Saturday, July 18, 2009

Bothered By My Green Conscience

Not too long ago, another blogger suggested I read a book called Bothered by My Green Conscience by author and artist, Franke James. She even hooked me up with Ms. James who sent me a copy of her book for free. (Details on how to get my copy at the end of this review).

One sunny afternoon, I plodded down to the post office to see if my copy had arrived. Inside the post office box was a tiny little package, tightly wrapped and addressed to yours truly. When I opened it, I was surprised to find a small, brightly colored paperback filled with more doodles than words.

What I hadn't grasped, when I agreed to "read" the book, was that Ms. James is as much an artist as she is an author. Her "book" (or illustrated essay) documents her journey from caring less about the earth to fighting city government to go greener. Artwork illustrates her thoughts and steps as she moved toward a lighter and lighter footstep.

The book isn't ground breaking. There isn't much here that is new, that hasn't been experienced by most of us on our road to green (though her idea of replacing her driveway with plants was fairly revolutionary).

Still, I enjoyed Bothered By My Green Conscience and I enjoyed it immensely. Ms. James doesn't offer a new vision so much as a vision through different glasses. For the more visual learners amongst us, this book is a must. Her drawings are intriguing, unique, thoughtful and thought provoking. The book is small and a quick read. It offers just a little jolt of green-ness to get us over the next hump in our own personal journeys. I recommend it for the light and medium greens, especially those who think in pictures, and rate it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

And, now that I've absorbed my copy, it's time to share its wonderful uniqueness with you. To be entered to win my copy, pop over to The Green Phone Booth and leave your name in the comments. The winner will be announced next Friday, July 24.

1 comment:

Franke James said...

Thanks for the review of my book! Glad you enjoyed it! Today I'm doing a book reading at a store in Toronto. This Torontoist.com blurb nicely captures what my goal is in speaking to readers:
"During today's book talk and signing, James will discuss and read a visual essay from her autobiographical book, which addresses feelings of inner conflict and powerlessness about going green, with the hopes of inspiring change and motivating readers to do something that will have a real impact in their life. James takes aim at "SUV-driving, imported-strawberry-eating urban dwellers" (including herself) and challenges individuals to "do the hardest thing first."

Keep up the great work on the Green Phonebooth!

Franke James