This book provides a compelling examination of the intersection between land ownership, racial inequality, and environmental issues. While it offers insightful stories from individuals and communities affected by land exploitation, While I liked that it leaned more heavily on social justice narratives, I also hoped for more actionable solutions. The writing could have been more concise, but the connections between land use and systemic injustice were thought-provoking. It’s a worthwhile read for those interested in exploring these overlapping crises from a justice-oriented perspective.

I really struggled to get into this and eventually had to give up, unfortunately. The biggest problem I had with it was that the narrator really didn’t work for me, which made following the arguments more difficult. Though the subject matters discussed were interesting, I didn‘t find the writing particularly engaging and also expected more concise observations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review! This was an informative book with a lot of really great information on land and how government control has played such a large part in how land is being used. I was really hoping for more information on climate change and how it plays such a big part on the current state of the land, but that was honestly a very small portion of the book. I did enjoy hearing the specific stories of different individuals and groups who have dealt with land ownership issues, it made the information more relevant and personal.

Freeing The Land

This was a good book.

Initially, the title of the book attracted me, as I am particularly drawn to fighting poverty, and also climate change - it is fairly rare to have both topics in a book title, so I had to check it out!

I found the book mostly and specifically focused on the social justice and memoir aspects of the book title, rather than direct and actionable improvements to political and economic systems, however I did find it an interesting read.

I can't say I agree with some of the views, and found some of the memoir-side of the book fairly lengthy, but I did enjoy it for the most part.

If you are looking for a good book on the social justice aspects of poverty and some details behind the scenes, I definitely recommend checking this out.

3.5/5