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The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Nonfiction (2025)From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass, a bold and inspiring vision for how to orient our lives around gratitude, reciprocity, and community, based on the lessons of the natural world.
As Indigenous scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer harvests Serviceberries alongside the birds, she considers the ethic of reciprocity that lies at the heart of the gift economy. How, she asks, can we learn from Indigenous wisdom and the plant world to reimagine what we value most? Our economy is rooted in scarcity, competition, and the hoarding of resources, and we have surrendered our values to a system that actively harms what we love. Meanwhile, the Serviceberry’s relationship with the natural world is an embodiment of interconnectedness and gratitude. The tree distributes its wealth—its abundance of sweet, juicy berries—to meet the needs of its natural community. And this distribution ensures its own survival. As Kimmerer explains, “Serviceberries show us another model, one based upon reciprocity, rather than accumulation, where wealth and security come from the quality of your relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency.”
As Elizabeth Gilbert writes, Robin Wall Kimmerer is “a great teacher, and her words are a hymn of love to the world.” The Serviceberry is an antidote to the broken relationships and misguided goals of our times and a reminder that “Hoarding won’t save us. . . . All flourishing is mutual.”
As Indigenous scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer harvests Serviceberries alongside the birds, she considers the ethic of reciprocity that lies at the heart of the gift economy. How, she asks, can we learn from Indigenous wisdom and the plant world to reimagine what we value most? Our economy is rooted in scarcity, competition, and the hoarding of resources, and we have surrendered our values to a system that actively harms what we love. Meanwhile, the Serviceberry’s relationship with the natural world is an embodiment of interconnectedness and gratitude. The tree distributes its wealth—its abundance of sweet, juicy berries—to meet the needs of its natural community. And this distribution ensures its own survival. As Kimmerer explains, “Serviceberries show us another model, one based upon reciprocity, rather than accumulation, where wealth and security come from the quality of your relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency.”
As Elizabeth Gilbert writes, Robin Wall Kimmerer is “a great teacher, and her words are a hymn of love to the world.” The Serviceberry is an antidote to the broken relationships and misguided goals of our times and a reminder that “Hoarding won’t save us. . . . All flourishing is mutual.”
112 pages, Hardcover
First published November 19, 2024
About the author
Robin Wall Kimmerer
35 books7,477 followersDr. Robin Wall Kimmerer (also credited as Robin W. Kimmerer) (born 1953) is Associate Professor of Environmental and Forest Biology at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF). She is the author of numerous scientific articles, and the book Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses. She is Potawatomi and combines her heritage with her scientific and environmental passions.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 15, 2025
「所有繁茂興盛都是互惠的結果。」
這是本立意良善的書，主要在呼籲大家改變看待自己與身邊事物的看法，也就是將所獲得的事物視為禮物，並且加入這個善循環，去分享與感恩自己所擁有的。書中的內容很短，而且主要都是在宣傳「禮物經濟」，我看完之後最大的心得就是，這是本讀來容易做來難的書。不過呢，書中還是有些內容與我的價值相呼應，像是不買不必要的東西、不要吝嗇與人分享所有、不要過度消費甚至導致浪費等等。四顆星的理由是書中內容看多了有點重複，跟作者之前的作品相比沒那麼有趣。
這是本立意良善的書，主要在呼籲大家改變看待自己與身邊事物的看法，也就是將所獲得的事物視為禮物，並且加入這個善循環，去分享與感恩自己所擁有的。書中的內容很短，而且主要都是在宣傳「禮物經濟」，我看完之後最大的心得就是，這是本讀來容易做來難的書。不過呢，書中還是有些內容與我的價值相呼應，像是不買不必要的東西、不要吝嗇與人分享所有、不要過度消費甚至導致浪費等等。四顆星的理由是書中內容看多了有點重複，跟作者之前的作品相比沒那麼有趣。
December 6, 2025
其实和她最著名那本书的理念依然是类似的，其中提到的人类学的也确实有过类似的社群有这样的文化，我记得西太平洋那本里面就有gift流动的描述。生态概念蛮好的，但写的实在空泛，理论和情感两边的深入都不够。如果能有更有建树和可行性的建议或者深入与自然以及更多社群的情感联结，都会比现在的阅读体验要好
February 12, 2026
每一个人都应该读这本书。推荐纸质版。
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews