The Essential Agrarian Reader: The Future of Culture, Community, and the Land

by Norman Wirzba (Editor)

With a Foreword by Barbara Kingsolver. A compelling worldview with advocates from around the globe, agrarianism challenges the shortcomings of our industrial and technological economy. Not simply focused on farming, the agrarian outlook encourages us to develop practices and policies that promote the health of land, community, and culture. Agrarianism reminds us that no matter how urban we become, our survival will always be inextricably linked to the precious resources of soil, water, and air. Combining fresh insights from the disciplines of education, law, history, urban and regional planning, economics, philosophy, religion, ecology, politics, and agriculture, these original essays develop a sophisticated critique of our culture's current relationship to the land, while offering practical alternatives. Leading agrarians, including Wendell Berry, Vandana Shiva, Wes Jackson, Gene Logsdon, Brian Donahue, Eric Freyfogle, and David Orr, explain how our goals should be redirected toward genuinely sustainable communities. These writers call us to an honest accounting and correction of our often destructive ways. They suggest how our society can take practical steps toward integrating soils, watersheds, forests, wildlife, urban areas, and human populations into one great system -- a responsible flourishing of our world and culture.

Genres: Nonfiction, Food, Agriculture, Environment, Essays, Nature, Philosophy

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 10, 2003

About the author

Norman Wirzba is Professor of Theology and Ecology at Duke University Divinity School and a pioneer of scholarly work on religion, philosophy, ecology, and agrarianism. He is also the author of Food and Faith, Living the Sabbath, The Paradise of God, and From Nature to Creation. He lives near Hillsborough, North Carolina.

Reviews

[Kate McKinstry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eating responsibly and with purpose has become increasingly important in the 20th and 21st centuries as monocrops, industrialized farms, and genetically modified food run our soil and health into the ground. This book springs off of Wendell Berry's "the Unsettling of America" in which authors of various disciplines and backgrounds attempt to extrapolate Berry's observations into what America's food industry will look like in the future. Most of the articles contained in this book were well written; some were too clinical and statistic-heavy for my taste. All of them will be useful for the reader who wishes to educate themselves on our broken food industry and ways we can help fix it, or at least change our mindset. If I hadn't just read Berry's "Bringing it to the Table" (which this book simply rehashed, though I enjoyed Berry's writing MUCH more than all of the authors in this book), "Essential Agrarian Reader" may have carried more weight with me, but I think it's deserves four stars nonetheless.

[Ethan Marolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazingly enlightening. I was surprised at the topics that this book covers. From agriculture to history to politics to philosophy, this book is incredibly well rounded. It shed new light on everything I thought about our current farming industry and even if you aren’t interested in agriculture I feel as though this book is a necessity to read at some point throughout one’s lifetime. Some parts could be slightly repetitive but that is to be expected with a book of essays related to the same topic. I highly recommend this book to everyone, more so to people who care where there food comes from or care about how corporations are controlling our lives.

[Norman Falk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great starting point for anyone interested in understanding how agrarianism is essential for our common good.

Also, a stellar lineup of contributors including Vandana Shiva, Norman Wirzba, Wes Jackson, and of course, Wendell Berry.

[(craig) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't speak lightly when I say that this is one of the more important books you can read if you're interested in saving the world

[Cameron M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, this was a wonderful read. It was nice to read a little bit from so many prolific minds in agrarianism that I hadn't read before. Wes Jackson, Gene Logsdon, and of course, the great Wendell Berry. The book was well divided, yet, within the sections, I thought a couple of the essays/writings were a little irrelevant in that particular section, thus making it seem kind of like quirky fit in the context of that section.
By reading this, I was able to read further into the economics and philosophy of agrarianism and that has helped me learn more about the theme and lifestyle to which I grant more appreciation and drive to dive into it myself.
Overall a great read to immerse oneself in the different writing styles of many great authors and guides to agrarianism as a whole.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It will become increasingly important, I believe, to think about how and where agrarianism--an essential for humans--is represented in the US's social, cultural, legal, and economic framework.

The focus here is on farming (and food and farmers), as one might imagine, but it's worth reading even if you are simply interested in where your food comes from. In terms of writing, the styles (and tones) vary widely, and in some cases feels somewhat uneven, though all of the writing is useful, and most (if not all) authors provide additional resources for the interested reader.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Almost 40 years after "The Unsettling of America", and 13 years after this collection was published, NOTHINHG HAS CHANGED! But are we really surprised? Cargill, ADM, Monsanto - they all keep getting bigger, and our food choices keep shrinking. Take control of your destiny, people.

[KA · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books ever - full of prophetic vision.

[Jonathan]

Signed by Wendell Berry for Jonathan

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

The different writings varied in quality, but overall it was a good explanation of the modern agrarian viewpoint.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic collection of essays.

[Karen Mahtin · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are looking to fall in love with farming, or just the land, orn to understand why those of us who love it so much, read this book!

[C. Christopher Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The quintessential introduction to agrarian thought... Places Wendell Berry's work in a broader context.

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good insightful book