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Wild Hope: Stories for Lent from the Vanishing
Pangolins and polar bears, olms, lemurs, and leopards. We share this beautiful blue-green globe with creatures magnificent, delicate, intricate—and now vanishing at a faster rate than at any other time in Earth’s history. Spend Lent with twenty-five of these wild ones. Vivid descriptions of their lives will fill readers with wonder—and grief at what they suffer on a planet shaped by human choices. Their stories thaw our stiff hearts and wake us to greater compassion—which is what Lent, meaning “springtime,” has always been for. These stories also wake in us a wild hope that from all this death and ruin, something new could rise. The promise of Lent is that something new will rise. In fact, as these stories also attest, our hope, though wild, is not impossible and is already loose in the world.
"Wild Hope is the only book whose table of contents alone gave me chills. Here’s the deal: the living world, life on planet Earth, is sacred. Author Gayle Boss yearns to show us that we live in a miracle. And she succeeds in showing us that we are not alone on this holy planet. This is a beautifully elegant, deeply excellent book, pursued by grace on every page, in every stunning illustration." —Carl Safina, ecologist, NYT bestselling author of Beyond Words and Becoming Wild; MacArthur Fellow and founder of The Safina Center
"Wild Hope is the only book whose table of contents alone gave me chills. Here’s the deal: the living world, life on planet Earth, is sacred. Author Gayle Boss yearns to show us that we live in a miracle. And she succeeds in showing us that we are not alone on this holy planet. This is a beautifully elegant, deeply excellent book, pursued by grace on every page, in every stunning illustration." —Carl Safina, ecologist, NYT bestselling author of Beyond Words and Becoming Wild; MacArthur Fellow and founder of The Safina Center
128 pages, Paperback
Published January 21, 2020
41 people are currently reading
189 people want to read
About the author
Gayle Boss
7 books27 followersGayle Boss writes from West Michigan, where she was born and raised. Her lifelong love of animals and her immersion in spiritual texts and practices have melded in writing that explores how relationships with animals specifically, and an attentive presence in the natural world generally, restore us to our deepest selves. Also the mother of two grown sons, Gayle shares her home with her husband and Welsh corgi rescue.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
April 12, 2020
Boss is a very good writer and conveys her ideas well. This book is very sad to think about how man's dominion over creation is many times selfish domination instead of careful stewardship.
There is less directly about Jesus and his sufferings in this book than I might have expected for a Lenten read. There is too much to feel about than can be done about, which can be a danger of numbing ourselves and overwhelming us. I was grateful that the Resurrection reading was joyful and hopeful.
She says in her intro that she didn't share these stories with her kids when they were young and she wished now that she had. I'm still not sure that I would with my teens (and near teen). It was sad every single day; I started to dread it.
There is less directly about Jesus and his sufferings in this book than I might have expected for a Lenten read. There is too much to feel about than can be done about, which can be a danger of numbing ourselves and overwhelming us. I was grateful that the Resurrection reading was joyful and hopeful.
She says in her intro that she didn't share these stories with her kids when they were young and she wished now that she had. I'm still not sure that I would with my teens (and near teen). It was sad every single day; I started to dread it.
January 22, 2020
Last year, a mutual dear friend and poet, Jack Ridl, e-mailed me and Gayle L. Boss, the author of “All Creation Waits: The Advent Mystery of New Beginnings,” telling us he believed we were destined to be friends. Gayle and I believed him and connected over tea in the warmth of a spring day at Outside Coffee Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
As we parted, she inscribed her book for me, “For Ginny...who knows each creature is a Word of God.” That night, I read the Introduction and like the animals in the book, patiently waited for Advent to open it again.
Each day of “All Creation Waits” includes a poetic meditation paired with an original woodcut by artist David Klein about a different wild animal and how they adapt when darkness and cold descend. It is stunningly beautiful…in all ways.
Throughout Advent, I posted the line from the day’s meditation that best spoke to my heart and hopefully to the hearts of my FB friends and family, for each creature is indeed a Word of God and guides us in living into the Advent season with grace.
Gayle has done it again with “Wild Hope: Stories from Lent from the Vanishing.” Each of the 40 days includes a poetic meditation - paired again with an original woodcut by artist David Klein - outlining the “miracle and peril” of a different wild animal. In beautiful and poignant prose, Gayle simplifies her extensive compilation of research and fieldwork by scientists and conservationists the world over to leave the reader in a braided state of wonder, concern and hope for each of the highlighted magnificent creatures.
