Reviews for The Thoreau You Don't Know: What the Prophet of Environmentalism Really Meant

The average rating for The Thoreau You Don't Know: What the Prophet of Environmentalism Really Meant based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2009-03-29 00:00:00 Brooke Sims Robert Sullivan's new book, "The Thoreau You Don't Know," is not a traditional biography, but is more an extended essay on the life and meaning of the man revered by many as the father of environmentalism. Sullivan, whose previous books include "Rats" and the "Meadowlands," has been described as an "Urban Thoreau," and was an ideal candidate to undertake this task. The debate over Thoreau has been going on for a long time--it began while he was still alive and has continued in the more than 146 years since his death. The viewpoint that seems to have won out with most people, at least those who only know him casually, is to view Thoreau as a cranky loner who cared more about nature than his neighbors. Sullivan argues convincingly that this is not the case. Drawing on Thoreau's own writings, wide reading in the literature about him, and his own observations, Sullivan lays out a case for a Thoreau who cared deeply about society and his fellow beings--all of them, including those marginalized by society then (and now)--women, Native Americans and immigrants. He did not use his critique of society to justify withdrawing from it--he wanted his words to motivate others to improve it. I read Walden many years ago, but haven't explored the rest of the his works. Thanks to Sullivan's book, I now intend to do so. In these pages, I got to know a Thoreau who had a sense of humor, who worked hard at a variety of tasks (including some that would be considered menial, then or now), who loved music, and most of all, loved the precious gift of life itself.

Review # 2 was written on 2010-05-05 00:00:00 G�l Attila Now, if you're going to write a book called The Thoreau You Don't Know, you better give the reader something big and blazing that we don't know about him, especially to those diehard fans out there like me. Of course I'm writing this review from a different perspective since I do know a lot about him, having read Walden over ten times, and many biographies on his life. I can see what the writer was trying to do, show him in a different light than as a prophet of nature that lived in the woods. But honestly, I have to say I didn't learn much about Thoreau in this book that I didn't already know. I do like how the writer goes into the transcendental movement, and gives some context to his life. He also does an excellent job starting chapters. The sentences that begin each one grab the reader, and keep him interested. I think they are the best chapter beginnings I have ever read of any nonfiction book. Still after reading I didn't really get a sense of a new Thoreau, or the real Thoreau. The only way to do that is to read Walden many times and his essays, particularly the one on John Brown, the abolitionist. Then we see who this passionate man really is.