Gardening at the Dragon's Gate: At Work in the Wild and Cultivated World

Gardening At The Dragon's Gate is for the Earth Starved - I love gardening and do not take the time to do it enough; however, Wendy Johnson's well written, heartfelt, intelligent, humorous, historical and motivating novel has brought me back to my own love of the earth - Each day I read it, I vow to go back to dirty fingernails and the rich taste of earth dust as I crawl around digging and planting - This book rivets you back to your own lovely moments communing with your own garden, however great or small it might be - This book is informative too. I lived in San Francisco and visited Muir Beach and the area many times - I wish I had known of Green Gulch - I plan on visiting now - Any one who has any affinity to the earth, to gardening, to eco-consciousness and to living a life near the soil of their home will be completely pleased, and engrossed in this timely and lovely rich writing and teaching of how to love, and to care for our earth, simply by loving it where ever you are -

It's been a while since I have come across a book that I do not want to see end, and this is such a book. I am about a third of the way through Gardening at the Dragon's Gate and already I am sad that it will eventually end. I do know, however, that once I have read it through I can have the pleasure of opening it at any point and enjoying it again, and again. It is a book about gardening, about nature, about life, written beautifully, at times touching, at times funny. More than once I've found myself sitting on the bus reading it with tears suddenly stinging my eyes. In fact, what am I doing sitting here, when I could be reading!?

This book is simply amazing, I could not wait for next time I could get into bed with it and a cup of tea and follow along with Wendy Johnson on her rich path of discovery through the garden and through life as a Zen person. The writing has a few too many words at times, but the fact that this was simultaneously a how-to book on gardening and a spiritual memoir full of deep Zen teachings makes it something very special. Wendy Johnson shows herself to be the real deal here, willing to take chances with her life and willing to get her hands dirty for the benefit of others and for the benefit of the planet.

This book springs from rich earth. It digs into an era through the gardening and Buddhist practice of Wendy Johnson. It's so detailed and beautifully blended that, after a session of reading, I would marvel at the mere undertaking of writing this part-gardening, part-spiritual-journey and part-history of the times memoir. A real joy to be relished slowly.