Naked in Eden: My Adventure and Awakening in the Australian Rainforest
Release date: 2010 / 334 pages
Synopsis (from the back cover): Mildly autistic and dangerously disconnected from life, Robin Easton was reborn in the Daintree Rainforest of Australia.
First Sentence: The gentle breeze that usually filled our valley had abandoned us.
Review: This memoir is an interesting heroine’s journey that, while very specific to the author’s life, would actually be an unusual, but compelling book club choice. The author, Robin, traces her literal and metaphysical journey from civilization into the depths of the Australian rainforest, freeing herself of material goods and psychological baggage, until she learns to accept herself as well as the other creatures who inhabit her new home.
As a narrative, Eden is very suspenseful. At the beginning, Robin flashes back to her childhood, how she met her husband Ian, and why they decided to leave their families for the wilderness. The flashbacks work well since Robin and Ian are literally driving to a destination unknown, Cape Tribulation, and their past experiences ground them and the reader within more common context.
Getting to their destination involves a series of adventures and challenges, any one of which would have daunted even the most courageous, so returning to a calmer, more conventional past provides needed security. Once they find their hidden paradise, they shed their clothes — and all contact with civilization — to live off of the land. Australia is home to some of the deadliest snakes, crocodiles, box jelly fish, insects, and countless other creatures, so Robin must learn how to respect their territory, even as she finds her place within it. Eventually, Robin and Ian decide to buy property a little less-remote and make a permanent home within the wilderness. We are privy to Robin’s trepidation and anxiety as she learns to tread lightly on her new neighbors.
Most readers may find Robin’s choices extreme and her tone a bit preachy at times. However, in many ways this memoir is an adventure story as much as a spiritual guide, and even readers put off by Robin’s tone will find her experiences with deadly snakes, walking barefoot in the dark with crocodiles, and battles with feral pigs gripping and hard to put down. And, beyond the exciting adventures, any book club would have many opinions on whether or not a drastic, literal return to nature is necessaryin order to embrace and recognize the needs of our planet.
So, I recommend this unconventional heroine’s journey and believe most readers would enjoy it as well!
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Wow, this sounds really interesting. Thanks for the review!
Great review – the adventure story side of it was crazy wasn’t it. Great review.
There are infinite paths back to Eden where through the process of treading lightly, one learns to float above the path without creating tread whatsoever.
Paradise is a frictionless place where all things devour themselves with Love.
One doesn’t preach in Eden, one rejoices.
Odd and interesting comment from Bern..
Anyway, great review!! My book club is always on the lookout for something unusual to keep us from getting bored with the same old, same old.
Thank you so much for being on the tour! It is very much appreciated.
Hi Bern! I feel the need to add that other readers may not feel that Easton’s tone was “preachy.” She chose a very extreme path to reconnect with nature — and this worked extremely well for her. She truly “rejoices” throughout her memoir…
Thank you, S Krishna, Amy, and Lisamm! I do think Eden would be a wonderful book club choice! Lots and lots to discuss!
One could look at life where everyone is living out Poetry in Motion where we will All come to the same conclusion if our dream or soul objective is fulfilled.
What is especially interesting about Robin’s book and Robin’s life is that it touches upon the classic fears and symbols in learning to Live. Everyone resonates with Paradise and running naked and free. She does this both literally and metaphorically. We each can learn to run around naked with our clothes on…..meaning….we hold nothing back….we are alive and in union with the object or collective habitat of our attention. We can learn to direct our movements and then let go and become the movements. Life is then becoming to us.
Snakes run deep with fear in the collective psyche. Everyone is stimulated in some way by snakes upon the spectrum of feelings. Therefore, the snake represents anything we fear in life. If we learn to love that which we ignore….when we come face to face with our demons and give them a kiss, when we listen to our ghosts that haunt us, we are all then on a path back to paradise.
When fears are loved, everything is set free, and then there are no more hard feelings. All the lessons learned in Robin’s Classic and Epic Journey can be applied to any story we tell ourselves in Life. There is no comparison between stories. They are all wonderful. The lessons learned are all the same where forgiveness and Love reign free.
Thank you, Bern!! Now I wish I had included the archetypal levels in Eden, too! Very astute — thank you for adding this level of insight to my review!
All paths that lead to freedom will be judged as extreme when in comparison to the status quo and the ego, which are places of inauthenticity. Very few people are true to their feelings at the core of society. On one level, no one is the same when they are living their personal visions. However, when the ego is transcended, the concept of extremism vanishes, as if it never existed.
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okay then…
Please add me to the giveaway:) I think my book group might like this one.
Renee
Sounds interesting. Please include me in the giveaway.
Robin experienced an adventure that very few ever will. She is such a beautiful writer she draws you into the story, and you can’t help but be there with her in the rainforest.
If you are doing a giveaway I would love to be entered to win a copy of her book, I have one, but would love another copy to share with friends! Thank you for the review!
I am looking for a non-fiction book for our book group and this might just fit the bill! Sounds like, from your review, that it might just be interesting to various members of our group. Please consider me for the giveaway.
my bookclub just put this on our future list last night! I’m sending this review and comments to everyone to hopefully sway them toward it for our next book! Please consider me for the giveaway!
I’ve been looking forward to reading this one -please include me. Thanks!
This looks like a very interesting book. I can’t wait to read it. Please count me in on the giveaway.