Welcome to the Curiosity Coven Book Club! We're a community of witches and environmentalists who share a commitment to living more consciously—making choices that honor our bodies, our health, and the planet we all share. Follow along for monthly book recommendations and reading discussions.
August Book Club Pick: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
As a botanist, Robbin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, Kimmerer brings these lenses of knowledge together to take us on "a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise" (Elizabeth Gilbert).
Braiding Sweetgrass weaves together indigenous wisdom and scientific knowledge to explore our reciprocal relationship with the living world. Through asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders and sweetgrass, Kimmerer reverently reminds us that plants and animals have always had gifts to offer—if only we remember how to listen.
Your Reading Companion: Hummingbird Incense
Ylang ylang, citrus, and peppermint capture life's sweetness in every tendril of smoke—the perfect companion for a book that celebrates nature's endless generosity. Ignite this incense as you drift through the pages of Kimmerer's beloved tome and let your senses dance to the joyful beating of the hummingbird's wings.
Book Club Discussion Questions: Braiding Sweetgrass
- The "Honorable Harvest" is presented as a set of practices and principles for taking only what you need and giving back. Which of these guidelines feels most challenging to adhere to in modern life?
- The book discusses how Potawatomi grammar assigns "animacy" to things that English treats as objects (like a bay, a mountain, or a berry). How might language shape how we related to the world?
- The title metaphor, braiding sweetgrass, ties together science, spirit, and story as three strands. Did you feel like the book actually succeeded in braiding these, or did one strand dominate?
- Kimmerer writes about restoration ecology and healing damaged land. What did these stories suggest about humans' potential role as healers rather than simply destroyers of the Earth?
- How does Kimmerer describe her relationship with nature? Is it different from how you relate to nature?
- What's one small thing you might adopt into your daily life after reading this book?
Join the Conversation
Please support your local library or independent bookstore! If they don’t have a copy available, they can place an order for you.
Love this read? Find Kimmerer's newest book, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World to continue braiding your relationship with nature.
Happy reading!
—The Sea Witches
