By Scott Carlson
Dawn Tanner, of St. Anthony Park, this spring has released a book that features 20 nature essays from her local and global experiences as a conservation biologist.
Titled “Into the Undergrowth,” Tanner’s book follows her journey as a young, aspiring academic and outdoors person to a researcher and professor. Her 188-page tome includes photographs from the places and species featured in the essays.
Highlights include lemurs, tortoises, prairie chickens, orangutans, and more, she said. The book also includes seven woodblock prints done by her adult child Zosh Tanner. The combination of story, music and art are woven throughout the stories shared in the essays.
Tanner said she was inspired to assemble her own collection of essays after reading a collection of Henry David Thoreau essays and recently reading Robin Wall Kimmerer’s “Braiding Sweet Grass.”
“I enjoyed both of them so much and started thinking about writing my own collection of essays to share memorable conservation stories and experiences in nature,” she said.
An avid kayaker, Dawn said that one of her goals has been to paddle all of Minnesota’s paddling routes.
“In doing that multi-year journey, I had many memorable experiences,” Dawn said. “It was fun to share some of them in this collection of essays.
“I’ve written many scientific articles, both as part of research and for local newspapers,” said Tanner, who did her master’s research in the Galapagos Islands and taught a study away class in Malaysian Borneo.
“So, writing a collection of essays was an extension of these kinds of writing projects, with a much more personal and reflective component.”
Besides her interest in conservation biology and writing, Tanner is also an avid musician.
“Music and conservation are both important themes in the book,” said Dawn, who plays in a blues/folk duo called Kismet Rendezvous, with Lonesome Dan Kase. “We play around the Midwest including Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and a little bit in the Dakotas. We play often around the metro, at places like our neighborhood Finnish Bistro, Dusty’s Bar in NE Minneapolis, the Aster Café, farmers’ markets and others.
In the weeks ahead this summer and fall, Tanner said she will be doing other events in the neighborhood, including playing music and sharing the book at Art-a-Whirl in Minneapolis on May 17, book signings at the new Acorn Book Shop in Milton Square and a music-book gig on Oct. 9 at the Finnish Bistro.
Asked what she hopes readers take away from her book, Tanner said, “Spending extended time in nature allows the opportunity for immersion, reflection, surprises and awe-inspiring experiences.
“The more time we spend in nature, the more likely we are to catch a glimpse of something magical, like a fox dashing by, otters tumbling and sliding on a riverbank, or a wild koala dozing in a tree in the rain,” Dawn said. “The beauty is in the journey. We can all find space in nature, whether it’s close to home or in a far-flung location somewhere across the globe.”
Scott Carlson is managing editor of the Bugle.