The Monarch Butterfly flutters into the pages during Week Three: The Homeless. The facts in this entry alone were jaw-dropping - so much so - I insisted my husband allow me to read the chapter to him aloud. Since the introduction of Roundup, I learned, “90 percent of the bright pilgrims have vanished.” Monarch butterflies were admittedly already a fascination of mine. After our black lab/beagle rescue, Kadie, died in July 2018, I began seeing them in the most unusual places - darkened crevices in our garage, on a restaurant ledge - indoors, even on my back as I emerged from swimming in the Dead Sea. Gayle’s witness to them affirmed the spiritual quality of my own.
To Jesus-followers who are passionate about Creation during these darkest of days when our beautiful Mother Earth’s very being appears to be at stake, this book offers Wild Hope. “The promise of Lent is that something will be born of the ruin, something so astoundingly better than the present moment that we cannot imagine it.” Thankfully, Gayle has.
As we parted, she inscribed her book for me, “For Ginny...who knows each creature is a Word of God.” That night, I read the Introduction and like the animals in the book, patiently waited for Advent to open it again.
Each day of “All Creation Waits” includes a poetic meditation paired with an original woodcut by artist David Klein about a different wild animal and how they adapt when darkness and cold descend. It is stunningly beautiful…in all ways.
Throughout Advent, I posted the line from the day’s meditation that best spoke to my heart and hopefully to the hearts of my FB friends and family, for each creature is indeed a Word of God and guides us in living into the Advent season with grace.
Gayle has done it again with “Wild Hope: Stories from Lent from the Vanishing.” Each of the 40 days includes a poetic meditation - paired again with an original woodcut by artist David Klein - outlining the “miracle and peril” of a different wild animal. In beautiful and poignant prose, Gayle simplifies her extensive compilation of research and fieldwork by scientists and conservationists the world over to leave the reader in a braided state of wonder, concern and hope for each of the highlighted magnificent creatures.
The Monarch Butterfly flutters into the pages during Week Three: The Homeless. The facts in this entry alone were jaw-dropping - so much so - I insisted my husband allow me to read the chapter to him aloud. Since the introduction of Roundup, I learned, “90 percent of the bright pilgrims have vanished.” Monarch butterflies were admittedly already a fascination of mine. After our black lab/beagle rescue, Kadie, died in July 2018, I began seeing them in the most unusual places - darkened crevices in our garage, on a restaurant ledge - indoors, even on my back as I emerged from swimming in the Dead Sea. Gayle’s witness to them affirmed the spiritual quality of my own.
To Jesus-followers who are passionate about Creation during these darkest of days when our beautiful Mother Earth’s very being appears to be at stake, this book offers Wild Hope. “The promise of Lent is that something will be born of the ruin, something so astoundingly better than the present moment that we cannot imagine it.” Thankfully, Gayle has.
April 14, 2022
We used this book as part of our daily morning prayer for work through Lent. The book is called Wild Hope, but hope was hard to find in this book. Listening to the stories of these animals is important, and practicing grief is a much needed skill in today's world, but i found it incredibly challenging. Perhaps if we weren't bombarded with bad news every day, this book would have landed differently for me. After reading this book, all i can say is Lord have mercy on us.
March 31, 2024
I read the Advent version of this with my kids last Christmas (SO good). This one is NOT kid friendly. We really enjoyed the animal stories. However I always had to partially improvise the last half of each story. And I cried. Man, humans are the worst 💔
March 31, 2024
3.5 rounded up
March 31, 2024
I was so moved by this beautiful devotional, filled with both heartbreak and hope, which is just how we ought to be during Lent and Holy Week. Gayle Boss’ entries struck me at the heart and enlarged my love and concern for the creatures with whom we share this earth. I highly recommend this devotional and her other one for advent.
February 27, 2020
Another wonderful seasonal book by Boss (All Creation Waits: The Advent Mystery of New Beginnings). I am using this for Lent (even though as a non-liturgical Quaker I don't celebrate Lent per se). But this is more than a seasonal book -- for those of us who care about the care of the earth and all its creatures, it will be a source to return to again and again. And to share with our children and grandchildren and friends.
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February 18, 2022This is one of the saddest books I have ever read. It was also very painfully beautiful. The subtitle is “Stories for Lent from the Vanishing.” Throughout most of it, there seems to be a lot more vanishing and only very little hope.
The book is a series of short chapters, each devoted to a different animal. All the animals are endangered. The chapters are illustrated by gorgeous woodcuts. The author does an excellent job of putting the reader in the place of the animals. You are there. You are a frog, or a whale, or a pangolin, trying to find food, and shelter, to raise your babies, and you feel their struggles as they succumb to disease, or pollution, or hunting, or habitat loss. It is heartbreaking.
