Letters to My Grandchildren
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
In this inspiring series of letters to his grandchildren, David Suzuki offers grandfatherly advice mixed with stories from his own remarkable life and explores what makes life meaningful. He challenges his grandchildren — and us — to do everything at full tilt. He explains why sports, fishing, feminism, and failure are important; why it is dangerous to deny our biological nature; and why First Nations must lead a revolution. Drawing on his own experiences and the wisdom he has gained over his long life, he decries the lack of elders and grandparents in the lives of many people, especially immigrants, and champions the importance of heroes. And he even has something to say about fashion. The book also provides an intimate look at Suzuki’s life as a father and grandfather with letters that are chock-full of anecdotes about his children and grandchildren when they were small. As he ponders life’s deepest questions and offers up a lifetime of wisdom, Suzuki inspires us all to live with courage, conviction, and passion.
Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This inspiring book is a collection of short essays written as letters by an elder to his grandchildren; that elder happens to be renowned environmentalist and broadcaster Suzuki (The Sacred Balance), whose documentary series, aired on CBC, BBC, and PBS, have won awards from the United Nations. Suzuki is concerned about "the world that my generation and the boomers who followed are bequeathing to our grandchildren," and while his book serves to let his own grandkids know "what made their grandpa tick," he also intends to inspire a wider adult audience to reflect on their own lives. In 19 downright folksy chapters, Suzuki covers topics including his family roots, racism, confronting mortality, and the state of the world. His overarching theme is connectedness: the idea that human beings are intertwined with each other, with the natural world, and with their pasts and their futures. "e know so little about the interconnectedness of everything on earth," Suzuki writes, "that we can't anticipate the consequences of all we do." This book is both deeply personal and purposefully universal. Suzuki addresses weighty topics in a clear, conversational manner, and his thoughts should be of interest to a wide readership.