SEASONING

David Young combines autobiography, poetry, nature writing, and food writing in a remarkable book that celebrates life without denying its losses and mysteries. Organized by the months of the year, Seasoning traces the passing of time and the cycles of loss and renewal, meditating on the human place in the natural world.

Set in northeastern Ohio, where the author has lived and worked for close to forty years, Seasoning demonstrates that an "unremarkable" place-no grand scenery, no special claims to beauty-can be the perfect setting in which to learn about animals, plants, food, geology, history, weather, and time. Coming to terms with place and time, and connecting them, the author suggests, may be our true task in life.

Among the many distinctive features of this lovely book are the recipes, arranged seasonally and revealing Young's preference for natural foods prepared with care.