In the Catskills

Snow tracks, trout brooks and hillside farms give John Burroughs the subjects of these eight essays about the Catskill Mountains of New York. The collection returns to the region where he grew up, linking observations of wild creatures with memories of rural work. Its opening essay looks closely at winter, when snow changes the appearance of stone walls and fences, sharpens sounds and makes animal movements easier to notice. Other pieces turn to farm life, hemlock woods, birds' nests and outdoor camping.

Burroughs often pauses over a small discovery rather than hurrying toward an event. In the nesting passage, he watches birds carry food and tries to locate a chickadee's concealed home in a mountain tree. The introduction places such observations beside maple sugaring, haymaking and changes in dairy farming. Readers interested in nature writing will find a record of how patient attention to one familiar landscape can bring together animal habits, seasonal weather and personal memory.