Structure

The book is composed of separate anecdotes and essays, and they build and develop in their meaning rather than as a narrative. There is no chronological or topical linear development to the pieces of the narrative, but they do gradually build a picture of Oliver’s view of life and her subjective experience for the reader. The unrelated events seem to form an intentionally crafted path of understanding. As Oliver describes one natural scene after another, the reader comes to understand what elements of them touch her personally and what their meaning is to her. As she interweaves information about her own life, one gains an image of why they are significant to her. So the reading experience consists not of continual addition to a plot, but rather to a rich tapestry of background.

The essays are quite brief, many are less than ten pages long, and...