Seattlest mentioned David Williams' book "The Street-Smart Naturalist: Field Notes from Seattle" in passing previously, but now that we've actually read it and had a chance to talk with the author it's time to start telling you daily how much we enjoyed it. If you're an outdoors geek with an urban bent (and we're assuming that's exactly what you are) David's written a book that fills an empty slot on your bookshelf that you may not have known you had. It's a book about the natural world, but not the natural world that exists out there on the peninsula or up in the mountains. This is the world we live in every day. Just like the title suggests, David picks his way through the neighborhoods of Seattle, exposing and illuminating the nature that slips through the cracks in the pavement. He's got a geology degree, actually, so he's liable to spend a few pages on the history of the pavement itself at any time. Unfortunately, we've just missed a Seattle reading, but Seattlest emphatically suggests that you get this book immediately and check David Williams out on AM 1150 at noon September, 29.
In your book you train a very interesting and unusual lens on the urban environment. Is this a kind of writing you've been doing previous to The Street-Smart Naturalist? Can you talk about how you came upon this approach?
My writing style grew out of my past work in environmental education in that I view my writing as educational in style. My goal is to share what I have learned, often focusing on natural history stories. In terms of the urban environment, my interest started with geology. When I used to come back to Seattle from college, where I was a geology major, I noticed that the downtown buildings had all these cool building stones and I began to wonder about the cultural and natural history stories they told. When I moved back to Seattle, my interest in urban nature got piqued again when I saw a bald eagle at Green Lake. I ended up writing about the stones and the eagles (not the bands) and my book grew out of that.
In terms of some of the specifics, I knew from the beginning I wanted to pull in science, observation, and opinion but I also knew that I wanted to add humor, which most books about nature lack. I am not sure why this is because many nature writers, such as Barry Lopez, Gary Nabhan, or Terry Tempest Williams, are quite funny in person. I also knew that I did not want to write in a “woo-woo” manner about urban nature. I am a matter-of-fact, science-oriented kind of guy and tried to write in this style.
The breadth of knowledge you display in the book seems to go above and beyond any one disciple. What kind of formal education do you have and how have you educated yourself beyond that?
I have an undergraduate degree in geology, but from an unusual college. I only took one class at a time, known as a block, in college. Each block lasted 3 1/2 weeks, with some courses running for two blocks. I have continued this style of learning since then, which works out well in writing. For my book, I chose a subject and dove in, talking to experts, sifting through scientific journals, and tracking down historical documents. Research is one of my favorite parts of writing and often leads me to new story ideas.
You seem to have no problem finding objects of natural interest no matter where you are, but do you have any favorite walks in the city, and what do you look for when you're there?
Favorite walks of mine include Seward Park and Carkeek Park. I also enjoy wandering through downtown looking for different aspects of nature such as buildings or trees. I remember one time finding hundreds of moths on trees near the Seafirst Building (aka “The box the Space Needle came in” or 1001 4th Avenue Plaza ) and returning several days later and there was no sign of moths. I have also been downtown looking for crow nests, of which there are many. I generally try to keep my eyes and ears open and ask the “W” questions, why, when, who, where, about what I am seeing. I always seem to find new things by going back to the same places over and over.
We live in a pretty green place, as cities go. Do you think an urban naturalist book would work in another city and if you were to write it which city would you choose?
I think one could write the same type of book in any city in the country. People have already written urban natural history books about New York and Chicago. If I had one city to write about it would probably be Washington DC because of its long history, combining people and nature.
Each chapter of The Street-Smart Naturalist is distinct in subject material, although the approach is similar in all of them, I have my favorite chapters and you must have yours - Which chapter was the most fun to write and, if it's not the same, which do you hold closest to your heart now?
The chapter on plants was the most fun to write or at least to research. I saw more new aspects of the city working on that chapter, such as the madrona grove at Seola and the bog near SeaTac. The chapter closest to my heart is the one on the Stones, mostly because I have been interested in building stones for over a decade and someday hope to write a longer book just on them.
You grew up in Seattle before moving away for a number of years. How was Seattle different to you when you returned?
When I returned I was married, couldn’t afford to live in the neighborhood where I grew up, and could drive. Because of this I was forced to learn a new neighborhood, which has been great. The city was also much more spread out and sprawling. When I was kid, there were many fewer houses on the east side. People still seem about the same, although there are more of them.
Any special spots you were anxious to return to? Any that no longer exist?
I didn’t have any special spots I wanted to return to. I had continued to visit Seattle annually when I didn’t live here. I feel fortunate that many of the places I liked from my youth, such as the Conservatory at Volunteer Park, the Arboretum, Pike Place Market, and Golden Gardens, were still here and still in good condition.
I know I asked you this already, but I have to ask it again here: For those of us who have trouble differentiating a Doug lass-fir and a telephone pole, what field guides to you recommend as accompaniment for Street-Smart Naturalist? What other books should be on the urban naturalist's reading list?
Passionate Slugs and Hollywood Frogs: An Uncommon Field Guide to Northwest Backyards - Patricia K. Lichen – Less field guide and more long descriptions of plants and animals. Lots of good info.
Nature in the City: Seattle – Maria Dolan and Kathryn True – A guide to places to see wild things that also contains descriptions of wild things.
Plants and Animals of the Pacific Northwest – Eugene Kozloff – Not specific to Seattle but does describe many city plants and animals.
Two other good books are Trees of Seattle and Wild Plants of Seattle by Arthur Lee Jacobson. He knows more about urban plants than any one person should.
Are you working on another book? What can we expect to see from you next?
I am not working specifically on another book, although I want to write one on building stones. For the past month or so I have been focusing on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where I went in August with a class from the University of Washington. I am also finishing an article for National Wildlife magazine about evolution in crossbills. I am not sure when it will be out.
A lot of what you point out in the book are things that we see in Seattle every day without giving a second thought to the natural history of these objects. I'm going to throw out some Seattle institutions and you reply with a few thoughts off the top of your head about how they might be interesting to a street-smart naturalist:
Golden Gardens? - A splendid place to go at high tide.
Dale Chihuly? - Great to see how others interpret nature.
Starbucks? - We all need drugs to keep us going in our searches for more urban nature.
The University of Washington football program? - The stadium parking lot is a fine spot to see big murders of crows, as well as many other species that visit the waterways near the stadium.
The Ducks Tour? - I have not been on a tour but should go to see how tourists learn about the city, plus they might go places I haven’t been.
We're currently undergoing uncertain times environmentally at the national and global levels. How do you think Seattle and the state of Washington are doing with regards to the environment? What do you see as the biggest threat to our region in 2005?
I think Seattle is doing an okay job, particularly in terms of recycling, but too many of us still drive everywhere and don’t use public transportation, walk, or bike. I am also bothered by how many people don’t use recyclable coffee mugs and get paper cups everyday. Washington has also made some good leaps forward in the past few years with legislation. Sprawl is one of the biggest threats because it leads to cutting of forests, more driving, and more conflicts with wildlife.
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