Swain himself is his own main character in Saving Graces. He appears mostly as a boy experiencing the wonders of the natural world, but he also appears as a grownup who shares his life with nature. He is joined by his wife, some other young people, birds, bees, trees, and bushes; the essays focus primarily on his interactions with plants and animals. For instance, the bees become characters in their own right as Swain describes their habits: No honeybee ever broke down a fence—or needed one in the first place. Bees forage miles away from the hive in all directions, freely trespassing on neighboring land in search of food and water.

(Being virtually indistinguishable from one another, they have builtin alibis.) Unusually provident beasts, honeybees are not content with procuring their daily bread, but go on gathering against a rainy day or...