Dawn Light – Dancing with Cranes and Other Ways to Start the Day

Beautiful words. Words that make you slow down and savor --- the words themselves, the phrases, and the pictures and feelings they evoke. I've been fighting with myself since the moment I finished the very first essay.I'm only allowing myself an essay a day, and when I finished the first day's reading, I had a little leap of joy in my heart, picturing myself sharing the book. Normally, that's what I do --- pass a book along when I have finished reading it. (So many books, so little time. I rarely read one twice. Better it should move along to its next reader than gather dust on my shelf.) But, right after the leap, a backtracking, a remembering of the times when I have had to buy a replacement book for one that called me back to double check a quote or lesson. I'm afraid I'm going to have to keep this one.And thus the battle began. To share, or not to share.....

Diane Ackerman's creative instincts captivate in this compelling journey of poetic musings. She has uncommon powers of description, so detailed and precise, with never an excess of verbiage where it is not required. Sentences are compact and vibrant sending you into a sort of word thrall. What bliss it must be to inhabit Diane Ackerman's mind, so full of an appreciation for beauty in nature. She really has always lived on a level of awareness that is far beyond what most people experience.I was especially interested by the descriptions of rain and felt nostalgic for Japan even though I've never been there. Reading this book is like watching a movie only occurring in your mind, with vivid colors and unforgettable images. There is also a lot of information about birds and Monet.Diane does now shy away from the topic of death and even muses about her own at the end of the book. If you don't believe in evolution you can ignore a few comments about animals being our mothers. A chapter on a woman long ago also seems a way Diane is living vicariously, but no moral guidance is given.It is a different time and culture, I get that!One of my favorite sentences was: "The sky is dancing with tiny frozen crystals falling out of the blue."Another thing about this particular book is that it discusses religions, ancient and modern. The observations about cultures across the glove are also interesting. However, I fear Diane is incorrect about Jesus not believing there is a devil. It is well known that Satan temped Jesus in a desert and that he once told one of his disciples to "Get behind me Satan." So there is that!If only Diane would recognize God as the creator of all things, she would be even more in awe. God's creative powers are endless and stunning! Let's give him some credit where credit is due!I have read and reviewed several of Diane's books and each one is unique with many thoughts to consider and contemplate.~The Rebecca Review

This is a book to be read, re-read, and then read once again. Ackerman's views of nature are enlightening, informative, and spiritually transcendental. Having read the book, I looked at daily miracles in a new way, using the scientific knowledge she incorporates to better understand things I'd before taken forgranted. I gave my copy of the book to my daughter who shares my delight in nature. I know I will buy myself another copy for a second and third read.

This is a book that I want to share with all my friends and family. I have already given it to quite a few and recommended it to many.Diane Ackerman was introduced to me many years ago when my daughter was reading Moon by Whale Light. She said it was the kind of book that, after every few pages, you want to go shake someone by the shoulder and say, " Hey, listen to this!" Dawn Light is that kind of book too. Diane Ackerman's delight in the world of nature and art is truly inspirational. Her exuberance reminds one of the beauty that surrounds us if we would only stop to look and listen to the natural world and to the world of art. She is a national treasure.

Unhappy when reaching the end. Wanted to go on reading and fill my mind's eye and heart with the images and thoughts that Diane Ackerman gives so clearly of her experience of the world around and in us. Appreciate and at the same time a bit envious of her sensitivity and genius in describing what she sees and feels. Truly happy that she shares all this with us.