Book Review: The Trees in My Forest
The Trees in My Forest by Bernd Heinrich, published by HarperCollins, 1998. Paperback, 256 pages. (Amazon)
Biologist Heinrich lives in the 300-acre forest of the title, a place he describes in detail both verbally and visually. Alongside his scientific, though readable, writing on the evolution of trees, sex in trees, seeds, mushrooms, and so forth, are his hand drawn sketches. The middle section of the book is devoted to these full-color, exquisitely-detailed sketches, such as on the cover at left. While the book's greatest contribution is giving the reader an appreciation of the lives of trees and the forest as a working ecosystem, the appendix illustrates the author's intentions. Talking about the forest management plan he must submit to the state of Maine, he criticizes tree farms, plantations, and other methods of harvesting wood that are marketed as sustainable. Heinrich proposes that forests are not only better ecologically - through their integral variety of species - but are also better economically. After reading this book, one realizes that practices ignoring the the basic tenets of nature need to be rethought, as do the systems that support and perpetuate those practices.
Biologist Heinrich lives in the 300-acre forest of the title, a place he describes in detail both verbally and visually. Alongside his scientific, though readable, writing on the evolution of trees, sex in trees, seeds, mushrooms, and so forth, are his hand drawn sketches. The middle section of the book is devoted to these full-color, exquisitely-detailed sketches, such as on the cover at left. While the book's greatest contribution is giving the reader an appreciation of the lives of trees and the forest as a working ecosystem, the appendix illustrates the author's intentions. Talking about the forest management plan he must submit to the state of Maine, he criticizes tree farms, plantations, and other methods of harvesting wood that are marketed as sustainable. Heinrich proposes that forests are not only better ecologically - through their integral variety of species - but are also better economically. After reading this book, one realizes that practices ignoring the the basic tenets of nature need to be rethought, as do the systems that support and perpetuate those practices.
Comments
Post a Comment
Comments are moderated for spam.