Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl is a stunning collection of prose, accompanied by gorgeous illustrations by the author's brother, Billy Renkl. Renkl's essays follow the four seasons and how her 'yard' survives, flourishes and thrives from winter to fall. But beyond celebrating in nature and ecosystems, Renkl explores love and grief, both unflinchingly. Thus, The Comfort of Crows becomes a comfort itself to read and savour.

And to savour is the best way to enjoy this book. If I had the patience I might even have read each essay alongside the week of the year, with each section being split equally into 13 weeks. Renkl's writing style is poetic, honest and enlightening. I learned as much about the flora and fauna of Tennessee as I did about myself, and about humanity and how close we truly are related to our 'wild neighbours' as Renkl calls them.

There is also a quality added to this collection by the fact it was constructed pre- and post-pandemic; a time when, for many of us, our personal outside spaces became a way to cope and preserve hope. Renkl notes how differently things she once experienced feel since because of how drastically life changed, particularly in her experience with her sons returning to the 'nest' in lockdowns only to leave it for a second time. Her essays highlight how, in a way, we were gifted with the chance to appreciate everything we had long taken for granted.

Appreciation is what I took away from The Comfort of Crows; an appreciation for stunning writing, nature and our wild neighbours.

I totally loved "The Comfort of Crows". The essays, mixed with awesome artwork by Billy Renkl, hit me right in the feels. This book, man! It seriously left a mark on my soul, like I can't even explain. The emotions were so damn real. I swear, I was laughing, crying, and just straight-up contemplating life's deep stuff all through the damn journey. This book is legit a testament to the power of storytelling, and I'm shook by how much it affected me. Can't even put it into words, but trust me, you gotta read. I'm definitely going to come back to this gem year after year, soaking in the vibes of every season.

Big shoutout to NetGalley and the publisher for hooking me up with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

The Comfort of Crows was insightful book in a few different ways. Renkl's knowledge and descriptions of the plants and animals were enchanting. Living in the desert in Texas, this book gave me a window to experience a whole different region.

My absolute favorite part of The Comfort of Crows was the way Renkl's yard and garden support so many different species of plants and animals. I've read about pollinator gardens, but this book took my knowledge to a whole other level. She made connections between different parts of the ecosystem in her garden and how certain plants supported insects and animals. It encouraged me consider how I can create habitats or provide sources of food in my own yard.

I also enjoyed how Renkl took elements and events occurring in her garden as a lens to consider her own life events. There were meditations on memories of the past, changes occurring in the present, and contemplation on what's in store for her future. The cyclical nature of this book reflects how human life also follows a cycle. I appreciated the moments of introspection throughout the book.

The essays that constitute The Comfort of Crows are lovely meditations on the natural world, and our place in it. Admittedly, I am the target audience for this book (like Renkl, I have a pollinator’s garden, carry spiders outside, spend hours watching birds, etc.), and it is a niche offering that likely will only appeal to readers of similar mind and perspective, but that makes its message no less timely. The accompanying illustrations were hard to appreciate in ebook form, but I assume the physical copies will delight the reader.

Margaret Renkl's book, The Comfort of Crows, is a love story to the natural world. And humans are the antagonists. In fact, her final call to action is to use our gifts to prevent the environment's destruction from climate change..Don't discount the amount of environmental education she packages as beautiful writing.
At the same time, the book is funny and hopeful. As a person who is usually in her head, Renkl's prose is a lesson in staying in the present moment. Otherwise, I might miss a snake moving in the grass, or the color of a crow in the autumn. A glorious read.

