My New Book: The Art of Being a Creature

An announcement, a discount, and how to help

“Being a creature is in danger of becoming a lost art.” —Rowan Williams

An Announcement

There are ideas whose beginning can be placed in a specific moment. Over 13 years ago I was walking along a wetland beside the Arkansas River when some flint and steel of my reading and thinking made this spark: “I want to write a book about humus soil and the Christian virtue of humility.”

It was an obvious idea, in some ways. Humility means, literally, to be close to the ground. And it is related to the word human—a soil-creature. But I didn’t know how to get started with the book, so I let the idea sit—breaking down into its own fertile ground. Then in 2019 I decided it was time to get to work. I received a grant from the Louisville Institute to study the subject, funding that allowed me to read broadly, buy a microscope, and do some serious study of soil science.

The writing was slow and the results were piecemeal, but overtime I came to see that in a way the linked reflections I was assembling were like the soil itself—an amalgam that makes a whole. That whole is now complete, a bed of soil ready for other minds to root in and bear fruit.

The Art of Being a Creature: Meditations on Humus and Humility is now available. It’s the best thing I’ve written and it communicates the most important truth I know: we are finite creatures whose fullness comes only when we learn to live in humility, close to the ground, dependent upon God.

Two folks whose work I admire got a chance to read the book and had this to say:

"How should a Christian think—and feel—about creation? Is it something to be transcended, or embraced—or something else entirely? In this highly readable, important, and deeply rooted book, Ragan Sutterfield opens the Christian imagination to a vision of a God both transcendent and immanent, an incarnational Father entwined in the mud and dirt and beauty and death of his creation. This book teaches Christians how to get their hands dirty—and why they should."

—Paul Kingsnorth, author of Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist

"Weaving together reflections on the soil, the biblical story, farming, compost, and our hope for the healing of creation, Ragan Sutterfield has created an allusive and poetic symphony of gratitude, awe, and solidarity with and for the soil and ourselves as creatures. This book evocatively and compellingly invites us to join the dance of all of creation, so that we, who are intimately bound with the soil, might become more deeply rooted in the life of the Creator."

— Sylvia C. Keesmaat, founder, Bible Remixed

A Discount Code

Books are not expensive for the work that goes into them. For the price of an entree, you get the culmination of years of thinking and writing, not to mention editing, layout, printing, paper, and so on. I chose to publish this book with a small, theological publisher whose titles occupy a growing space on my own shelves: Cascade, an imprint of Wipf & Stock. They’re a generous company and they’ve agreed to offer a discount to my readers from now until the end of June.

If you buy the book directly through their website, you can do so for 40% off the cover price using the code SOIL at checkout. That comes to $10 in savings. It’s a great deal, so you might want to just go ahead and order an extra copy to give away.

How to Help

I’m not always good at promoting my books. I like researching, writing, editing, but telling folks to buy the book makes me, in the words of my four-year-old self, “want to look at my shoes.” And yet, this book isn’t about me. This is a book about us, about human beings, and how we can live good and truthful lives in a world that seems bent on rejecting our creatureliness. It’s the best I have to offer and I want to get it into the hands of readers. Here are some ways you can help me do that:

1. Read it and tell your friends. Most books I read are because someone I know and respect told me about it. Word of mouth is the best way spread the word, so read The Art of Being a Creature and tell your friends what you thought of it.

2. Review it. When I hear about a book I usually look it up. Where? Amazon and Goodreads. They are the dominant places for book reviews and book research, like it or not (in my case not). I don’t buy many books from Amazon (I’m lucky to have a great local bookstore), but I do research them there, and reviews and star ratings on Amazon can really help a book. You can buy the book at Wipf and Stock, or better, your local bookstore if you’re lucky enough to have one, but wherever you buy it, go to Amazon and give an honest review. The same goes for Goodreads.

3. Post about it. Use Substack, Twitter/X, or whatever other platforms you frequent to tell folks about The Art of Being a Creature. It could even just be a note to say you’re excited about its publication. Include a link and feel free to share the 40% discount code SOIL.

4. Study it. The Art of Being a Creature mixes memoir, biblical study, theology, cultural critique, soil science, and reflections on nature, all through short essays. I lead lots of book groups and studies, both within an outside of the church, and I think this book would be great for such a study. If you’re an academic, the book would make for an accessible and generative inclusion in a course on eco-theology or some similar focus of study. You can request an exam copy to review for your syllabus here.

5. Suggest the book to your library. Many public and academic libraries allow patrons to request the purchase of new books for their collection. Check with your library and request that they buy a copy of The Art of Being a Creature.

6. Invite me to come talk with your group. If you have a group reading the book, or you have a speaker budget at your church or college, I’d love to come talk about humus, humility, and being a creature. I also have a weekend workshop/retreat I can bring to your community that mixes soil science, practical instruction in composting, and reflections on humility (we even get to look at soil microbes through a microscope together). Email me at Ragan@Ragansutterfield.com if you’re interested in discussing a visit.

For those who write or podcast:

If you are a book reviewer, Substacker, or writer for any venue, please review the book. You can request a copy for those purposes here. If you have a podcast or interview people for a publication, I’d love to be in conversation. I can’t promise much, but I do suspect I’d be your first guest with the potential to explore the theological implications of humanure composting. You can email me about appearing on your show at ragan@ragansutterfield.com

Thanks to all for reading. It’s a privileged to have your attention, especially in this ever more distracted world. May we all learn, more and more, how to be creatures once again.