Sandra Steingraber, PhD, biologist, activist, and author, is Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Ithaca College in New York.
The Weekly Harvest, 7/29/11
"Through a combination of scientific evidence and anecdotes plucked
from her family life, she demonstrates again and again how, as
individuals, our efforts to safeguard our homes so that our
exposure is limited are not enough."Valley Advocate, 10/6/11
"Raising Elijah does many things, and does them well. It's a book
about science that makes the topic accessible without leaving the
reader feeling as if she's being spoken down to. That's thanks, in
no small part, to Steingraber's gift as a writer."Herizons, Fall
2011
"Steingraber combines compelling statistical evidence with
beautiful writing to create an inspiring read...If you despair at
the state of the planet and wonder how you can understand complex
environmental problems, including climate change, while taking
actions against them, this book is for you."
St. Petersburg Times, 4/17/11"A biologist's memoir of protecting
her family from a wide range of environmental hazards--and learning
to make the best and cheapest organic pizza."
SEHN Networker, April 2011
"Read this for the kids in your life...This is a very funny book on
hair-raisingly serious topics." InfoDad.com, 4/28/11"Steingraber's
narrative structure for this book is attractive: an ecologist, she
looks at the 'ecology' of her own family as she discusses both
home-centered and public-policy issues."
Hudson Valley News, 4/20/11"[A] fine book."
Organic Valley blog, 5/11/11
"[Steingraber] has a rare knack for making dry research data come
to life." Library Journal, 6/3/11"[A] compelling and graceful call
to arms...Steingraber combines the best of humorous science writers
like Mary Roach with the soaring beauty of writers like Terry
Tempest Williams. Fans of Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation and
Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed should flock to Elijah."
CYE Journal (Children, Youth and Environments Center), Winter 2011
"Steingraber takes us directly through the trepidation--and the
wonder--that many parents experience today...Steingraber gives
detailed information while at the same time providing hope...She
guides parents toward meaningful actions at home (buying local and
organic when possible, avoiding certain kinds of products,
gardening in the context of systems change, moving toward behaviors
that require no more than human energy), but helps us see when
these efforts are simply not enough and policy reform and activism
is essential."Quarterly Review of Biology, March 2012
"Steingraber unleashes the accumulating evidence that the current
environmental crisis affects children
disproportionately...Historical perspectives and modern scientific
findings are skillfully interwoven with autobiographical accounts
that are at times verbose, at time humorous, but always engaging.
Complicated science is made easy through the use of metaphors...[A]
bold book...[that] demands reflection and action."Terrain.org,
Fall/Winter 2012 "A book that is at once fascinating and
frightening, lyrical and logical, funny and
powerful."LVNtoRN.net"Top 50 Must Read Books for Nurses in 2012
Fit Pregnancy, June/July 2011
"[Steingraber's] tales keep readers engaged while illustrating the
relationship between our nation's chemical regulation (or lack
thereof}and our kids' current and future health."
Reference and Research Book News, June 2011
"A conversational memoir about the environmental threats our
children face." Alternatives Journal, June 2011
"[Steingraber is] arguably the best environment and human-health
writer of our age...Like [Rachel] Carson, Steingraber is sounding
alarms about chemical pollutants in the best way she knows: through
her formidable talents as a writer, storyteller and explainer of
things scientific." EuphoriaBaby.com, 7/6/11"An interesting and
worthwhile read...A book that shares serious, often disturbing
information can at the same time be so personal and empowering...If
you want to be an informed parent this book is something you won't
want to miss."
The Ecologist (UK), 7/7/11
"Combining hard science with a sympathetic approach to the
realities of family life; Raising Elijah is one of the most
important books you'll ever read...Meticulously researched...A
genuine, all-encompassing environmental study...Raising Elijah is
that rare beast that combines hard data and approachable intimacy.
At heart, it is an inspirational personal journey, a tale of
activism at family level. It is perhaps the most essential book a
parent can read this year." Spirituality & Practice (website)
"With great bravado and a firm grasp of ecology and biology,
Steingraber runs down all the challenges she and her two children,
Elijah and Faith, face in the toxic environment of upstate New York
over a six-year period." BookPage, August 2011
"Read this book...Steingraber's lyrical descriptions of everyday
family life and its connections to 'urgent public health issues'
are astonishing."
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, Fall
2011"Steingraber speaks here as a warrior, a parent determined to
protect her children--and all children--from the polluted and
climate-challenged world they have inherited."
Internet Review of Books, 3/25/11
"Terrifying and empowering...[Steingraber] skillfully weaves common
domestic duties and scenes into and around the complex science,
economic, and societal factors that have contributed to our current
environmental crisis (and if you have any doubt that it is a
crisis, you really need to read this book)...Knowledge is power.
