Gretel Ehrlich is my hero

i read these two books by Gretel Ehrlich in almost immediate succession. they are both memoirs and they gave me that warm feeling of knowing that there are still people out there that have true strength of character and that personal integrity gives me hope for the future of the evolution of the human race in these crazy mixed up times.

The Solace of Open Spaces will cause you to dream of leaving the life you lead behind. you will think more about riding horses. you will yearn for the open range. and you may begin to suspect that you've always wanted to be something like... a cowpoke maybe. your vision of the west, free and wild will seem identifiable and vivid as if you have been there before and there will be no doubt that you will go there again.

Gretel Ehrlich has lived and she knows how to write her life.

the stacatto pace of her words echoes the blunt attitudes of the people she describes around her. and you will want to be with those people for their quiet resolution.

A Match to the Heart
the subtitle to this book is one woman's story of being struck by lightening. it kind of freaked me out that this book was a memoir. the pain and frustration Gretel Ehrlich describes left me pretty depressed a couple of chapters in. but as her story goes on and she struggles to regain her health, she also begins a soul-searching journey into herself as she is forced into contemplation by this fateful *accident* and her story became, for me, an inspiration to read.

glad to be alive much?

n.b. The Solace of Open Spaces seems to be out of print right now, but if you can find it used, it'll totally be worth it.