance on fast food, distances us from the Earth and causes a separation from our position of stewards. As well, it encourages factory farms, and entire industries created in the packaging, shipping, marketing, and selling of products. Berry sees this as unsustainable. And when I look at the process, it is.
There are many topics explored here, and now I have to pick just one book by Berry to get a clearer idea of his philosophy. I wish the author/narrator had not caused me to rate the book as average. It might actually be good, but Sutterfield was a distraction to the topic.
August 4, 2018
I have appreciated so much of what I have read of Berry especially in regards to technology, community, and the importance of the home and family. I quite enjoyed listening to the audiobook version and hearing Sutterfield's interaction with Berry as well. The book gets 3 stars from me because while I am thankful for the writing Berry has given us and often agree with his assessments of current problems I don't always come to the same conclusions of solutions. Also as a Christian in line most closely with reformed protestant views of the church and the gospel, I find Berry gets so close to the heart of the problem of sin and the solution in the gospel of Jesus Christ but not all the way there as I find in a historic reformation view of sola fide, scriptura, gratia, solus christus, and soli deo gloria. Sutterfield does an excellent job of explaining many of the themes in Berry's writings and giving us some practical ways we might respond to them. I would recommend folks read this and think about what some implications might be for how you live but also question if some of the "problems" (i.e. global warming) and "solutions" (i.e. fighting coal mining) are an actual problem and if proposed solutions are the best for maintaining a well people and place. Much to chew on here and I plan to continue learning from Berry and reminding myself "we live the given life, not the planned."
March 27, 2019
In the first chapter of his book Ragan Sutterfield writes, "People do not read Berry, typically, and go about their business as they have before. In his work, they are given good news about how life might be in the world and many cannot help but want to go out and try it." As one of those who (like Sutterfield) read Wendell Berry and was impelled to life change by his words, I can attest to the truth of the statement.
Sutterfield sees Mr. Berry as "our new St. Benedict showing us the ways of life that we need, now, to sustain us." But he is careful to note that while the wisdom in Mr. Berry's writings will lead many of his readers to reexamine and redirect their lives, it will not direct them all to the exact same place. For example, Sutterfield is a pastor; I am a homesteader and farmer. We have both been moved by Berry's tide, but it has deposited us at different locations.
Within Mr. Berry's corpus, as indeed within any literature that is profound, there is a surplus of meaning. While I might have chosen differently, Sutterfield has identified the themes and points of emphasis that speak most powerfully to him, and he has done so beautifully and convincingly.
I have read no better synthesis of Wendell Berry's work and I recommend it without hesitation.
Sutterfield sees Mr. Berry as "our new St. Benedict showing us the ways of life that we need, now, to sustain us." But he is careful to note that while the wisdom in Mr. Berry's writings will lead many of his readers to reexamine and redirect their lives, it will not direct them all to the exact same place. For example, Sutterfield is a pastor; I am a homesteader and farmer. We have both been moved by Berry's tide, but it has deposited us at different locations.
Within Mr. Berry's corpus, as indeed within any literature that is profound, there is a surplus of meaning. While I might have chosen differently, Sutterfield has identified the themes and points of emphasis that speak most powerfully to him, and he has done so beautifully and convincingly.
I have read no better synthesis of Wendell Berry's work and I recommend it without hesitation.
August 15, 2017
I may have given this book only three stars because I am already very familiar with Wendell Berry. The book would be excellent reading as an introduction to Wendell Berry, his life and thoughts.
I've read several of Wendell Berry's novels centered around the people, the families, the community of Port William, Kentucky. Berry's novels are like soul food or comfort food. Berry's fiction is filled with valuable life lessons.
I (we) have also appreciated Wendell Berry's poetry, but I've not read his essays (now prompted to do) from which Sutterfield, this books author, draws his understanding of Berry's life philosophies. Wendell Berry as described by Sutterfield, and I agree, can be seen as a profit for our time. As Brian McLaren states on the book's back cover, "Goodness and beauty, lament and hope, humility and resilience, soil and skin -- readers of Wendell Berry know how he celebrates treasures too many people treat as trash."
"When one begins to see the world with Berry's eyes, it is difficult to remain comfortable, much less unchanged." Ragan Sutterfield
I've read several of Wendell Berry's novels centered around the people, the families, the community of Port William, Kentucky. Berry's novels are like soul food or comfort food. Berry's fiction is filled with valuable life lessons.
I (we) have also appreciated Wendell Berry's poetry, but I've not read his essays (now prompted to do) from which Sutterfield, this books author, draws his understanding of Berry's life philosophies. Wendell Berry as described by Sutterfield, and I agree, can be seen as a profit for our time. As Brian McLaren states on the book's back cover, "Goodness and beauty, lament and hope, humility and resilience, soil and skin -- readers of Wendell Berry know how he celebrates treasures too many people treat as trash."
