Quill & Quire
There are no solar panels on Robyn Harding’s roof. Her family is not bathing in collected rainwater. And yes, she enjoys the occasional distinctly un-green trip to Las Vegas. But underpinning her life is a mantra: go green without going crazy. Harding’s going-green memoir is no
Ecoholic, no
Omnivore’s Dilemma. It’s a self-deprecating look at what happens when books like those land in the hands of a mere mortal. And Harding is one mortal who still likes her warm baths and air travel. Harding’s odyssey begins with her family’s move from Calgary to Australia to Vancouver. Feeling “green guilt” – about the bug spray liberally applied throughout their cockroach-infested Australian home, about the five years of heavy driving and spotty recycling in Calgary – Harding decides to make an environmentally friendly change for the better. But in her new neighbourhood, the Joneses of the 20th century have become the Greens of the 21st. Keeping up is more an exercise in foregoing than acquiring, but is equally exhausting. Each successive chapter confronts a crisis of greenness with high hopes, best intentions, and, often, middling follow-through. Serious environmentalists may balk at these efforts, particularly the chapter in which Harding attempts to ride the bus, only to find it icky, smelly, and altogether not worth the effort. The book is at times too flippant for an eco-memoir, but the author’s ill-fated determination to make a difference, if only a small one, keeps this story entertaining. The author of
The Journal of Mortifying Moments, Unravelled, and several other chick-lit successes, Harding is no stranger to confessional humour, and uses it to full effect when chronicling her earnest (if irritating) efforts to green her extended family. Refreshingly funny, disarmingly honest, and mercifully free of apocalyptic horrors, Harding’s tale will resonate with those who feel unequal to the task of buying organic milk, let alone saving the planet.
Review
"...the book is a sincere account by a regular mom who likes strong water pressure and air travel but is trying to make a difference for her kids." --Canadian Geographic
“This book is a hilarious account of former Granville columnist Robyn Harding’s confused, guilt-ridden, and stressful struggle to raise a green family." --Granville Magazine
“Robyn Harding’s book is a hilarious journey through the trials and tribulations of going green in a modern world. The book touches on everything from litter-less lunches to worries over fostering eco-anxiety in children, plus a health dose of Harding’s own anxiety over whether she is green enough to fit into her super-environmentally aware neighbourhood…” --Treehugger.com
“The title of this book may not be a familiar refrain in your house, but the struggles it chronicles will be. A humour-filled, stream-of-consciousness account of Harding’s efforts to become ‘a deep-dark-green goddess,’ it both delights and occasionally grates. The latter is where the book’s real value lies. As Harding confronts her own values, habits and ideas, we’re forced to look uncomfortably at our own.” --Greenliving Magazine
“Harding's take on raising green kids without losing her mind is a priceless look at the choices and compromises that every parent makes as he or she journeys towards a green lifestyle. And if nothing else, it will certainly give you a good eco-laugh!” --Mother Nature Network
