Earth Day Reading Project

Reading is one of my life long passions. So when The Sage Butterfly invited me to participate in the Earth Day Reading Project meme in tribute of this special day I thought it was a brilliant idea. But, my kids' spring break and trying to get out and garden between the severe storms we've been having with power outages and monsoon-like rains  (not that I’m complaining; the heat and dry weather will be here soon enough), I have been delayed in posting my picks.

Here is what you do: write a post and list at least three books that inspired you to perform any sustainable living act or inspired you to live green, and then tell why they inspired you. These books do not have to be about green living. Nonfiction and fiction apply. Link back to the person who invited you and don't forget to also link to The Sage Butterfly.

The first author that inspired me to take care of the environment was Beatrix Potter. She is most famous for her children's books and illustrations. As a child, I was fascinated by the Tales of Peter Rabbit, The Flopsy Bunnies, The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin and Cecily Parsley's Nursery Rhymes among others. More recently, I read Beatrix Potter: A Life in Nature by Linda Lear which examines Beatrix Potter's personal life. She became a conservationist during a time when it was more popular to plunder than preserve the land. She took most of her earning from her books and purchased Hill Top Farm and eventually the surrounding farms in order to preserve the landscape that inspired her art. When she died she left the land to the National Trust and it is now part of the Lake District National Park in England. She is an inspiration because she was a strong and independent woman who not only had an amazing talent for writing and drawing but was ahead of her time and because of her courage and determination left an indelible imprint on the English countryside.

Not a book, but a magazine that inspired me to be respectful and truly appreciate the power and beauty of Mother Nature is National Geographic. As their tagline states they have been inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888. Their amazing photographs chronicle life from every corner of the world from urban to rural, civilized to exotic to remote and desolate locations. Their stories explore animals, world cultures, nature, archeology, geography, and natural science. This magazine certainly influenced my love of photography, specifically nature photography, and showed me how my actions impact life from macro and micro perspectives.

A really fabulous book that addresses making lifestyle changes to lead a calmer and healthier life is A Guide to Green Housekeeping by Christina Strutt. It covers recycling, reusing, chemical free housekeeping, and gardening organically. The idea is that you can live just as well, if not better and probably less expensively without hurting yourself or the planet. Becoming eco-friendly doesn't mean sacrifice it is about readjusting your life.

I would  like to invite the following three blogs to participate in the Earth Day Reading Project.
Casa Mariposa
Sweet Bean Gardening
Canoe Corner

Note all posts must be completed by midnight EDT April 23, 2011 please click here for all the details.