This Tender Place: The Story of a Wetland Year

This Tender Place
© Laurie Lawlor

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN PRESS/TERRACE BOOKS (OCTOBER 2005)

After the deaths of her father and father-in-law, author Laurie Lawlor discovers an unlikely place for healing and transformation in a wetland in southeastern Wisconsin.

Her new book, This Tender Place, parallels Lawlor's personal growth and spiritual regeneration with that of the wetland and challenges the reader to look twice at the natural resources that surround us yet are so often taken for granted.

In her own words, Lawlor says: “This is the story of a wetland year and what I discovered about plants and animals, fire and water, humans and insects, refuge and renewal.”

The particular wetland captured in Lawlor’s book is Pickerel Lake Fen, a special place The Nature Conservancy has been working with local landowners to protect since 1985. The Conservancy and its conservation efforts at the fen are featured prominently in the book.

To learn more about This Tender Place or to purchase a copy, click here to visit the University of Wisconsin Press web site. The book is also available at bookstores and by calling (773) 702-7000.

View a slideshow of Pickerel Lake Fen Preserve.

For more information:

Click here for Lawlor’s interview about the book with Larry Meiller on Wisconsin Public Radio on November 30.

Click here for Lawlor’s interview about the book on “At 10” on WUWM Milwaukee Public Radio on November 2.

Click here for more information about the Conservancy’s work at Pickerel Lake Fen and the Mukwonago River Watershed.