Review
Bird Cloud, Annie Proulx's first work of nonfiction in twenty years, is subtitled "A Memoir." To many readers who might be hoping for a full-blown, linear account of Proulx's life, this subtitle will be somewhat misleading and possibly disappointing. For careful readers and those with strong, natural curiosity, however,
Bird Cloud will be a treasure in which Proulx reveals herself – sometimes directly and other times in more subtle ways. Proulx's memoir is a great example of being shown what a person is about rather than being told what she is like. It is, admittedly, an untraditional way to present a personal memoir, but when examined as a portrait of a specific stretch of time – the building of Proulx's home – the book becomes a beautiful reflection of that period.
Annie Proulx has achieved tremendous literary success with her...
Beyond the Book
Proulx purchased the square mile of land that she named "Bird Cloud" from The Nature Conservancy, an organization incorporated in the USA in 1951 with a mission to take "direct action" to save threatened natural areas. The non-profit now has a presence in all fifty American states as well as in more than thirty other countries. It is one of the largest non-profit groups in the U.S. with over one million members and, in a 2007 Harris Poll, was shown to be one of the most trusted organizations in America.
It is the goal of The Nature Conservancy to "protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people." The group's approach to conservation is science-based; they will study and analyze what is needed in a given area to ensure the preservation of...