There is hope in the chapters. Usually it is in the form of scientists trying to study the animals, breed them in captivity, find vaccines for their diseases, or educate the public. Sometimes the hope comes from the animals themselves, as is the case with the Indiana bats, who somehow learned that if they woke up from their hibernation briefly every day instead of every thirteen days, they would be stronger.
Within the stories, the hope seems small, as I have said. The men and women in the stories wonder: Is this too little too late? Will this even work? The biggest dose of hope comes on the nearly last page. The author lists species that have been brought back from the brink by human help. In these cases, “The dream, seeded in sadness and love, quietly defies cynicism and grows by turning fear into work.” I thought that phrase “Turning fear into work” was the biggest inspiration of the book, and should be on t shirts.
One thing I liked about this book is that, although it is marketed as a Lenten devotional book, there is almost no God talk in it, allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions and inspirations from it, so the book can truly be read by anyone, religious or not, who cares about animals.
The book is a series of short chapters, each devoted to a different animal. All the animals are endangered. The chapters are illustrated by gorgeous woodcuts. The author does an excellent job of putting the reader in the place of the animals. You are there. You are a frog, or a whale, or a pangolin, trying to find food, and shelter, to raise your babies, and you feel their struggles as they succumb to disease, or pollution, or hunting, or habitat loss. It is heartbreaking.
There is hope in the chapters. Usually it is in the form of scientists trying to study the animals, breed them in captivity, find vaccines for their diseases, or educate the public. Sometimes the hope comes from the animals themselves, as is the case with the Indiana bats, who somehow learned that if they woke up from their hibernation briefly every day instead of every thirteen days, they would be stronger.
Within the stories, the hope seems small, as I have said. The men and women in the stories wonder: Is this too little too late? Will this even work? The biggest dose of hope comes on the nearly last page. The author lists species that have been brought back from the brink by human help. In these cases, “The dream, seeded in sadness and love, quietly defies cynicism and grows by turning fear into work.” I thought that phrase “Turning fear into work” was the biggest inspiration of the book, and should be on t shirts.
One thing I liked about this book is that, although it is marketed as a Lenten devotional book, there is almost no God talk in it, allowing the reader to draw their own conclusions and inspirations from it, so the book can truly be read by anyone, religious or not, who cares about animals.
March 29, 2021
A beautiful book about the interconnectedness of life on Earth and how our actions are leading to the extinction of multiple creatures as we remain comfortable.
"The ark is the church, the community that carries us across the roiling chaos of our lives - personal troubles and public troubles. All that water-it's the chaos, and also the water of baptism that strips off the tough husk we wear so that love can spill out of us."
"Attention to the amazingness of our arkmates routes us directly to the heart of Lent. The season means to rouse us from our self-absorption. Absorbed instead in the beauty of other creatures, we see how they value their lives, lives woven together across species in beautifully complex webs."
"The purpose of Lent has always been to startle us awake to the true state of our hearts and the world we've made. Which wakes an aching, wild hope that something new might be born of the ruin. The promise of Lent is that something will be born of the ruin, something so astoundingly better than the present moment that we cannot imagine it."
"When we suffer in love together, a Suffering Love beyond us can birth, through us, a new world where "they will not hurt or destroy".....This is what we and all creatures groan for - this more beautiful world that lies quietly waiting in every heart."
pg. 117 "She leaves, joining other family members on the worn paths of their routine, as trauma survivors do. For weeks her family returns, smelling, tasting, caressing the one who was their well-being. In rumbling groans below human hearing, they tell their distress to all the elephants of the plain. The low-frequency sounds ripple through the ground into elephant feet, which turn toward the place of her dying. Families come and touch, acknowledging a great leader is gone.
"The ark is the church, the community that carries us across the roiling chaos of our lives - personal troubles and public troubles. All that water-it's the chaos, and also the water of baptism that strips off the tough husk we wear so that love can spill out of us."
"Attention to the amazingness of our arkmates routes us directly to the heart of Lent. The season means to rouse us from our self-absorption. Absorbed instead in the beauty of other creatures, we see how they value their lives, lives woven together across species in beautifully complex webs."
"The purpose of Lent has always been to startle us awake to the true state of our hearts and the world we've made. Which wakes an aching, wild hope that something new might be born of the ruin. The promise of Lent is that something will be born of the ruin, something so astoundingly better than the present moment that we cannot imagine it."
