The Comfort of Crows

Subtitle: A Backyard Year

Author: Margaret Renkl

Genre: Nonfiction, Nature, Memoir

Format: Physical purchase

Publish Date: October 2023

Read: February 2024

Favorite Quote: I always find more answers in a forest than in my own hot attic of a mind.

Synopsis: Based in Nashville, Tennessee, author Margaret Renkl does an exquisite job of walking through the year as the seasons change. While nature is predictable, the course of a year in a global pandemic is unpredictable. Children meant to leave the nest are back home. Parents who have long-held traditions and connections to the family pass on; all the while, the crows come and go, providing a bit of normalcy in a tumultuous world.

Why does this book beguile? Not gonna lie - I picked up this book because the cover is stunning. I was further delighted to find even more beautiful color illustrations throughout the pages of this book!

Beyond the pretty pictures, the prose itself is beautiful and unpretentious. Renkl makes herself vulnerable by connecting her world to the natural world. I read this book in a single sitting at Blackbird Books & Coffee one Saturday because it’s so captivating. There’s valuable advice and the ability to learn from Renkl’s life experiences. As an added bonus, I’m now contemplating how to make my yard as natural an un-manicured as possible to encourage native species a safe place. Let’s see how the HOA feels about that :)

The Comfort of Crows is a memoir based in the seasons of Nashville. Renkl describes vulnerability, retirement, parenthood, womanhood, and nature, weaving together a narrative so compelling that you'll read it all at once.

Rating: 5/5

Link*: The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl

If you’re interested in this, read*: Cacophony of Bone by Kerri ni Dochartaigh