Raising Elijah is an excellent starting point for parents who want
to know so they can protect their children from the dangers around
them."
New York Journal of Books, 4/15/11
"One part memoir and one part educational treatise, and thoroughly
informative and entertaining...Steingraber has taken a work that
could have been a dry and didactic expository and turned it into a
fluid, intimate narrative--sometimes funny, always entertaining and
definitely illuminating. It's a book that everyone--parents and
otherwise--should avail themselves of for the good of those they
care about."
Ms., Spring 2011"Steingraber's narrative is personal and political,
funny and smart. She shows us that feminism and motherhood are not
at odds; combined, they make for heroes...Raising Elijah is a call
to arms, a cry for the moral solidarity that we must forge to
prevent environmental degradation and its assault on children's
health."
KeepTapWaterSafe.org, 9/13/11"It might be the most important
parenting book you'll ever read....Detailed and sobering...The
facts are compelling unto themselves, yet her fluid prose is
animated with personal anecdotes--all the better to elucidate the
connection between corporate poisoning of the biosphere and our
burgeoning public health crises. Raising Elijah also raises
hope."Metapsychology Online Reviews, 9/13/11
"A fascinating and moving story about a parent's struggle to
protect her child's health and wellbeing while still planning for
his future in a world full of environmental dangers...Steingraber
writes in a witty, poetic fashion, easily drawing connections
between the environmental crisis and children's health...The book
is one of the most fascinating and well-written pieces concerning
the environmental crisis that I have read."Metropolis, 9/20/11"As a
writer, Sandra Steingraber has the eloquence and urgency of Rachel
Carson. As a biologist, she has a fiercely acute perspective on how
human health is affected by the many outputs of so many clever
human inventions...In 10 elegantly framed chapters, Steingraber
gives both a personal account of a family attempting to live a
healthy life in upstate New York and a scientist's look at the
issues that make that so very challenging. The combination is
powerful."
Story Circle Book Reviews, 12/13/11"Part lyrical parenting memoir,
part hard-hitting, meticulously researched advocacy, Raising Elijah
is not a light read. But if you care about the health of our
children and the planet that nourishes all of us, it's darn near
essential...This is a powerful and empowering book: take it slowly
and let Steingraber's facts and passion for a healthy world seep in
and become part of your understanding; let them guide your daily
choices in life...Steingraber uses memoir to introduce facts, and
does it so effectively that the reader is sucked right in...A
compelling and surprisingly hopeful work--one that will stick with
you long after you've turned the final page."
The Christian Century, 12/27/11"A frightening read. I was tempted
to put the book down several times but kept returning because of
the author's passion not only for the health of children but for
the intricacies of nature, the human body and family life."
Environmental Working Group's Enviroblog, 11/8"Give it to a fellow
parent when you're done."
Santa Monica Public Library, "Green Prize for Sustainable
Literature," September 2012
Booklist, 3/15/11
"Steingraber writes passionately about the things that matter most
to her, her family and the environment...smoothly shifting from
events in her life to a broader view...Steingraber wants to change
the world even as she remains firmly planted in the neighborhood,
seeking a way to make life better than most of us have come to
expect." Buffalo News, 3/1/11
"Writing as both a scientist and mother of two
children...Steingraber cites links between rising chronic childhood
diseases and toxic chemical exposures. She takes a broad view,
looking at increases in the prevalence of asthma, learning
disabilities and autism, as she tries to understand her own
household and life as a mom." Power of One Woman Blog, 3/29/11
"Through her newest book...Sandra has once again provided us,
through well-documented case studies, the opportunity to examine
our lifestyles choices and our surrounding environments...Sandra
and her stories are gifts: golden information for busy parents who
do not have the time for months of research."
Publishers Weekly, 4/4/11"A persuasive, personal call to
action."
The Weekly Harvest, 7/29/11
Through a combination of scientific evidence and anecdotes plucked
from her family life, she demonstrates again and again how, as
individuals, our efforts to safeguard our homes so that our
exposure is limited are not enough. Valley Advocate, 10/6/11
Raising Elijah does many things, and does them well. It s a book
about science that makes the topic accessible without leaving the
reader feeling as if she s being spoken down to. That s thanks, in
no small part, to Steingraber s gift as a writer. Herizons, Fall
2011
Steingraber combines compelling statistical evidence with beautiful
writing to create an inspiring read If you despair at the state of
the planet and wonder how you can understand complex environmental
problems, including climate change, while taking actions against
them, this book is for you. "
Fit Pregnancy, June/July 2011
[Steingraber s] tales keep readers engaged while illustrating the
relationship between our nation s chemical regulation (or lack
thereof}and our kids current and future health.
