Almost Green

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One man's irreverent and hilarious chronicle of his ambitious but clumsy efforts to tread lightly on the planet.

In Almost Green, James Glave demonstrates that the journey along the path to a greener life is not always easy but is frequently hilarious and always enlightening. Glave— a writer and stay-at-home dad — describes his experiences building a green writing studio in the front yard of his home on Bowen Island, British Columbia, a not-so-green paradise where suvs still outnumber compost boxes. While coping with the many frustrations and small victories of this undertaking, Glave also dabbles in grassroots neighborhood activism. He visits a truly green family living in the concrete jungle of the city and decides he must divest himself of his hulking suv, so generously given to him by his father-in-law, without offending his benefactor.

James Glave is a former senior editor with Outside magazine. He has also worked as news editor for Wired. Now a freelance writer, Glave has contributed to numerous publications, including the New York Times Magazine, Details, Vancouver, Western Living, and the Tyee. He lives on Bowen Island, British Columbia.

"Almost Green is funny, enjoyable to read and actually hard to put down. The style of writing is easy, conversational and engaging. The text on the cover . . . gives away the plot line of the book, but it's the way Glave writes about his adventure that is entertaining." -Escarpment Views

"Glave describes the trials and tribulations, sacrifices and successes he faced when trying to reduce his ecological footprint. This comical account of his enlightening journey out of the concrete jungle and into greener pastures is for anyone who is looking to shift into a more earth-friendly existence." -Granville Magazine

"James Glave goes beyond the baby steps and fully embraces going green in his hilarious book documenting the journey." -North Shore News

"An entertaining and enlightening perspective on the sometimes challenging effort toward sustainable living." -British Columbia Magazine

"As irreverent as it is deeply informative, the book traces Glave's misadventures and steep environmental learning curve . . . The focus of this endearing eco-memoir is primarily on getting the dream shed built, but Glave's sensible (and sometimes caustically comic) green consciousness has real universal appeal." -Publishers Weekly

"Even if you're not a yuppie, you will enjoy this book. Glave's a damn good writer . . . and even though he's not willing to leave mainstream culture and live in a bush, he still deserves some credit." -Outwords Magazine

"The sum is worth more than its parts, and Glave's memoir about building the shed serves as something of a call to arms for people, like himself, who are predisposed to care about their environmental footprint, but haven't yet made the transformational life changes that the gravity of our situation calls for." -The Tyee