Nature Literature discussion

What kinds of nature books do you all tend to read: those where nature is more of a backdrop to the story, or those where it is a character in a story?

examples of each (in my opinion)

Backdrop: Little House on the Prairie
The book needs the setting/descriptions of the midwest prairies to fully immerse you in the time period, but ultimately the main human characters and interactions between other humans are what drive the plot.

Character: Pilgrim at Tinker Creek
This book is all about how nature IS, both beautiful and terrible. Nature is at the center of the stage "speaking" for itself. It drives the author's inquisitiveness/revelations.

Character is my choice. I'm hooked on C.J. Box's series where the main character is a game warden. Those are my favorite kind of books. Although, I will read the backdrop ones as well.

Welcome, Alyssa and Chris. Thanks for getting the conversation going! This one is tough for me to answer. I'm a HUGE Willa Cather fan, so I would initially lean towards "backdrop" (although her backdrops are so prevalent they could be construed as character at times). But I DID love Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, too, so I guess I have to say I'll take either! :)

I really like to both read and write where nature is "the character". In fact, in my essays and books it almost always is. :-) I think it's because as "egotistical humans" we look at nature as a "backdrop" overall, and I think that's been horribly harmful. Therefore, for me it's lovely to see and create stories where nature is front and center.

I like the short stories of Rick Bass. Nature really plays a role in his fiction.

interesting Tanya you've got me thinking haha

I believe it all depends upon the purpose the reader has in reading the work. If the purpose is expanding understanding or appreciation of natural systems, the reader may lean more toward nature-centered works, whereas they would turn to backdrop natural books if they were looking for culture and stories (which are often extremely dependent upon the characters' environment).

I often enjoy books about nature, itself, as I find many aspects of it to be worthy stories in their own right. I loved the poetic and natural appreciation in "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek," for example.

One of my all time favorites is The Old Man and The Sea. I know Hemingway has fallen out of favor in some circles, but this story of the old fisherman and his struggle to make a living from the sea, captivates me. The old man apologizes to the fish, both for catching it and for failing to prevent the desecration of the sharks. I would say that nature is a character in this book, particularly the lyrical passage where he compares the sea to a beautiful woman who gives or withholds favors.

He almost captures the same spirit in the part of Islands in the Stream. In one segment a young boy on a pleasure craft hooks into a large Marlin and looses it after a long battle. Its not quite the same, though. Also, there is no telling how much his surviving wife had to "fill the gaps" in a manuscript for the posthumous publication. They boy in the story may have been based on his oldest son, Jack who became a minor author with Misadventures of a Fly Fisherman, but was probably more famous as father of three well known daughters, two actresses and an artist.

I see that this is an old discussion, but it fits in so well with an article I've been writing about eco-fiction. I've enjoyed countless novels where nature was simply background. I feel, though, that as we develop a deepened awareness of the necessity of experiencing ourselves as part of nature, reading stories in which nature is a character advances this awareness.

New post on my blog.
https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...

I would definitely say I lean more toward nature as character mostly because I find the most meaning in the details and I find that in the details of nature you can find the most profound meaning for life - of course there are definitely times where nature as backdrop seems to take the stage because my heart is just in need of the healing balm of the beauty of nature but the character of nature is often times what catches my imagination - thanks for posting this question