Description: Doniga Markegard's extraordinary, singular journey begins at a wilderness immersion school she attends as a teen, where she slowly discovers the peace and exhilaration of wilderness survival. She becomes a skilled wildlife tracker, and shares heart-pounding solitary encounters with alpha wolves and other apex predators. When the trail of a mountain lion leads Doniga to a local rancher, she falls in love and moves to a cattle ranch on the California coast to start a family. But this is not the story of a wild woman becoming domesticated--instead, Doniga brings the deep, unshakeable wisdom of the wild to her family's everyday life.--From back cover.
Brief description:
Doniga Markegard is a wildlife tracker, regenerative rancher, speaker, and author. Her teen years in nature school started her on a path that led to a career in animal tracking and then permaculture and ranching in California. Using the innovative, carbon-storing methods of regenerative ranching, she's restoring the land she tends, bringing native grasses and wildlife back to the depleted Bay Area. Doniga is a consultant and guest instructor at numerous nature and permaculture programs around the country and is a regular speaker at events such as the Bioneers Conference, Food Inspiration Trendsummit, and The Grassfed Exchange; has worked with companies such as Patagonia and Google; and has been featured in articles from FastCompany, GreenBiz, The San Francisco Examiner, and NPR.
Review Quotes:
Dawn Again represents a particularly good example of alternative schooling. The author's experiences as a wildlife observer, mother, and rancher are significant, and descriptions of her immersive nature education in the first third of the work are particularly vivid and clear." --Foreword Reviews
"The most powerful and important book I've read this year."-Wandering Educators
"Markegard excels as a writer when she describes tracking wolves, especially a 'lone white wolf running across the side of a tundra-covered hill.'"--Huffington Post
"By recounting her own wilderness immersion, animal tracking, and farming experiences, [Dawn Again] deftly traces a line from the incredible complexity of nature's wisdom to humanity's vital role as ecologically responsible stewards of the land." --Allan Savory, author of Holistic Management, Third Edition: A Commonsense Revolution To Restore Our Environment
"Although many men have attempted total nature immersion, some have succeeded while many failed. Doniga triumphs. She literally speaks to an ancient spirit that walks among us to provide a nourishment for the soul. Her story will be shared around many campfires. It epitomizes what we wish to become in a hero-less world."--Tony Ten Fingers, Oglala Lakota, author of Lakota Wisdom
"Doniga Markegard's journey from teen runaway to expert tracker and on to mother, rancher, and activist artfully conveys what it means to be fully alive to the natural world. Her story offers readers inspiration and direction."--Judith D. Schwartz, author of Water in Plain Sightand Cows Save the Planet
"Earth care comes alive in this deeply moving personal story. With prose good enough to be called poetry, Doniga captures and explains the heart and soul of creation stewardship, bringing us on a profound journey of awakening and awareness.--Joel Salatin, author of Folks, This Ain't Normal and You Can Farm
Dawn Again will inspire all readers to tend to the soils in their own backyards." --Diana Rodgers, RD, author of The Homegrown Paleo Cookbook
"Dawn Again is a deeply personal, touching, and intimate journey that opens a window into a hidden universe of exquisite natural beauty. With poetic prose and keen insights, Doniga Markegard gives us invaluable understanding to heal our souls and our world."--Josh Tickell, author of Kiss the Ground and director of Fuel
"Dawn Again recounts one woman's amazing bravery. But more importantly, it inspires one to be brave too."--Mark Elbroch, author of Behavior of North American Mammals and Mammal Tracks and Sign
"Doniga's love for the natural world--its animals, birds, plants, and soil--shines brilliantly through the words in this frank and engaging memoir. Her intimacy with the interconnection of all life, however, goes far beyond words, for she has genuinely LIVED it, with authenticity, passion, determination, and an open heart."--Paul Rezendes, author of Tracking: The Art of Seeing and The Wild
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