"When we suffer in love together, a Suffering Love beyond us can birth, through us, a new world where "they will not hurt or destroy".....This is what we and all creatures groan for - this more beautiful world that lies quietly waiting in every heart."
pg. 117 "She leaves, joining other family members on the worn paths of their routine, as trauma survivors do. For weeks her family returns, smelling, tasting, caressing the one who was their well-being. In rumbling groans below human hearing, they tell their distress to all the elephants of the plain. The low-frequency sounds ripple through the ground into elephant feet, which turn toward the place of her dying. Families come and touch, acknowledging a great leader is gone.
April 16, 2020
This is a beautifully written yet also difficult book to read. In three pages for each endangered animal, Boss manages to get her readers to fall in love with each animal - and then to feel the pain when we learn why we are losing them. Still, I found the stories of the people working to study and save these animals inspiring and hopeful.
I read the book with my children (ages 10, 8 and 4) and quickly realized I had to edit the read aloud for some of the animals who are being brutally killed. The vocabulary was a bit difficult for the younger two, but they were still inspired by the illustrations. My 8 year old brought her sketchpad out every time I read a story. Some of the stories engaged us so much that we went searching for more information right away - my kids wanted to see more pictures of Kleenex, the North Atlantic Right Whale, as soon as we learned about her. Some of the animals are truly awe-inspiring.
I featured this book on my 2020 Lenten reading list here: https://beingincommunity.com/my-lente...
I read the book with my children (ages 10, 8 and 4) and quickly realized I had to edit the read aloud for some of the animals who are being brutally killed. The vocabulary was a bit difficult for the younger two, but they were still inspired by the illustrations. My 8 year old brought her sketchpad out every time I read a story. Some of the stories engaged us so much that we went searching for more information right away - my kids wanted to see more pictures of Kleenex, the North Atlantic Right Whale, as soon as we learned about her. Some of the animals are truly awe-inspiring.
I featured this book on my 2020 Lenten reading list here: https://beingincommunity.com/my-lente...
April 12, 2022
This book is an excellent family Lenten season read-aloud in that it addresses some of the themes of life/death/restoration of life/betrayal/survival/stewardship. These can be addressed in conversation after reading each short vignette about an animal or insect that is struggling to survive in today's natural world. Recommended for family read-aloud with children seven and older and is appropriate right up through middle school years. Teens might like to read and discuss in an advocacy group or book group setting. Adults can use the book as a devotional/contemplative read. Teachers might use the book as a read-aloud in the weeks coming up to Earth Day or during a climate/geography unit of study.
David Klein's illustrations are stellar; Gayle Boss's text is full of information about each creature, and each vignette ends with a thought-provoking 'hanging out there' statement that aids in a jumping off spot for discussion or prayer or journaling. It's a great book and a wonderful addition to Gayle Boss's written portfolio.
David Klein's illustrations are stellar; Gayle Boss's text is full of information about each creature, and each vignette ends with a thought-provoking 'hanging out there' statement that aids in a jumping off spot for discussion or prayer or journaling. It's a great book and a wonderful addition to Gayle Boss's written portfolio.
March 30, 2023
One of the best books ever. It is a beautifully illustrated collection of short reflections on some of the animal species we are losing due to hunger, sickness, loss of habitat, pollution, and poaching. Climate change, poverty and inequality are featured as an underlying cause. It is written as a meditation guide for Lent, a Christian season of reflection on loss and suffering as preparation for new hope celebrated in Easter. However, it can be used by anyone as there is no direct reference to religion or faith. Instead, the stories of the animals guide us through awe, wonder, grief and loss. And into the practice of Active Hope. It is not an easy book. But it is a book with hope and tenderness. And it is a book for our times.
April 9, 2020
Short, themed reflections that bring attention to the plight of endangered animals around the globe and the dedicated people who work so diligently with the animals and advocate for legislative changes to the environmental and political issues at the root of each species endangerment. Beautiful illustrations by David Klein accompany each reflection. Well worth the journey during Lent or anytime of year.
April 8, 2023
This is a beautiful, horrible, magical - and ultimately hopeful - book. I’m so very glad a friend recommended it to me, especially right here at the beginning of Lent, so I could read it during this season per the author’s design.
These stories will haunt me for some time. An enthusiastic birder and supporter of the Audubon Society, my commitment is renewed: to birds, their fellow creatures, and the wild places that sustain us all.