I was solicited to read this book ARC by NetGalley, probably based on my interests and past reviews. I have a biology degree and while not pursuing biology as a vocation, I have participated in citizen science and fieldwork as a volunteer and hobbyist.
I have enjoyed reading Ms. Renkl’s columns in the New York Times, both on nature and environmental politics. I have also read many other science and nature essay collections. I was drawn to this book both due to the subject matter and to the format, which is as an almanac of fifty two weekly entries for a year of seasons. The structure grounds you as to what to expect in that essay, and you can pick up and read anywhere, yet you know the direction the pieces will follow as the seasons turn. Each essay is highlighted by small collages of nature related art. The essays appear to be new ones, at least not ones I am familiar with from her other publications, and revolve around her current residence in Nashville.
I wound up liking the essays, and learning some small things that she expounded upon in them. If you were not as familiar with nature, this would be a great way to start, as she makes the subject as approachable as your backyard. I agreed with how she said nature has beauty as it is ravaged, down to the very end. I would call this a long tail, such that humans see the beauty slowly ebb, and don’t know how much there had been previously. She also makes some interesting observations about camera use, in that manipulating a camera can draw you out of the moment, and that selfies show human’s narcissistic side, not nature who should be the star.
Overall, the book read well but I was disappointed in the prose as it did not rise to the level of a Helen MacDonald for instance, it was just okay. The artwork was hard to see on my devices, being really dark, and frankly, boring. And with all the angst about nature losing ground to humanity, the book became depressing. I didn’t read all 52 entries, I’ll admit. I’d recommend this book to someone who wants to learn about nature and what to see from their own backyard.


https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5607102880

I am so grateful that I read this book during the hellish week of nonstop fireworks blasting in Michigan. Renkl's collection of 52 short essays, one for each week, more or less chronicling her pollinator garden, her life, was a true blessing as I needed to feel connected with something humane. I love her observations, her admittance of errors, her frustration with developers, leaf blowers, and neighbors who don't appreciate how she rakes. Renkl reminds us why it's so important to be an advocate for wildlife, something that left me devastated as I fretted about the baby birds in my yard, the rabbits, chipmunks, opossums, squirrels, and the fish ending up with all those toxic fireworks. I have turned most of my yard into a pollinator garden also, but it takes until plants are three feet tall before I start wondering, is this a weed, and one I should keep? Unlike me, Renkl knows her trees plants and birds. I feel more connected to humanity and more motivated to identify more plants and birds.

A beautiful book of prose (that reads like poetry) and illustrations taking place over a year celebrating the authors wild yard and the change of seasons. Makes me sure if I stay in this house I will turning my yard over to all things wild, getting rid of grass and putting in native perennials for the butterflies, bees and birds. To save what few we can.

The Comfort of Crows
I am thankful (grateful) and honored to have been given a chance to review this book by NetGalley. As soon as I saw Margaret Renkl’s name I hit request. I loved Late Migrations when I read it in 2022. The Comfort of Crows is similar in the authors honesty and discussions of nature, but the structure, essays organized by seasons, make this book seem like a complete journey. I believe this will be the perfect gift this holiday season for all nature lovers and gardeners. The awe and wonder evoked by the discussion of insects, snails, flowers, and trees to the vixen in the yard was unexpected but so welcomed.

In The Comfort of Crows, Margaret Renkl presents fifty-two chapters that follow the lives in her backyard, the plant and creatures. . Through four seasons of one year we can delight in Ms. Renkl’s beautiful descriptions on the exploits of her backyard friends, beginning with a resourceful crow on New Year’s Day, to the bluebirds of December.
These tales all correlate with rhythms of Ms. Renkl’s own life. The author’s dult children come home during the COVID crisis and then leave the nest once again.. Birds and flowers bring forth memories and thoughts of generations past.
Exquisite full color artworks by Billy Renkl, the author’s brother are generously scattered through the book. #TheComfortOfCrows is a beautifully written story of -a year in the life- and anyone who relishes our natural world would enjoy this book. #netgalley

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publish for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book brought back so many memories when looking at the pandemic. As a new mom, I had no idea what to do with the world at the time and reading these essays about someone else going through feeling lost, and how nature can really bring us back and truly ground us was an eye-opener for me. My Son and I always find comfort in being outside and in the garden so this really solidified to me the importance of nature and why we need to protect it so much.

