Overview

The author of The Global Forest--an international bestseller and a classic upon publication, beloved by readers around the world--gives us her tips and advice for achieving better health and peace of mind, with frugality, simplicity and pleasure not far behind. In The Sweetness of a Simple Life, Diana Beresford-Kroeger mixes science with storytelling, wonderment, magic, myth and plenty of common sense. After pursuing a Ph.D. in medical biochemistry, Beresford-Kroeger set out on a quest to preserve the world's forests. In this warm and wise collection of essays, she gives us a guide for living simply and well: which foods to eat and which to avoid; how to clean our homes and look after pets; how we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from illness; and why we need to appreciate nature. She provides an easy dose of healing, practical wisdom, blending modern medicine with aboriginal traditions. This inspiring, accessible book emphasizes back to basics, with the touchstone not an exotic religion or meditation practice, but the natural world around us.

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9780345812964

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Reviews

- The acclaimed Canadian botanist and medical biochemist combines her profound knowledge of horticulture and her unique sense of spirituality and Aboriginal traditions as well as alternative and Western medicine with one goal: good living. . . . Inspiring and enlightening. Maclean's - [ The Sweetness of a Simple Life ] is her most accessible [book] to date, a collection of gentle musings about silence, her root cellar, tree medicines, pets, gifts for birds, and how she cured her husband of his 3-pack-a-day smoking habit. Sarah Hampson, The Globe and Mail

- The acclaimed Canadian botanist and medical biochemist combines her profound knowledge of horticulture and her unique sense of spirituality and Aboriginal traditions as well as alternative and Western medicine with one goal: good living. . . . Inspiring and enlightening. Maclean's - [The Sweetness of a Simple Life] is her most accessible [book] to date, a collection of gentle musings about silence, her root cellar, tree medicines, pets, gifts for birds, and how she cured her husband of his 3-pack-a-day smoking habit. Sarah Hampson, The Globe and Mail This is a unique book, in its approach unlike any other I know. Readers are treated as friends, invited into the author's decluttered world of Sweet Simplicity. Diana Beresford-Kroeger convincingly interweaves her scientific expertise and her extensive knowledge of ancient aboriginal wisdom and practices, and a path into a saner and safer world seems to emerge, a path that is open to all. Part of the magic of the book is its practical accessibility. Within the clarity of the author's big picture of an earth in peril, there are ways forward. Small, individual decisions become opportunities to contribute to collective betterment. There is no 'them' and 'us' in the author's approach, in spite of her sense of passionate urgency. --Ursula Franklin, University Professor Emerita, former member of the Science Council of Canada, and author of The Real World of Technology Diana Beresford-Kroeger weaves together her wealth of scientific and traditional knowledge about the natural world with deep spirituality--and courageously communicates the latter. From this infrequently encountered but insight-generating combination, she distills practical advice for everyday living that will help us to keep healthy in body, mind and spirit. Her most powerful message is that we need to have a deep love for Nature and respect for the natural, to realize how much we will lose if we do not, and that we have obligations to future generations to hold Nature and the natural on trust for them. I loved this book. --Margaret Somerville, Samuel Gale Professor of Law, Professor Faculty of Medicine, McGill University The very existence of this book--with its down-to-earth appeal to drink wine, eat seaweed, sleep more, enjoy yourself, eschew industrial food--is testament to the chaos and hostility of modern life. But Beresford-Kroeger is a firm and gentle guide back to kindness, back to connection, back to simplicity. --Nick Saul & Andrea Curtis, co-authors of The S

Author Information

DIANA BERESFORD-KROEGER, a world-recognized scientist in the fields of medical biochemistry, botany and medicine, has spent a lifetime interpreting science for the general public. In 2023, Dr. Beresford-Kroeger received the University College Cork Distinguished Alumni Award and the Royal Canadian Geographical Society Kamookak Medal.  She is the author of a number of bestselling books on nature. Arboretum America: A Philosophy of the Forest won the Arbor Day Foundation Award for an exemplary educational work on trees and forests. In 2020, she received the Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award for her autobiographical To Speak for the Trees. She is the author and presenter of the feature documentary Call of the Forest, which is based on her book The Global Forest. Beresford-Kroeger continues her research and writing in her private arboretum in Eastern Ontario, Canada.

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