Sheila's Books Read

Sheila's bookshelf: read

The Best Intentions
Scotland's Melody
The Secret Society of Salzburg
Secret of the Sonnets
20-40-60-Minute Dinners: Meals to Match the Time You Have
Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the American Wild
Secret Santa Claus Club: A Tool to Help Parents Unwrap the Secret of Santa
Mr. Pudgins
Revenge Never Rests
The Best Mistake
Meriden Park
More Inspirational Stories for Young Women
The Great Tree: A Christmas Fable
To Capture His Heart
The Call of the Sea
Esperance
Livvy and the Enchanted Woodland
Come, Gentle Night
The Bad Boy Theory
Guide To Smart Wedding Planning: What You want to know and everything you haven't thought of yet.


Sheila's favorite books »

2024 Goodreads Reading Challenge

2024 Reading Challenge

2024 Reading Challenge
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Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the American Wild by Brad Orsted-Book Review


 

Product Details

     Title: Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the      American Wild 
    Author: Brad Orsted
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ St. Martin's Press (June 27, 2023)
  • Genre: Memoir /Conservation/Animal Protection
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1250284694
  • ****I received a complimentary book from publishers, publicists, book tours, and or authors.  A review was not required and all opinions and ideas expressed are my own.**** Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's press for the review e-copy.


Book Summary
Award-winning Yellowstone photographer and documentary filmmaker Brad Orsted's seven-year search for refuge and redemption in America's greatest wilderness.

When Brad Orsted’s fifteen-month-old daughter, Marley, died mysteriously at the home of Brad’s mother, he descended into madness. Blaming himself, he plunged into an abyss of grief, guilt, and self-recrimination, fueled by prescription drugs and alcohol. He planned his suicide as his wife, Stacey, searched for a new beginning. She finally found a job in Yellowstone National Park and, with their daughters, Mazzy and Chloe, the pair fled Michigan, looking for refuge and redemption in the 2.2 million acres of glorious American wilderness.

Through the Wilderness 
begins in Yellowstone, five months after the family’s arrival in 2012, when, in an alcoholic haze, Brad stumbled into a field of sage and survived a face-to-face encounter with an adult male grizzly bear. For the first time in almost two years, he realized he wanted to live—he just didn’t know how.

Desperate for help, Brad invited himself to a Crow sweat lodge ceremony, where an elder told him it was time to stop grieving. The elder’s words started Brad on a journey towards sobriety and inner peace, only possible because of lessons he learned in the wild, his new job as a wildlife photographer and filmmaker, and two orphan grizzly cubs who carried him back home and taught him how to live again.

Brad's ten-year odyssey is about finding the wild inside the human heart. It is a journey of the spirit— a journey to forgiveness and sobriety, to love and life, to memory, and ultimately, to Marley.
 

My Review
This was such a fantastic and compelling book. I've followed Brad Orsted on Facebook for a while and have loved his photography. Little did I know what an incredible story was behind his now love for animals in the wild. Brad tells readers of the incredible heartbreaking story of how he lost his 15-month-old daughter to a mysterious death while in the care of his mother. His journey of prolonged grief is felt by every word written in this book. Brad fell down a huge hole in drug and alcohol abuse. 

Reading about everything that Brad went through makes the person he is now even more amazing! With the help of a Native American friend, he finally was on his way to finding inner peace and healing. Along with the help of some Grizzly bear cubs and following their lives, this also strengthened his spirit and love for animals and the wilderness and his own redemption. I love animals a lot so I could relate to many things Brad wrote about. I have also suffered great losses in my life, including an infant son. This novel spoke to my heart in many ways. I know others will also feel and see the path to healing found among these pages. This is a book that must be read by those looking for hope and healing.

****Meet Author Brad Orsted***

Brad Orsted is an award-winning conservation and wildlife filmmaker, photographer, and writer. His work can be seen on: Nat Geo, BBC, PBS, Nature, Travel Channel, The Smithsonian Channel, and the Washington Post.

Brad’s latest film, which he co-directs, co-produces, and appears in, titled, “The Beast of Our Time: Grizzly Bears and Climate Change,” features Terry Tempest Williams and Doug Peacock. The film is narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges and won Best Environmental Documentary at the 2021 L.A. Film Festival.

Brad has authored his first book, a memoir, about the tragic loss of his daughter, Marley, and how he found redemption in the wild. His book, Finding Marley (working title) is due out in 2023 (St. Martin’s Press).

Brad’s focus is conservation and giving back to the sacred wild through his imagery, speaking engagements, and wilderness therapy programs. Sign up for Brad’s newsletter and follow him on Instagram to stay current on upcoming books, films, public speaking events, and ground-breaking wilderness therapy programs.



~*~*~*~*Pre-Order Your Copy of ~*~*~*~*
Through the Wilderness
HERE:





FEATURED FILM

The Beast of Our Time

The Beast of Our Time: Climate Change and Grizzly Bears explore the relationship between climate change and grizzly bears. The short documentary is narrated by Academy Award winner Jeff Bridges and scored by pianist Bill Payne of Little Feat.

Fifty years in the making, The Beast of Our Time interviews top scientists, advocates, authors, ranchers, and indigenous poets to investigate the catastrophic effects of climate change on grizzlies and their habitat. The film is both a dire warning and a compelling call to action to advocate for habitat, connectivity, tolerance, wildlife crossings, and room to roam.

Watch The Trailer



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