Review
"When I began reading "The Last Straw" by Joyce Kristiansson, I expected it to be like so many other books about what I should be doing to help the environment. As committed as I am to being environmentally responsible, I haven't found value in much that has been written on the topic in recent years. "The Last Straw" takes an entirely different and much more compelling approach. Instead of presenting a preachy list of often obvious and cliched tips - "Stop using plastic water bottles! Reduce, reuse, recycle!" - "The Last Straw" uses the author's own struggles to weave a step by step approach integrating self-care with environmental care. Rather than striving to elicit guilt in the reader, Kristiansson is acutely aware that we cannot take care of our environment if we don't take care of ourselves. In fact, that is the key theme in the book, and in 2020's uncertain times, it should resonate with all of us. "The Last Straw" is an enjoyable, breezy read. If the reader is looking for advice on self help and encouragement for helping the environment, they will certainly find it in "The Last Straw". However, for me, at least, it wasn't information that kept me turning the pages. It was the story in which the information was encapsulated. Kristiansson's own personal story of balancing career with family, and of her battle with breast cancer brings a personal element to "The Last Straw" that many environmentally focused books do not. There is so often a tendency for these books to use an overabundance of data and anecdotes of environmental destruction to convince their readers; but the reality is that most of us who have picked up these books are already well familiar with the dire state of our environment. "The Last Straw" strives to give its readers what they really need - encouragement and ideas that actually be implemented into our own busy lives.I recommend "The Last Straw" to anyone that has even a passing interest in living a more sustainable life - and, in particular, anyone who struggles with how to fit "one more thing" into our busy and complicated lives. Now that I think about it - isn't that just about all of us?" -Kathryn Burch Lintner, Performance Improvement Coach specializing in technical sales, sustainability, and the environment
From the Back Cover
"The Last Straw, Change Your Life and the Planet - for Good," is based on the premise that many of us really do want to do better by the environment and have more sustainable habits, but we need more balance in our lives to even think about adding one more thing - like sorting recycling.Using anecdotes from her personal journey through breast cancer, and drawing on a science background and general curiosity about everything, the author has meshed together the science that will help us get our lives back in balance so that we can do things that matter for the environment - better people, better planet. In ten chapters, each corresponding to a week, we are taken from laying the foundations for self-care to launching our own personal journey from singularity to space--space for a good life and the good of the planet.#betterpeoplebetterplanet
About the Author
Joyce Kristiansson is an environmental consultant specialing in helping companies improve their performance by reducing their environmental footprint. She enjoys writing about ways to make sustainable living easier. Joyce lives in Houston, Texas along with her husband of almost 25 years, Lars. They enjoy spending time reveling in the wide variety of nature in their backyard and wherever they find it. You can reach the author at joyce@thelaststrawbook.com, through her website, thelaststrawbook.com and on the Facebook page "The Last Straw" and associated group of the same name.
