Encountering Dragonfly
Notes on the Re-enchantment of the World
Published on 22. May 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
272 pages
978-1-943370-29-0 (ISBN)
Description
"A glittering gem of a book!"-Sy Montgomery, author of The Soul of an Octopus
Following dragonflies into the territory between nature and the human psyche
Two decades ago, naturalist and environmental writer Brooke Williams had a powerful dream about a dragonfly, a dream that cracked open his world by giving rise to a steady stream of dragonfly encounters in his waking life.
In the years since, he has delved deeply into the fascinating biology and natural history of dragonflies and made pilgrimages to see them (he now has 38 species on his life list) while also exploring their symbolic meaning and cross-cultural significance.
Encountering Dragonfly is his account-related in a series of odonate encounters-of being drawn into a different kind of relationship with the natural world. By opening himself to the personal and mytho-poetic meanings of dragonfly, and patiently courting an understanding of these creatures that is built upon, but also transcends, a naturalist's observation, Brooke has come to believe in the importance of 're-enchantment.'
Throughout much of human history, we lived in an enchanted world in which myth and magic, ritual, stories, and spirits informed every aspect of our lives, defining the relationships between psyche, Earth and cosmos. The enchantment ended with the Enlightenment and modernity, when reason and scientific discovery explained away the magic, commencing a commodification of nature that has only intensified ever since.
Brooke's personal re-enchantment has required of him a faith that material, biological reality isn't the only reality; it recognizes symbols and archetypes as remnants of a different understanding, which may-as perhaps they always have-play a role in our long-term survival.
In many cultures, the dragonfly carries messages between the inner and outer world. For Brooke Williams the message of the dragonfly is to ask questions about synchronicity, awe and the collective unconscious, and how to engage with a world increasingly out of balance. What are the implications of following a path toward greater enchantment? In a time where the stakes have never been higher, nor the political and biological imperatives of climate change and environmental degradation more urgent, can we afford to choose such a path? Perhaps more to the point, can we afford not to?
Following dragonflies into the territory between nature and the human psyche
Two decades ago, naturalist and environmental writer Brooke Williams had a powerful dream about a dragonfly, a dream that cracked open his world by giving rise to a steady stream of dragonfly encounters in his waking life.
In the years since, he has delved deeply into the fascinating biology and natural history of dragonflies and made pilgrimages to see them (he now has 38 species on his life list) while also exploring their symbolic meaning and cross-cultural significance.
Encountering Dragonfly is his account-related in a series of odonate encounters-of being drawn into a different kind of relationship with the natural world. By opening himself to the personal and mytho-poetic meanings of dragonfly, and patiently courting an understanding of these creatures that is built upon, but also transcends, a naturalist's observation, Brooke has come to believe in the importance of 're-enchantment.'
Throughout much of human history, we lived in an enchanted world in which myth and magic, ritual, stories, and spirits informed every aspect of our lives, defining the relationships between psyche, Earth and cosmos. The enchantment ended with the Enlightenment and modernity, when reason and scientific discovery explained away the magic, commencing a commodification of nature that has only intensified ever since.
Brooke's personal re-enchantment has required of him a faith that material, biological reality isn't the only reality; it recognizes symbols and archetypes as remnants of a different understanding, which may-as perhaps they always have-play a role in our long-term survival.
In many cultures, the dragonfly carries messages between the inner and outer world. For Brooke Williams the message of the dragonfly is to ask questions about synchronicity, awe and the collective unconscious, and how to engage with a world increasingly out of balance. What are the implications of following a path toward greater enchantment? In a time where the stakes have never been higher, nor the political and biological imperatives of climate change and environmental degradation more urgent, can we afford to choose such a path? Perhaps more to the point, can we afford not to?
Reviews / Votes
"A glittering gem of a book! In Encountering Dragonfly, Brooke Williams gifts us with his exquisite natural history observations alongside the deep truths revealed in myths and dreams. I was utterly enchanted." -Sy Montgomery, author of Of Time and Turtles and The Soul of an OctopusAn exquisite roadmap to re-enchantment. Brooke Williams's expansive storytellings show us the way to what he calls a "complete life"-not one that ticks the boxes of overcultural expectation, but one that is woven of the fine things: dirt and dreams, roots and poems, the flight of feathers and the infinite vision of dragonfly eyes." -Lyanda Lynn Haupt, author of Rooted and Mozart's Starling
"An inspiring meditation on the marvels and mysteries that emerge at boundaries. Through deep attention, Williams reveals how layers of experience and reality shift into one another. On dragonfly wings, we learn what it means to explore." -David George Haskell, author of Sounds Wild and Broken and The Forest Unseen
"Testimony to the power of curiosity, wonder, and attentiveness to our nonhuman kin, Brooke Williams's journey with four-winged visitors reveals the fleetingly thin, diaphanous veil lying between the biological and mythopoetic-and the mysterious beauties awaiting travelers between these worlds. -Gavin Van Horn, author of The Way of Coyote and editor of the Elementals series
"With the precision and elegance of a Dragonfly's flight, Brooke Williams dissolves the illusion of separation that has imprisoned and desiccated the human spirit. This gentle narrative releases and rejoins the reader with Nature's wondrous world. We are not only gifted with companionship on the author's journey but given first steps for our own re-enchantment with the glorious, unfettered cosmos." -G.A. Bradshaw, The Kerulos Center for Nonviolence, author of Elephants on the Edge and Talking with Bears
"At a moment in history when we are looking to reawaken what has been lost by learning directly from the magnificent nature that surrounds us, Williams shows how asking questions, honoring the unseen, and deeply observing the way one species lives can lead to a greater understanding of the fabric of biodiversity that supports all life. It can also lead us to what may be missing in our lives-enchantment-along with a sense of belonging that runs counter to the disconnection or dis-enchantment that may be leading our own species to the brink of collapse." -Doniga Markegard, author of Dawn Again and Wolf Girl
"Imagine dragonflies are the center of this universe, connected to countless beings in countless realms, all linked together by a dream that turns out not to be a dream." -Red Pine, author/translator of If a Mountain Lion Could Sing
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 140 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
291 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-943370-29-0 (9781943370290)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
04/2025
Uphill Books
€14.49
Available for download
Person
Brooke Williams has spent the last forty years advocating for wilderness and has served on the board of multiple environmental organizations including Western Environmental Legal Center, Center for Humans and Nature, and Utah Rivers Council. His writing about evolution, consciousness, and his own adventures exploring both the inner and outer wilderness has appeared in Orion, Outside, Huffington Post, and numerous other publications, and has been anthologized in Best American Essays. Brooke's books include Open Midnight: Where Wilderness and Ancestors Meet (Trinity University Press, 2017), Mary Jane Wild: Two Walks and a Rant (Homebound Publications, 2020), and Encountering Dragonfly: Notes on the Practice of Re-Enchantment (Uphill Books, 2025). He lives with the writer, Terry Tempest Williams, and two cats near Moab, Utah, where they watch light and wait for rain.