Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth

A Book Benediction - For ReadingM ay we be granted, on barefoot sunny day, to feel the sunstrike, on top our rolling head & raised eyebrows, energizing and sinking down to the tips of our dancing still standing feet, impressed into the black charred ashed and ancient soil. May we recognize, the black virtuous life giving membrane of the earth, tilled by the hands of God. May it grant to us the eyes to see, heart to wonder, ears to listen, will to tend & faith to understand, this ground we walk 'pon, so close neath our standing, clay formed figures.T his was my first personal book re-read of the year. I first read it roughly 18 months ago. I would compare reading it to that of receiving a warm home made loaf of bread from a friend. Hearty & life giving. The impression of the initial read has not left my mind. One of rather awed and sculpted beauty, historical laced prose with words and phrases so close to the hands, often I felt led to read certain lines aloud. As if I were reading from The Psalter. Often times I would want to run outside barefoot in the rain and dance, stand on, feel the presence of, that speckled life giving black ocean neath our feet- dirt. Mr. Logan's strong and wise presence of mind and soul shine forth in the ink of this book bright. An author who seems to be able to clearly articulate mystery & beauty in such a way, as to help you grasp and wrestle it down from the moon, to have and to hold, to look at for one moment, catch a few contours in the face, 'fore it flys back up in the sky. He jumps, digs, tugs, lifts, pulls into all different territorial grounds of geology, theology, history, husbandry, and soils. Giving you such rich abundant crop of wise encounter & life experience, one comes to receive dirt almost for the first time, as a new truth and revelation, as the soil, as the earth, as the land, as a giver of life, a gifted & balanced virtuous place of transformation, celebration & offering, one we should hold each day.onebookwiser.comLife springing ocean,mighty dark neath our standing,clay formed figures. Dirt.

This book is one of my favorites, one of only 3 that I have reread in a lifetime of reading thousands of books. It is a book woven by a storyteller, one who draws you into what should be a short story about the very stuff we walk on and makes you hungry for more stories, more information, more pages.I loved this book from the very first story about life beginning in the bed of a deserted pick up truck to the very end when Logan talks about earth and life and civilizations before us. It is almost as though Logan wrote a biography of dirt - where, why, how and who - a tale of who's who and history, a drama about...dirt.I loved this book as an organic gardener. For 30 years I have played in the dirt in my backyard, enriching it, walking on it, harvesting from it without so much as a thought about it. Dirt, the foundation from which tendrils, blades of grass, giant oaks spring. Dirt in its nascent form; dirt shaped by man, dirt retooled to build. Dirt.In this exquisite boo, Logan ranges from ancient Rome to the modern megalopolis of New York City, writing with joy about earthworms, composting and even the dung beetle. If you want to learn about the stuff we walk on, grow in and often take for granted - Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth is the right book to pick up.

Enjoyed all the details about dirt. Learned something new in almost every chapter about the earth/dirt. Best of all, the material was presented in a light, witty way. I was never bored, as I thought before I bought this book, because just how much can your really find out about "dirt".The author obviously is passionate about his subject and consequently I also felt excited reading about how he felt about dirt.

I really like the part where he is traveling with the university expert on soil’s and they are talking about soil.I also like the short chapter about ancient Rome and the opinions of ancient Romans relating to land and land ownership.

This book is well written and in spots quite houmorous. I would have prefered a little higher technical level; considering the purpose of the book this is minor objection. The book does an admirable job of calling attention to the nature, structure and importance of dirt. I have recomended to all my gardener friends.

This is a very interesting and informative book on a subject that we all think we know something about. I was amazed at how little I actually knew. The only problem I had with this book was that the print was so small. I don't understand why they chose to use this extremely small font. A little larger would have been much less taxing to the eye. The content rated 5 stars!

Informative and fascinating. I bought it for my library, then I bought one for myself and for one of my sons. The title alone made me want it and I was not disappointed.

This book is a great read. I learned a lot and it is inspiring....the way he looks at this world, and its amazing life....in the star dust we are.There are wonderful quotes in this book to share with people who are trying to let go of the head world we so live in, and get in touch with their own humus, their own sweaty, dirty, fertile humanity...that which grows us.Enjoy. Then share this book

This book may contain many gems of wisdom, it may be beautifully written, wise. It may be worth 5 *.... BUT the edition I received is printed in a size 8 font on smaller than average pages. Reading more than a couple of lines is a strain.....I prefer to look after my eyes than try to read any more. Very very disappointed, and another book by the author is on it's way as I ordered them together. I will try to return this book to Amazon...

Dirt is beautifully written by a horticultural expert.The author knows his stuff - and how to put it across.Dirt makes you realise the importance of soil, how it is a natural resource that must be safeguarded. Chemical fertiliser might give the plants a temporary boost but it does not feed the soil.In contrast fertilising the organic way - by recycling and composting down green/animal waste, judicious crop rotations and growing nitrogen-fixing crops such as clover - feeds and replenishes the soil, and helps built it back and be fertile.if you are the poetic, literary type who also likes learning about science - this is the book for you.

I bought this book for a gift as a christmas present so have not read it myself. However my friend says he enjoyed it.

I had hoped for a series of essays on the science and ecology of the soil that covers much of the land surface of the Earth, but found the book riddled with religion instead. Very disappointing.