Monday, November 15, 2021

Nonfiction November: Week 3: Be the Expert: The Best Books about Trees


A forest in Arkansas, October 2021

Nothing awes me more than trees. I've been obsessed lately with reading about trees, and I thought there might be some of you who are also inexplicably drawn to reading about them. Here are some tree books I have loved.


The best nonfiction books I've read about trees...

Around the World in 80 Trees by Jonathan Drori 

Remarkable Trees of the World by Thomas Pakenham

The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees by Douglas W. Tallamy

Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness by Qing Li

The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate - Discoveries from a Secret World by Peter Wohleben


A few fiction titles you shouldn't miss if you love trees...

The Overstory by Richard Powers

Barkskins by Annie Proulx

The Word for World is Forest by Ursula LeGuin

The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino


A few wonderful nonfiction and fiction titles for children...

Redwoods by Jason Chin

Wangari's Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa by Jeanette Winter

Can You Hear the Trees Talking? Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest by Peter Wohleben

The Tree in Me by Corinna Luyken

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Zonia's Rain Forest by Juana Martinez-Neal

I Hear You Forest by Kali George

The Bear Who Wasn't There and the Fabulous Forest by Oren Lavie


Week 3: (November 15-19) – Be/Ask/Become the Expert with Veronica at The Thousand Book Project: Three ways to join in this week! You can either share 3 or more books on a single topic that you have read and can recommend (be the expert), you can put the call out for good nonfiction on a specific topic that you have been dying to read (ask the expert), or you can create your own list of books on a topic that you’d like to read (become the expert). 

29 comments:

  1. Great work there, and also I'm pleased as I took the "3 or more" and ran with it, too, and was worrying I'd posted too many books! I love this theme, and you've got some great books there.

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  2. Great list. Yeah I've heard The Hidden Life of Trees is amazing ... I like to think of the communication between them

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  3. I love that you have included children's books! What better way for children to learn to love and appreciate trees and nature! I may see which ones our library has--especially, Can You Hear the Trees Talking. :)

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  4. I don't think I would be able to read a book about trees.
    Nice that your shared some children's books as well.

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  5. I have a number of nonfiction books about trees, though not the ones you mention. My most often used is Texas Trees, a field guide to the trees of Texas. I can recommend it to anyone wanting to identify trees in the field. And I seriously need to read Barkskins!

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  6. Now I will think of you as a relative of the Lorax (who speaks for the trees). That's a remarkable booklist! I have not read many of them, except for the Calvino and the Dr.Seuss. I haven't even read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. However, I did read a book called Mahogany: The Costs of Luxury in Early America by Jennifer L. Anderson, which is a history of one type of tree.

    best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  7. I've heard such good things about the Hidden Life of Trees. I read a different book by the same author and didn't love it, but I want to be open to reading the tree book.

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  8. What a great assortment! I can only think of The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart and although the tree is important it is not the focus of the book. Thanks for sharing these!

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  9. I love all of these Deb!! I am saving this post for future reference. Lol.

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  10. I've never thought about books about trees! Apart from "The Giving Tree!"

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  11. I think you need to add Greenwood by Michael Christie to your list.

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  12. We've recently had one of my favorite trees cut down from our front yard because it was growing too close to the house. I'm still grieving its loss. I love trees!

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  13. I love trees as well. The thing I miss most about New Orleans and the MS coast is the live oaks. They're just so beautiful. I'm making note of these books as well.

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  14. Great list! Reading about nature can be so soothing.

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  15. Deb, have you read Andrew Peterson's new book, The God of the Garden: Thoughts on Creation, Culture, and the Kingdom? I haven't read the entire book, but I did hear him read aloud a chapter from it. It's all about trees, trees in scripture, and his history with trees. I'm fairly sure you'd like it.

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  16. What a wonderful topic! I hugely enjoyed The Overstory. Around the World in 80 Trees and The Nature of Oaks both look really interesting. Thanks for recommending these.

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  17. It has been a popular topic in the midst of lockdown. Lovely recommendations, thanks for sharing

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  18. What a wonderful post about trees. I have only read The Overstory but that fits the category very well.

    Here is my Year in Non-Fiction November for Week 3.

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  19. Imagine, so many books about trees! Wonderful. Great choices of expert books.

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  20. Oh, I love how you approached the prompt this week! And that you found so many recommendations, including children's books.

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  21. Great expertise, Deb. I love trees too, and have reviewed a book on my blog on Australia's remarkable trees, as well as a few essays about trees including John Muir's A wind-storm in the forests.

    I'd love to read some more recent books, particularly those ones about communication between the trees.

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  22. Great expertise, Deb. I love trees too, and have reviewed a book on my blog on Australia's remarkable trees, as well as a few essays about trees including John Muir's A wind-storm in the forests.

    I'd love to read some more recent books, particularly those ones about communication between the trees.

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  23. Great expertise, Deb. I love trees too, and have reviewed a book on my blog on Australia's remarkable trees, as well as a few essays about trees including John Muir's A wind-storm in the forests.

    I'd love to read some more recent books, particularly those ones about communication between the trees.

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  24. LOVED Barkskins. Thanks for giving me a copy.

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  25. What a great compilation! We've been out in nature a lot more and I realize I have a lot to learn between different trees, birds, etc. There's so much to discover in nature isn't there?

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