Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit

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There is much insight, creativity and sensitivity in this book. It does what is says in the title, it is about what it means to be rooted. It is a plea for an increasingly urban nation not to forget or, even worse, to demonise its farmers. Referencing etymology and religious ritual Langford calls for a recognition of staying connected to the earth, “We are designed to be earthed. We grow the food that keeps us alive from it. We will end up part of it.” MacDonald, Edgar. "A Twig Atop Running Water -- Griot History," Virginia Genealogical Society Newsletter, July/August, 1991. Carmody, Deidre. (1977, April 19). " Haley Gets Special Pulitzer Prize; Lufkin, Tex., News Takes a Medal", The New York Times, p. 69. The beginning was wonderful. I was so enthralled with Africa and Kunta Kinte and his family and the whole works. The way they lived, the culture, the traditions, it was like reading of another world (almost literally). How close of a family they were and the way they were raised is so far-fetched of what it's like today. These people were all about respect and their tight clans and villages. They loved all of each other and they worked hard for what they had even if it was hardly anything. They lived without most of the things we feel we NEED today. It honestly didn't seem that bad of a lifestyle.

in all of this complexity and loss and seeming hopelessness, a response is asked of us, and in this response lies I love this book. It’s mind-blowing in the most profound and exhilarating sense. This is an anthem for all we could be. It’s an essential book for this, the most critical of recent times. I sincerely hope every woman who can read is given one, and has the time and the space to read it.’ Manda Scott, author of the best-selling ‘Boudica’ series and ‘Into the Fire’

Interview with Sharon

The spirituality of oneness with all the earth is ancient, the constructiveness of all life part of religious experience found in many faiths, including Christianity. But modern humans live in houses and work in rooms and Western society buys and uses and discards; we have lost wonder and respect and stewardship for Earth. a b c d Mills, Gary B.; Mills, Elizabeth Shown (January 1981). "Roots and the New "Faction": A Legitimate Tool for Clio?" (PDF). The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. Virginia Historical Society. 89 (1): 3–26. The author breaks down the basics of Christian beliefs, values, and community with specific bible verses as reference. Fundamentals include: daily devotion, prayer, repentance, sacrificial generosity, serving the community, sharing your story, and worship. There are some modern examples of stories for application. There are reflection journal prompts after each day's reading.

At first sight, Langford’s Rooted seems to be an unlikely candidate to help heal that relationship. Sarah and husband Ben are educated professionals living a good life in London. Intelligent, well connected and upwardly mobile, Sarah is content with being rooted in her city lifestyle. But, they both have strong rural connections in Suffolk including (in Sarah’s case) an Uncle who is an agricultural feature writing celebrity! And, boy, has she inherited that ability to write! A beautiful, intelligent and unusual book … I’m hoping this book will become the anthem of our generation, encouraging all women to surrender to the earth’s intelligence and rise up, rooted, like trees.’ Kate Forsyth, author of ‘Bitter Greens’, T’he Wild Girl’, and ‘The Beast’s Garden’ a b Wright, Donald R. (1981). "Uprooting Kunta Kinte: On the Perils of Relying on Encyclopedic Informants". History in Africa. 8: 205–217. doi: 10.2307/3171516. JSTOR 3171516. S2CID 162425305.

For women who feel separated from their true feminine self, this is a rallying cry to rediscover those ancient roots and be part of the life force again .’ cygnus review We meet Kunta Kinte in the 17th century somewhere along the Gambia River. He's just a boy at the time, we follow him through his teen years, manhood training, moving into his own hut, we see him grow and mature throughout his rains until the day he steps into the forest to make a drum for his younger brother and is snatched by the toubob slave traders. Where she lost me in her other books was the disingenuous nature and double standards. She'd be at once alarmed the last polar ice cap would melt by the time her daughter turned 35 yet had no qualms about making multiple international flights for either pleasure or what she deemed research. (The research being a trip to Austria to ponder about Mozart and his pet bird, however the research added nothing to the book)

Taylor, Helen. "'The Griot from Tennessee': The Saga of Alex Haley's Roots", Critical Quarterly 37.2 (Summer 1995): 46–62. Even my own patio, sitting under the apple trees, offers a daily respite, watching the robins joyously splash in the bird bath, the sparrows flitting in and out of their nesting box, while bee and butterfly visit the herb garden and zinnia, perhaps oblivious to the rabbit who sneaks in to steal leaves from the rose bush. I hadn’t realized that Haupt grew up Catholic, so the language of mysticism comes easily to her, but even as a child nature was where she truly sensed transcendence. Down by the creek, where she listened to birdsong and watched the frog lifecycle, was where she learned that everything is connected. She even confessed her other church, “Frog Church” (this book’s original title), to her priest one day. (He humored her by assigning an extra Our Father.) How to reclaim that childhood feeling of connectedness as a busy, tech-addicted adult?Later on, Kunta is taken off from manhood training, with other children of his kafo (division or grade). Kunta learns even more about the Gambia, but fears the slave trade, which he learns is closer to home than he thinks. Rooted shows how agriculture has swung from one idea to another and how farmers are often battered and caught in a terrible bind. Langford interviews a number of contemporary farmers and tells their stories. I cringe at thought Lyanda Lynn Haupt writes that being rooted in nature is a spiritual practice. She shares her personal stories of walking barefoot and alone in the forest, camping and walking blind at night, healed, and sometimes afraid, by the experience.