Why We Need to Be Wild

June 12, 2023
Journalist Kraft’s revealing debut chronicles her evolution from urbanite working mom to foraging woodswoman. After her mother died from multiple sclerosis complications, which Kraft attributed partly to a sedentary, nutritionally insufficient Western lifestyle, the author began to consider the ill effects of modern life and concluded that “we are shackled to fast food, cheap oil, and chronic debt, while our social worlds have collapsed... to the tiniest handheld screen.” Kraft was inspired to learn about a “Paleolithic” lifestyle and began attending gatherings to learn such “ancestral skills” as hide tanning and basket weaving. Later, she toured the country meeting members of the “rewilding” movement (which calls for adherents to “move, work, sleep, socialize, sleep, socialize, raise families, and produce goods the way the early hunter-gatherers did”). The author currently lives in the Sierra Foothills, and while she retains some modern “comforts” (living in a single family home, getting basic goods from strangers), she ultimately realized that “the more I unleash myself from the tethers of domestication, the happier I feel.” Kraft candidly discusses the movement’s flaws—including its lack of diversity—while offering informative insights into its ecological and social benefits. Readers who’ve questioned the pitfalls of tech-based living will be intrigued.

July 1, 2023
Independent journalist turned intrepid survivalist Kraft examines rewilding, humanity's shared Paleolithic heritage, and the benefits of returning to our roots in Why We Need to Be Wild. She asks fascinating questions as she tries to navigate the extraordinarily differing worlds of modern, city life and the hunter-gatherer lifestyle our ancestors followed. As her daughters join her adventures, Kraft also explores raising children in modern society versus living in a more natural, exploratory, self-sufficient way. The need for rewilding--the act of returning to a more hunter-gatherer-like state in tune with nature--is addressed in depth, as are various rewilders' cooperative efforts towards a more nature-based society. In addition, Kraft shines a light on rewilding advocates who are diametrically opposed to one another's methodologies (and who aren't above sabotaging one another's endeavors). The role Indigenous people take in rewilding, and sometimes the lack thereof, is questioned and explored, highlighting the widespread forcing of modern, Western society on all people. A great read for naturalists, those interested in rewilding, survivalists, and anyone searching for a different way of life.

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