Finding the Mother Tree

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



Essential.

Suzanne Simard is one of the most important figures in 21st Century forest science. She has presented a way of observing and understanding forests that has gradually shifted western thought on the relationship between trees, fungi, and other organisms.

This book is presented as an autobiography, traversing Simard's life. The stories, particularly those of adversity where she struggled to have her radical ideas accepted in forestry and scientific communities, are brilliantly told and very compelling. Some of the writing feels over-coached and as a result doesn't come across as genuine as Simard usually is. Still, the experiments and discoveries are thrilling and brilliantly told as a complete story that makes for a fantastic book.