"When one begins to see the world with Berry's eyes, it is difficult to remain comfortable, much less unchanged." Ragan Sutterfield
January 14, 2023
For many years I have heard of Wendell Berry and his wonderful writing, supporting agriculture and the associated values of farm family life. This author gives an overview of the themes of Berry's writings, emphasizing our need for connection or "membership" to a people and place. Technology has its benefits but we do lose our ties often to the anonymity of the online world, in the process feeling less rooted in culture and identity. I plan to read Berry myself to explore his philosophies.
July 3, 2022
4.75* rounded up. So very good. Such a wonderful summation of a life well lived and taught. The author’s insight in Wendell Berry’s lessons are so very important in today’s cultural, political, and partisan climates. An important read!
November 13, 2023
I applaud Sutterfield for summarizing the virtues of Berry. Some of these chapters were fantastic summaries of Berry’s writings…especially the chapters on stability and membership. Some of the other chapters seems forced.
December 17, 2024
I think Sutterfield is right when he argues Wendell Berry is our era’s St. Benedict. This is a good distillation of this new “Benedictine rule” according to Berry, and it’d also work as solid introduction to Berry’s work. Encouraging and thought-provoking.
June 22, 2017
This was a crash course on Wendell Berry. I mostly have enjoyed him as a novelist, but this inspired me to delve into his essays and poetry.
October 24, 2017
A book to reread again and again.
April 9, 2018
This would be a good book club book. Lots to talk about.
May 7, 2020
Great book! The author holds up to examine and explain some of Berry's key ideas, which I have so far only soaked up from his fiction and poetry.
September 10, 2021
Nice look at Berry's overall message and themes.
February 12, 2017
This was a wonderful book by Ragan Sutterfield (author of the great book Farming As A Spiritual Discipline) on the life and work of Wendell Berry. Berry has had an immense impact on a diverse group of people. He is often quoted by spiritual writers, has influenced the agricultural world, and is an award winning writer in multiple genres. For all of this, Sutterfield calls Berry an amateur. Berry calls himself the same. But sutterfield reminds us that the word amateur has, at its roots, the meaning “for the love of it.” Berry does what he does out of love. Interestingly, his love stands in stark contrast to what much of the Western world loves and as such is seen as a prophetic (Ch 12). The author also makes strong parallels between Berry and St. Benedict. Thought the two are very different in many respects, they are after much of the same things when it comes right down to it. The author delves into this during the first chapter and it is very interesting (though I wish he had gone a little further with it).
Throughout the book the author brings us to many important themes that appear in Berry’s multifaceted work. Humility is explored in chapter 2. Here very important things are said about creatureliness and the necessary limit of the creature. Love (Ch 3) and economics (Ch 4) are intertwined both with each other and with the creatureliness that is explored in the first chapter. What book about Berry would be complete without a chapter on Sabbath (Ch 6) and membership (Ch 8) ? One of my favorite chapters, however, was the chapter on Berry’s exploration of peaceableness (Ch 11). I was particularly drawn to the idea of “authentic patriotism” and find that such a discusion is of crucial importance during the time in which we live. This chapter also explores the necessity of imagination when dealing with the conflict within our world. Sutterfield writes “If we cannot imagine our enemies, if we cannot begin to see them as bearers of God’s image, then it will be easier to kill them.” Sutterfiled does a great job of piecing together Berry’s thoughts in this chapter. The chapter on Berry as a prophet, as previously mentioned, was very compelling. Berry’s work is beautiful but it’s also edgy at times. This poet, like the poet-prophets of old, has the ability to snap you awake up with his writing. Finally, the short afterward was great. Here the author had several questions which Berry answered. I found a clarity and graciousness in his words here and was thankful this section was included.
If you are a Berry fan this book is for you. If you are interested in agriculture or environmental studies – or creation theology for that matter – this is for you. If you haven’t read Berry but are interested in his work, this is a really great place to start as the author explores Berry from a number of angles and through his various genres of writing (fiction, poetry, essays, etc). Great book.
*Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced digital copy
Throughout the book the author brings us to many important themes that appear in Berry’s multifaceted work. Humility is explored in chapter 2. Here very important things are said about creatureliness and the necessary limit of the creature. Love (Ch 3) and economics (Ch 4) are intertwined both with each other and with the creatureliness that is explored in the first chapter. What book about Berry would be complete without a chapter on Sabbath (Ch 6) and membership (Ch 8) ? One of my favorite chapters, however, was the chapter on Berry’s exploration of peaceableness (Ch 11). I was particularly drawn to the idea of “authentic patriotism” and find that such a discusion is of crucial importance during the time in which we live. This chapter also explores the necessity of imagination when dealing with the conflict within our world. Sutterfield writes “If we cannot imagine our enemies, if we cannot begin to see them as bearers of God’s image, then it will be easier to kill them.” Sutterfiled does a great job of piecing together Berry’s thoughts in this chapter. The chapter on Berry as a prophet, as previously mentioned, was very compelling. Berry’s work is beautiful but it’s also edgy at times. This poet, like the poet-prophets of old, has the ability to snap you awake up with his writing. Finally, the short afterward was great. Here the author had several questions which Berry answered. I found a clarity and graciousness in his words here and was thankful this section was included.