Reference and Research Book News, June 2011
A conversational memoir about the environmental threats our
children face. Alternatives Journal, June 2011
[Steingraber is] arguably the best environment and human-health
writer of our age Like [Rachel] Carson, Steingraber is sounding
alarms about chemical pollutants in the best way she knows: through
her formidable talents as a writer, storyteller and explainer of
things scientific. EuphoriaBaby.com, 7/6/11 An interesting and
worthwhile read A book that shares serious, often disturbing
information can at the same time be so personal and empowering If
you want to be an informed parent this book is something you won t
want to miss. "
The Ecologist (UK), 7/7/11
Combining hard science with a sympathetic approach to the realities
of family life; Raising Elijah is one of the most important books
you ll ever read Meticulously researched A genuine,
all-encompassing environmental study Raising Elijah is that rare
beast that combines hard data and approachable intimacy. At heart,
it is an inspirational personal journey, a tale of activism at
family level. It is perhaps the most essential book a parent can
read this year. Spirituality & Practice (website)
With great bravado and a firm grasp of ecology and biology,
Steingraber runs down all the challenges she and her two children,
Elijah and Faith, face in the toxic environment of upstate New York
over a six-year period. BookPage, August 2011
Read this book Steingraber s lyrical descriptions of everyday
family life and its connections to urgent public health issues are
astonishing.
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, Fall 2011
Steingraber speaks here as a warrior, a parent determined to
protect her children and all children from the polluted and
climate-challenged world they have inherited. "
Internet Review of Books, 3/25/11
Terrifying and empowering [Steingraber] skillfully weaves common
domestic duties and scenes into and around the complex science,
economic, and societal factors that have contributed to our current
environmental crisis (and if you have any doubt that it is a
crisis, you really need to read this book) Knowledge is power.
Raising Elijah is an excellent starting point for parents who want
to know so they can protect their children from the dangers around
them.
New York Journal of Books, 4/15/11
One part memoir and one part educational treatise, and thoroughly
informative and entertaining Steingraber has taken a work that
could have been a dry and didactic expository and turned it into a
fluid, intimate narrative sometimes funny, always entertaining and
definitely illuminating. It s a book that everyone parents and
otherwise should avail themselves of for the good of those they
care about.
Ms., Spring 2011 Steingraber s narrative is personal and political,
funny and smart. She shows us that feminism and motherhood are not
at odds; combined, they make for heroes Raising Elijah is a call to
arms, a cry for the moral solidarity that we must forge to prevent
environmental degradation and its assault on children s health.
"
KeepTapWaterSafe.org, 9/13/11 It might be the most important
parenting book you ll ever read .Detailed and sobering The facts
are compelling unto themselves, yet her fluid prose is animated
with personal anecdotes all the better to elucidate the connection
between corporate poisoning of the biosphere and our burgeoning
public health crises. Raising Elijah also raises hope.
Metapsychology Online Reviews, 9/13/11
A fascinating and moving story about a parent's struggle to protect
her child's health and wellbeing while still planning for his
future in a world full of environmental dangers Steingraber writes
in a witty, poetic fashion, easily drawing connections between the
environmental crisis and children's health The book is one of the
most fascinating and well-written pieces concerning the
environmental crisis that I have read. Metropolis, 9/20/11 As a
writer, Sandra Steingraber has the eloquence and urgency of Rachel
Carson. As a biologist, she has a fiercely acute perspective on how
human health is affected by the many outputs of so many clever
human inventions In 10 elegantly framed chapters, Steingraber gives
both a personal account of a family attempting to live a healthy
life in upstate New York and a scientist s look at the issues that
make that so very challenging. The combination is powerful. "
Santa Monica Public Library, Green Prize for Sustainable
Literature, September 2012
Booklist, 3/15/11
Steingraber writes passionately about the things that matter most
to her, her family and the environment smoothly shifting from
events in her life to a broader view Steingraber wants to change
the world even as she remains firmly planted in the neighborhood,
seeking a way to make life better than most of us have come to
expect. Buffalo News, 3/1/11
Writing as both a scientist and mother of two children Steingraber
cites links between rising chronic childhood diseases and toxic
chemical exposures. She takes a broad view, looking at increases in
the prevalence of asthma, learning disabilities and autism, as she
tries to understand her own household and life as a mom. Power of
One Woman Blog, 3/29/11
Through her newest book Sandra has once again provided us, through
well-documented case studies, the opportunity to examine our
lifestyles choices and our surrounding environments Sandra and her
stories are gifts: golden information for busy parents who do not
have the time for months of research.
Publishers Weekly, 4/4/11 A persuasive, personal call to action. "
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