Epicurean Simplicity

March 15, 2002
Common usage equates " epicurean" with " gourmet," so Mills' title may seem like an oxymoron, but Epicurus' philosophy actually focuses on simple pleasures, on savoring life as found in nature, and on practicing prudence and frugality. An "ecological wordsmith," Mills, whose books include " Turning Away from Technology" (1997), is drawn to Epicureanism because it celebrates sensual delights and recognizes the spiritual and intellectual richness of a materially simple way of life. She describes the admittedly imperfect version of "epicurean simplicity" she follows in her small house on 35 wooded Michigan acres in a cycle of stirring essays written in a scrubbed clean, exquisitely crafted style that perfectly embodies her ecocentric values. Rather than exhort, Mills tells provocative stories about gardening, bicycling, threatened amphibians and butterflies, invasive species, what happens to wildlife when lakefronts are developed, and why she doesn't own a television or computer. Mills' scrupulous, frank, and witty essays about the unintended consequences of rampant consumerism are grounded in deep ecological understanding and sensitivity to the demanding realities of people's lives and therefore praise simplicity without undue simplification.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)