Reading Under the feet of Jesus is a very nice new experience. I don’t think I’ve ever read an actual novel dealing with environmental protection in which the author is so clear about where she stands. I think it is an easy read and a good one too. I really like Veramontes’ style. I love how she diconstructs the characteristics of a novel to stand out. It is very smart of her to insert some Spanish, I think it emphasizes the fact that Estrella, Alejo and all the others are a minority and suffer because of who they are.

With Silent Spring, Rachel Carson targeted a rather wide audience to advertise about the wrongful use of pesticides and she did a very good job at it. When Under the Feet of Jesus was published in 1995, the dangers of pesticides were well known already, but not necessarily dealt with. Addressing the problem through a novel gives a new angle on the issue, and Viramontes somehow humanized the victims of pesticides by giving names and histories, however fake those might be.

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As the presidential election approaches and I read a little about both Obama and Romney – trying to stay neutral while gathering information – I wondered how important environmental issues are in this election. So I went back on both Obama’s and Romney’s websites and looked for what they had to say about the environment. I was very surprised when I realized that environment protection takes so little space on their websites. Of course, they discuss energy, but they are both mostly interested in how to make the United States independent when it comes to energy, how to cut the need of other countries for oil, how new energy technologies will create jobs and boost the economy. For such a large country, I thought protecting the environment, protecting nature, would be a bigger issue.

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Henry David Thoreau, born July 12, 1817, is today considered to be a major influence in various domains in the United States. His works are widely spread, read and studied in a number of different contexts and he was a source of inspiration for a lot of people. He did multiple things in his lifetime, but he mostly dedicated his life to work. Looking to know more about his life brings a few things to my mind. I might be stating the obvious, but this is what strikes me when learning more about him.

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