Finding the Mother Tree

I found this book to be a fantastic blend of the science of forests’ interconnectedness, combined with stories of the author’s life and family history in the deep forests of British Columbia.

When I first heard of this book and its title, I assumed it would be pretty wu-wu. What it turned out to be was a heart-felt memoir by a scientist about how they turned their intuition about the forest as a child into some nobel-prize-deserving discoveries.

The book opens with the most appetizing mouth-watering descriptions of dirt -- the "good" dirt is called humus, and the literary feat of making me feel like I missed out in my childhood for avoiding mushroomy loamy dirt allowed the author quite a bit of running room as she described her early years. Getting into the discoveries themselves and going up against a logging-industry intoxicated national service was wonderful.

Part ecological study, and part autobiography, this is a beautiful, heartfelt, vital book.



Essential.