The Rural Life is a compilation of essays previously featured in the New York Times and other publications. Author Verlyn Klinkenborg draws from his Iowa farming childhood, his own small spread in upstate New York and points between the two oceans as inspiration for these pieces.
There are twelve chapters to this book, each named for a month of the year beginning with January. The observations were written over several years, though they are arranged as though they took place in a single year. In a note to the reader, Klinkenborg states, "If spring seems to be well advanced on one page but balky and weeks behind on the next, you can blame it on the weather or on the fact that I'm probably describing two very different springs."
The author has a gift for describing the world around him. His writing is more like visual poetry rather than a newspaper column. Klinkenborg sees the beauty of the open land where others see it as the middle of nowhere. A cold, desolate morning is teeming with nature's magic in the author's eyes. He translates his observations well in writing. He even makes his compost pile sound interesting!
The Rural Life contains some remarks on non-rural life. There is a commentary of President and Mrs. Clinton's visit to Walden Woods and a New York view of the 9/11 tragedies from outside the city.
I must admit being stuck in my city ways made it hard for me to settle in and read The Rural Life. Once I was able to settle in and block out the world around me, I could see what Klinkenborg is showing readers. The Rural Life is best with no distractions. And that's the beauty of life, isn't it?