These stories will haunt me for some time. An enthusiastic birder and supporter of the Audubon Society, my commitment is renewed: to birds, their fellow creatures, and the wild places that sustain us all.
March 23, 2024
This book was took me on an unconventional but amazingly meaningful journey through Lent. Each chapter engendered feelings of horror and despair for the plight of the animals it described but also contained nuggets of hope inspired by those who are trying to help them. It was a beautiful Lenten balance of remorse and hope that wrapped up with an incredible conclusion on Easter Sunday. Highly recommend.
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April 1, 2024Beautiful and deeply sad. Hope is very hard to find in these pages, though they show we have to look for it if we want a chance, however remote, of helping these incredible creatures. After the introduction, it is up to the reader to think about how each of these stories might relate to the observance of lent. Read it any time, but heed caution if you are already feeling, or are prone to feeling, depressed.
April 13, 2021
'All of these animals live lives infinitely more intricate and magnificent than I can describe in this limited space. Short as these stories are, I hope they've inspired in you wonder and grief.'
Indeed they did. This book does not have to be a Lenten devotional, although there is a definite message of hope. The descriptions and illustrations are so well done.
Indeed they did. This book does not have to be a Lenten devotional, although there is a definite message of hope. The descriptions and illustrations are so well done.
April 15, 2023
Wild Hope is beautifully written and heartrending. You cannot read it and not care. And you don't have to wait for Lent or even be a Christian. It's for every inhabitant of Earth. Read it now and be moved — and recognize a thin ray of hope in those who care and are taking informed action themselves or supporting others' efforts. I look forward to more from this gifted author.
April 3, 2024
I have mixed feelings about this book. It didn't really seem like "Stories for Lent" was an appropriate title, because neither they, nor the sentiments expressed, had much to do with Lent or the purpose for the season.
The stories seemed rather hopeless, and when there was hope expressed, it was in humans and not in where our hope should actually come from as Christians.
The stories seemed rather hopeless, and when there was hope expressed, it was in humans and not in where our hope should actually come from as Christians.
April 28, 2025
This was a gift through the Lenten season, and definitely an unexpected one. Speaking to Lenten themes of devastation through the lens of climate change, each week holds devotions centered on stories of endangered species. I was grateful the stories and will revisit them. My only wish was that the chapters drew some clearer connections to Lenten practice itself.
April 14, 2020
As in her book about Advent, this book also is beautifully written and illustrated. Even though the stories of these animals and such can be sad, there is always an element of hope. Man made matters worse, but man can also help save these animals.
Thank you Gayle! Perfect Lenten reading.
Thank you Gayle! Perfect Lenten reading.
April 15, 2020
You cannot read this book without your heart breaking wide open. The author’s powerful prose demands that you enter into the lamentation of the world’s disappearing creatures. But she does not leave you hopeless.
April 15, 2020
Excellent book, well written, poignant.
As a note - It is, at times, graphic in it's descriptions of the atrocities to animals. I would caution anyone reading this to a very young or highly sensitive child to pre-read the stories.
As a note - It is, at times, graphic in it's descriptions of the atrocities to animals. I would caution anyone reading this to a very young or highly sensitive child to pre-read the stories.
April 16, 2022
DNF. For it being a Christian book I was disappointed by the amount of evolutionary ideas included. As far as the idea and information surrounding conservation and endangered animals there is some interesting information.
April 19, 2022
Beautiful but terrible stories. Hopeful...only if you look really really (really) hard. Learned a lot, but didnt "enjoy" the process (I guess I appreciated it though).
False advertising possibly? But still worth reading if you're up for it.
False advertising possibly? But still worth reading if you're up for it.
April 8, 2023
Beautiful snippets and tales of creatures threatened by mankind and the changing climate. May it be an inspiration to many to do what we can to be a positive force on this world that shelters us and all of those that inhabit it.
April 2, 2024
what a way to sit in the sadness & suffering that Lent represents. Growing up as a Christian, it’s easy to gloss over the hard parts of the Easter story because I know where it’s leading - this was a beautifully tragic reminder of death in the natural world.
April 21, 2025
This book contains beautiful and haunting stories about incredible animals and the people who live alongside them. I disagree with some of the theology in this book; nonetheless, the animal tales manage to be both sobering and inspiring.
April 21, 2025
Read this for lent with the kids, but we certainly didn’t get through all of the stories. I enjoyed seeing how one of my kids tied the stories of the animals to the events of Holy Week. It’s a book that encourages us to keep caring and hoping.
April 13, 2020
An excellent Lenten devotional reminding us that all creation suffers because of sin.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews