Heart of Home:: People, Wildlife, Place

Kerasote (Navigations; Bloodties) shares his not-so-typical experiences of pursuing game throughout the Rockies, his Wyoming home and the far reaches of India and South America, while regarding the ethics of hunting and fishing. Despite his sporting pursuits, Kerasote is, foremost, an ecologist who believes deeply in living with nature--not destroying it, but protecting it. He contemplates, for instance, whether fish feel pain and, if they do, whether it is more ethical to fish by the catch-and-release method, which brings a fish within an inch of its life before letting it go, or to fish to the death, for food. As a hunter who believes that pursuing game contributes to an awareness of nature, Kerasote calls for drastic changes in the attitude, practice and laws of hunting that may anger many. These include allowing women more access to the sport, eliminating the names of hunters from record or trophy kills, raising license costs and ending sport hunting (i.e., the killing of small game for mere target practice). In an essay on the human diet--carnivore, omnivore or vegan--Kerasote concludes that nature will be harmed least if individuals produce as much of their own food as they can, although he notes that farming causes much more harm to the environment than even vegans care to think. Beautifully written, these essays will inspire all who read them to reconsider their connection with nature. (Jan.)