Jacob's Wound: A Search for the Spirit of Wildness

by Trevor Herriot

“The prose of Jacob’s Wound is smooth and burnished, with many poetic touches and images of startling clarity.”— Globe and Mail This highly acclaimed work reflects on the nature that we, and our religions, sprang from. The biblical story of Jacob, the patriarch of the Judeo-Christian tradition wrestling with a spirit, has been interpreted in a multitude of ways, but never more persuasively than by Trevor Herriot in Jacob’s Wound . The central idea is that Jacob, representing the farmer and civilized man, suffers a deep wound when he swindles the birthright of Esau, representing the hunter and primitive man. Herriot queries whether we, as Jacob did with Esau, can eventually reconcile with the wilderness that we have conquered and have been estranged from for so long. Jacob’s Wound takes readers on an untrodden path through history, nature, science, and theology, sharing stories and personal experiences that beautifully illuminate what we once were and what we have become. Trevor Herriot is the author of River in a Dry Land , which was highly praised by reviewers and won four awards. A self-taught naturalist and a Catholic who has recently returned to the church, Herriot has lived most of his life in Saskatchewan.

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Peter Dodds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gave me a lot to think about.