I would like to thank Spiegel & Grau for providing me with an ARC.

This is a beautiful collection of work that reflects on nature and our relationships with nature. The Comfort of Crows showcases a range of human emotions. It highlights issues with the climate crisis, but also is a reminder to slow down and take in the moments. The writing is beautiful and calm. The illustrations accompanying the collection are beautiful. This was a very thoughtful and beautiful book.

Thanks to Spiegel and Grau Publishers, and NetGalley for an advance readers copy of this book.

This book of short essays, tracing the seasons through the natural world surrounding her home, joins earlier works by Magaret Renkl, some collected as a book, others in her New York Times column. It describes the wonders and the worries about what she sees, hears, and experiences in nature.

Although the passages are short, they are best sipped rather than gulped. Literally covering the same ground, and so risking repetition, they may be inspiring or sobering, but each deserves to be savored. This reflects Renkl’s admonition to “stop and look,” wherever you are. The collage-like illustrations, by Billy Renkl, also are lovely, but like the essays are not different enough to be appreciated if looked at close in time.

For Renkl, minute observations lead to greater understanding as she meditates on the passage of time and of life, and the changes that come whether or not we wish for them. She worries about human tampering with the environment, while she sees the natural world’s “perfect indifference” as the best context and cure for her own anxieties.

I am someone who would like to think as little as possible about determining whether an unusual object found on a deck is an owl pellet or carnivore scat, which she details, but I appreciated her delicate and profound observations – and after reading the essays I will be planting milkweed in my garden to help feed the Monarch butterflies on their migrations.

I loved this year in the company of Margaret Renkl, who takes us on a backyard safari as she marks the passing of the year through the plants and animals that grace her with their presence. Although this is quite a gentle book, Renkl pulls no punches in showing us the effect that pesticides, pollution and other negative environmental factors are having on the rhythms of the year, whether through declining bird populations or unseasonal broods or the damage that drought and heat are wreaking on the visitors to her garden. I am unfamiliar with Renkl's part of the world, but the more time you spend with her, the more you feel like a neighbour. This is charming and also important writing. Renkl is a passionate advocate for the natural world and wears her knowledge lightly.

I absolutely adored The Comfort of Crows--it's a love letter to Nashville, to the South, and to the planet. The seasonal structure of these essays, interspersed with gorgeous artwork by Billy Renkl, was heartbreaking and heart-mending all at once. I can't wait to turn to this work year after year, season after season.

Thank you to Spiegel & Grau as well as NetGalley for the advanced copy!

4.5 stars. Lovely collection of essays about the natural world in the author's back yard (and at the cabin they visit), interspersed with (collage?) art. I read this on my old Nook so the art did not come through very clearly. I'll have to see if I can find a printed copy to check out the art.

The Comfort of Crows is a delight to read, with stunning art interspersed between short poetic essays, and a mellifluous command of language and nature. Each essay offers a deeply affectionate look at the world Renkl is immersed in that invites readers to appreciate their own surroundings, natural and familial, with a kinder, more protective eye.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC.

The Comfort of Crows is truly a nature lover's delight especially if you are concerned with the environment. It is educational and follows the life cycles with plants, animals, and families. It was quite a treat to enjoy life with Margaret.

This book is delightful. Her brother's artwork is lovely, and I like how he subtly matched the theme of each essay. The essays are compelling and made me reflect on how destructive human have been and continue to be. I wish she had included pictures of her pollinator garden, and the forest where she walks her dog. I'd definitely read more books written by her, or her essays. I wish more people would plant pollinator gardens, pay attention to the natural world around them, and read about how their "perfect" gardens are death factories for nature. This is a very approachable book for people just starting to read nature-themed books.

This was a beautiful collection of essays based on nature throughout the year, full of heart and soul, relaxing and an absolute joy to read
The writing is beautiful, lyrical while the illustrations in the book were lovely and went very nicely with the chapters in the book

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc