On Compost: A Year in the Life of a Suburban Garden Paperback – July 1, 2024

I have composted for years but can't say I know a tenth of what Mr Smith has in his brain about the subject. Two massive coincidences: I also live in Westport, CT and fifty years ago I was the basketball play by play announcer at the liberal arts college at which Cole exhibited his excellent basketball skills.

The recently released book, On Compost: A Year in the Life of a Suburban Garden, is a delight. It's also a tour-de-force description of the economy of using what we have around us to make something entirely new and magical. Warning - this book will definitely leave you desirous of a yard, trees, and leaves to rake and god forbid, even snow. It came as no surprise that Mr. Smith's book is an orderly and charming tour through not only the composition and working life of his "pile," but an intimate glimpse into the life of a single Dad post divorce as he built his community and raises his son. All the while, finding and using ingredients at hand, nearby forages to enrich the compost pile over the course of a year. Most gratifying were the relationships with his neighbor, all of whom contributed to the pile, and once completed, his generous dissemination of the 'humus' back out to his community. You may think me a little crazy but I kid you not - I read the book in two days, as I was so drawn into his story. A well-timed reminder of the richness surrounding us.