Confined for a year to a bed in a sterile and unfamiliar room due to a mysterious and debilitating neurological illness, Bailey closely observed a woodland snail brought to her bedside by a friend in a pot of violets. Jackie has drawn snails, but none so pleasing as the ones in this book.In her first book, the memoir The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating, Elisabeth Tova Bailey invites us to the intimate world inhabited only by a small snail and herself. Do not let the small size fool you like the snail, there are worlds beyond imagining within.Īlgonquin books of Chapel Hill 2010 190 pp. And the detailed pencil drawings by Kathy Bray provides a nice counterpoint to all of the words.įrom the whimsical title to the last hopeful page, this is a thought provoking little volume. I had no idea snails had been written of so widely or in so many different ways. Like raisins in scones, they add a richness to an already wonderful treat. Throughout the entire book are quotes and snippets of poetry, from Classical Literature to modern mystery stories. “Those of us with illnesses are the holders of the silent fears of those with good health.” A strong philosophical undercurrent runs through the narrative, but especially on this topic. It’s a realistic account of living with a chronic illness, yet without self-pity or melodrama. Quite naturally, she considers her own mortality and the sociological and personal effects of sickness.
In her wonder at nature’s minutae, her writing reminded me of Anne Dillard’s in Pilgrim At Tinker’s Creek, one of my favorite books. As the author watches the snail eat portobello mushrooms & egg shells, she muses on the life cycle, slime variations and the unusual mating habits of the many kinds of gastropods. Never named or anthropomorphized, the snail proves a fascinating subject. This creature gives her focus and companionship over the long, fitful period of trying to stabilize her health.
A friend brings her a woodland snail found on a hike, which ends up in a terrarium on a stand by her bed. After a number of relapses, she begins to recuperate, a process that takes many months. Eventually, they figure out it’s a rare auto-immune disease that leaves her so weak she can’t even sit up. Back in America, she is hospitalized with severe symptoms that doctors cannot find the causes of. No matter what I write, I won’t be able to do it justice.Įxpanded from an essay, this little book has its roots in the author becoming very ill on her way home from Europe. It is a splendid mixture of natural history, philosophy, literature and poetry, all conveyed in a deeply personal way by the author. By that I mean it sparkles, has depth and great value. The Sound of a Wild Snail eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey
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