I was really excited for this . However I did find it came off a bit pretentious I don’t believe I was the target audience for this at alll will give a 3 star review for that reason I believe some people will enjoy it

I wanted to love this, but I can't read about hunting. I understand it's part of the concept here, but I was hoping for hiking, etc.

This book comes off as very pretentious. This is paleo-heavy material when I guess I was actually hoping for balanced information on why going back to our roots is important. I was looking for an inspirational story of how a mom found her way back to nature and how it healed her. Instead, it's more of a story influenced by the teachings of the paleo lifestyle riddled with privilege and sexism. This comes off like it was written with a cult-like mindset and leaves a bitter taste toward the end. I was going to give it two stars but after reaching around page 200 and the sexist hateful spew, it's a one-star. I wish I could explain more here in deeper detail without spoiling it, but wow, I have not disliked a book so much as I do now. This is the kind of book that sums up the bad eggs in the nature-loving community.

While I was expecting a memoir, I was also hoping for more "ancient answers to 21st-century problems." There are indeed good points made throughout this work. The author highlights that we can't solve the climate crisis merely by creating new industries to address it. Our indoor lives have led to illnesses, both physical and mental, which were not prevalent for our ancestors. The call to unplug and reconnect with our food supply is valid and important. The author draws inspiration from her mother's death due to chronic illness, which shaped her journey into rewilding.

However, I soon realized that I am not the target audience for this book. It appears to be better suited for urban dwellers. As a Hispanic person who grew up on a farm in Missouri and knows many people with similar backgrounds, I strongly disagree with the notion that BIPOC, families, and the poor don't get to benefit from being outdoors, merely because they are not heterosexual, middle class, and white. Attending wilderness retreats and workshops seems to be limited to the upwardly mobile or those willing to save every penny. While it is important to discuss race and sexual orientation in many conversations, turning the need to be in the outdoors into a race issue is frustrating, to say the least. Many BIPOCs live in rural areas, and assuming otherwise is naive. Making such claims suggests that the author may not have spent much time outside of her own neck of the woods. There are huge swaths of land between the east and west coast that are full of people of all races, economic statuses, religions, sexual orientations, and life experiences.

What this book has shown me is that survivalist or primitive skills can be expensive for urban dwellers, and it seems somewhat like a first-world problem to require lax regulations to allow people to forage on the side of the road. If you are serious about adopting this kind of lifestyle, it would be a lot easier to accomplish on a hobby farm outside of California, possibly in a red state where roadkill regulations may not be as strict.

Thanks NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book so that I can provide an honest review.

More immersive writing about the author's experience, and presentation of what was gleaned from research, the book, unfortunately, seemed to have drifted from the general premise towards the end; While "Why We Need to Be Wild" promises by its initial title to address the need to stay connected to nature, and the inherent skills our forefathers, and in some cases, many to this day still employ, the definition of "rewilding" seemed restrictive to those exhibiting borderline Paleolithic keywords, and while not intending, overlooking, not only within the United States but global, there are different examples of being able to co-exist with nature, while still retaining basic skills without having to attend workshops. Many of these skills are common knowledge in areas such as Montana, Tennessee, and other areas.

Although the book started off promising, it seemed to gravitate to workshops, and other forms of education which are generally not accessible to others if not expensive, yet overlooking that although technology does have its inherent risks of creating disconnection with nature, there are some benefits, such as not addressing individuals whom through the use of Youtube, and other mediums were able to live in "rewilding" lifestyles, but without the costs.

One prime example is individuals who chose to live a rugged life in Alaska, and in comparison to other states, can seem as "primitive" in their approach to life, and living. There are as many benefits to learning from them since they are subjected to extreme weather living, months at a time, cut off from modern civilization, and have had to learn to fend for themselves without workshops.

The book appeared to have had good intentions, but towards the end, seems to have drifted from the main thesis of how individuals can reconnect, and incorporate even in urban areas, since there are many members of society who live partially in urban areas, but exhibit and practice regularly, basic living skills, plus another good example that seems to be overlooked, the men and women who have served and were trained and experienced themselves, high-risk survival based scenarios, and continue to use those same skills in their daily lives.

Thank you to Netgalley, for the opportunity to read and review the book in exchange for my personal opinion.

A very impressive book, I highlighted immensely. And what I especially appreciate about Why We Need To Be Wild is the fact that the author shows different facets of all sorts of subjects. Whether it is biological, historical... she mostly let us in on two (or more) sides of a story.
It was my intention to buy this book when it will be published so I can share it with friends or even put it only on Peerby (an online platform to rent or freely share things with neighbors)...

And yet... only three stars as I was utterly disappointed, despite hoping I was wrong to expect this to happen, that she never wonders about the chronically ill and disabled people in our current society. Although she describes how her journey or quest for re-wilding was inspired by the illness and death of her Mum, suffering from MS.
Jessica Carew Kraft mentions three groups that lack access to nature: People of color, families with children, and low-income groups. But not once in the whole book does she wonder how people that are for instant ill with MS (or ME in my case for over eighteen years now) are impacted by not being able to have 'green time.'
That there is more to the humankind than those on two legs that are able to literally walk, to work on hides until they are fatigued, starting over the next day.., and having the confidence to rely on oneself.
The use of the word 'authentic' in the last chapter makes me wonder if it is perhaps grating or hurtful, causing friction or difficulties. I cannot make up my mind about it, but makes me realize she is just another human being, not that different from me: with imperfections.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.

Fantastically educational and eye opening, with a female perspective on what it means to live wild and practice reciprocity with nature.

Very enlightening and socially aware. Kraft addresses the class, race and gender divides that exists in the rewilding community, noting how rewilding still remains mainly a white male privilege—something not even readily available to Indigenous tribes.

Honest—even when it comes to difficult subjects. Environmentally conscious. Well researched, with great biological and historical information.

This is an excellent resource for anyone interested in living more in tune with nature in the midst of this modern, technological age.

Please take my thoughts with a grain of salt. I received an ARC from NetGalley in return for an *honest* review, which, after careful consideration, is what I am choosing to submit.

While fascinated by this topic, I have to say I found reading the book a deeply uncomfortable experience. I noted that there was little mention of the husband who worked 11-hour days so the author could explore rewilding, which gave me an ominous feeling. When it turned out they divorced, and the later part of the book was about their divorce, this intuition was confirmed. Even more so when the author starts defending a friend who was accused of beating his wife. I have real concerns about whether these details should have been included in the book, especially without giving the wife a chance to present her case. There are children involved in both of these families, and I have reservations about whether it was appropriate to share these details before they all reach a legal age of consent.

I won't go into detail about my thoughts on exactly how the author came across in the divorce proceedings and afterwards, because I worry they are coloured by my own experiences in childhood and that I may be judging her without knowing the full story. Still, although it promised much, unfortunately I can't recommend this book.