If you are a Berry fan this book is for you. If you are interested in agriculture or environmental studies – or creation theology for that matter – this is for you. If you haven’t read Berry but are interested in his work, this is a really great place to start as the author explores Berry from a number of angles and through his various genres of writing (fiction, poetry, essays, etc). Great book.
*Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced digital copy
September 27, 2020
Wonderful book, inspiring, and it will you much to reflect and think about especially about our environment and this planet we call home
December 29, 2021
Not being familiar with Wendell Berry, this book was the ideal introduction to Berry's personal life as well as the philosophical/theological beliefs that guide his life practice. This book made me think - not necessarily think harder but think better. What role does community play in my life? How does humility make me a better citizen and a better friend? Why does Sabbath matter? This book is not a fast read. Yes, you can read it fast, but you will miss the benefit of actually being changed by it. Don't miss the opportunity to let this book seep into your soul.
May 30, 2026
A quite fabulous book about a man who
asks those big questions about life that do not go away. They are asked in humility as it is in humility that we will find the start of the many answers.
asks those big questions about life that do not go away. They are asked in humility as it is in humility that we will find the start of the many answers.
May 1, 2017
In some ways I loved this book and in other ways I found myself frustrated with it.
To begin, the author sought to cover a great deal of ground. Each one of the chapter themes could have spanned many books and so we are given a very brief look at what the Sutterfield considers the core of Berry’s thoughts on a topic. In some cases this was perfect, giving a glimpse into an idea that you can then go and explore for yourself across Berry’s writings. In other cases I found that it made the topics seem somewhat idealistic and that there simply wasn’t enough space to fully round out the discussion, particularly as it comes to application to the world in which we live.
I deeply appreciated the theme of the given life: what it means to receive and what it looks like to be given in return. I also loved the reflection on what it means to be creatures, living within the limitations placed upon us by the Creator.
As I always do with Berry’s work, I struggled with the emphasis on place and roots. While so much of it appeals to my soul, that’s not the life I’ve been called to as an emissary of the gospel to foreign lands. I do love the idea of place and roots and living within my “watershed,” however I always wish more discussion was given to the reality that not all “wander” because they are discontent or irresponsible, but because God calls.
The places where I found myself frustrated within this work is where we were presented with a beautiful ideal without enough space to really flush out what that can look like in the wide world. Without that discussion I found my thoughts to easily drawn to how short we fall of even our most preciously held ideals about how to live, which opened a doorway to guilt rather than hope. Perhaps that was just me, but I did find that such a brief overview of so many lofty topics wasn’t as beneficial as I had hoped in answering the question, “What does it look like for me to live the given life?” Perhaps that wasn’t the question that the author was seeking to answer. Perhaps the book was intended to be simply informational.
Is it a good book? Yes. I think it is especially helpful if you know very little about Wendell Berry and his vision. But for myself, I suppose I was hoping for a bit more depth wrestling with integration and application of the given or “creaturely” life.
– – –
I was given a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion, which is given in the review above.
To begin, the author sought to cover a great deal of ground. Each one of the chapter themes could have spanned many books and so we are given a very brief look at what the Sutterfield considers the core of Berry’s thoughts on a topic. In some cases this was perfect, giving a glimpse into an idea that you can then go and explore for yourself across Berry’s writings. In other cases I found that it made the topics seem somewhat idealistic and that there simply wasn’t enough space to fully round out the discussion, particularly as it comes to application to the world in which we live.
I deeply appreciated the theme of the given life: what it means to receive and what it looks like to be given in return. I also loved the reflection on what it means to be creatures, living within the limitations placed upon us by the Creator.
As I always do with Berry’s work, I struggled with the emphasis on place and roots. While so much of it appeals to my soul, that’s not the life I’ve been called to as an emissary of the gospel to foreign lands. I do love the idea of place and roots and living within my “watershed,” however I always wish more discussion was given to the reality that not all “wander” because they are discontent or irresponsible, but because God calls.
The places where I found myself frustrated within this work is where we were presented with a beautiful ideal without enough space to really flush out what that can look like in the wide world. Without that discussion I found my thoughts to easily drawn to how short we fall of even our most preciously held ideals about how to live, which opened a doorway to guilt rather than hope. Perhaps that was just me, but I did find that such a brief overview of so many lofty topics wasn’t as beneficial as I had hoped in answering the question, “What does it look like for me to live the given life?” Perhaps that wasn’t the question that the author was seeking to answer. Perhaps the book was intended to be simply informational.
Is it a good book? Yes. I think it is especially helpful if you know very little about Wendell Berry and his vision. But for myself, I suppose I was hoping for a bit more depth wrestling with integration and application of the given or “creaturely” life.
– – –
I was given a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion, which is given in the review above.
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