Overview

Forests are restless. Any time a tree dies or a new one sprouts, the forest that includes it has shifted. Today, however, an array of obstacles—humans felling trees by the billions, invasive pests transported through global trade—threaten to overwhelm these vital movements. Worst of all, the climate is changing faster than ever before, and forests are struggling to keep up. A deft blend of science reporting and travel writing, The Journeys of Trees examines the evolving movements of forests by focusing on five types of tree: giant sequoia, ash, black spruce, Florida torreya, and Monterey pine. Journalist Zach St. George reads fossils that show the paths of ancient forests, introduces lively characters on the conservation front lines—such as an ecologist studying droughts and an evolutionary evangelist with plans to save a dying species—and reveals how we can all help our trees, and our planet, survive and thrive.

Full Product Details

9781324001607

Table of Contents

Reviews

[A] rumination, backed by in-depth reporting, on the current state of North America's forests....the extraordinary scientists [St. George] features here do give hope that their nuanced work...will be taken seriously enough to repair, even avert, catastrophic change.--Booklist A beautiful elegy to trees and the people working to preserve them. This compelling read shows how climate change impacts the natural ranges of tree species and how scientists are creating strategies to mitigate this influence.--Library Journal A deeply researched book that is liable to change your perspective on the magnificent, tall, woody creatures that cover one-third of the Earth's land... [St. George] brings a flair for gathering and distilling esoteric scientific findings into lively, accessible explanations.--Wall Street Journal A fascinating, eloquent, and often surprisingly funny journey into the troubled relationship between people and trees in a future that is now. This is the smartest book yet on how to think and live in the age of climate change.--J. B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World A thoughtful and timely meditation on how our changing world disrupts the bonds between trees, the lands they root in, and the people whose lives they nourish--and what we might do about it.--Sonia Shah, author of Pandemic and The Next Great Migration An elegant--and urgent--paean to trees.--Jim Robbins, author of The Man Who Planted Trees How does a tree travel? From that seemingly koan-like question, Zach St. George creates an illuminating, enchanting, and occasionally alarming portrait of an earth in flux. I will treasure this book long into our uncertain future.--Robert Moor, author of On Trails I was once asked by a scientist, 'Are you ready to put a sprinkler system on the giant sequoias?' Zach St. George takes us on a journey to understand why this question is so important and the answer so complex.--Jonathan Jarvis, former director of the National Park Service and coauthor of The Future of Conservation in America These stories vividly evoke the deep bonds between people and trees. In the paradoxical, surprising journeys of trees is writ the sylvan future of forests and cities alike.--David George Haskell, author of The Forest Unseen This captivating book makes deep acquaintance with five species of tree, revealing that life is constantly on the move and nature needs space to survive. Forests, it turns out, migrate across vast dimensions of space and time, engaged in an invisible ballet Zach St. George helps us to see.--Mary Ellen Hannibal, author of Citizen Scientist

A fascinating, eloquent, and often surprisingly funny journey into the troubled relationship between people and trees in a future that is now. This is the smartest book yet on how to think and live in the age of climate change.--J. B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World A thoughtful and timely meditation on how our changing world disrupts the bonds between trees, the lands they root in, and the people whose lives they nourish--and what we might do about it.--Sonia Shah, author of Pandemic and The Next Great Migration An elegant--and urgent--paean to trees.--Jim Robbins, author of The Man Who Planted Trees How does a tree travel? From that seemingly koan-like question, Zach St. George creates an illuminating, enchanting, and occasionally alarming portrait of an earth in flux. I will treasure this book long into our uncertain future.--Robert Moor, author of On Trails I was once asked by a scientist, 'Are you ready to put a sprinkler system on the giant sequoias?' Zach St. George takes us on a journey to understand why this question is so important and the answer so complex.--Jonathan Jarvis, former director of the National Park Service and coauthor of The Future of Conservation in America These stories vividly evoke the deep bonds between people and trees. In the paradoxical, surprising journeys of trees is writ the sylvan future of forests and cities alike.--David George Haskell, author of The Forest Unseen This captivating book makes deep acquaintance with five species of tree, revealing that life is constantly on the move and nature needs space to survive. Forests, it turns out, migrate across vast dimensions of space and time, engaged in an invisible ballet Zach St. George helps us to see.--Mary Ellen Hannibal, author of Citizen Scientist

A deeply researched book that is liable to change your perspective on the magnificent, tall, woody creatures that cover one-third of the Earth's land... [St. George] brings a flair for gathering and distilling esoteric scientific findings into lively, accessible explanations. [A] rumination, backed by in-depth reporting, on the current state of North America's forests....the extraordinary scientists [St. George] features here do give hope that their nuanced work...will be taken seriously enough to repair, even avert, catastrophic change. A beautiful elegy to trees and the people working to preserve them. This compelling read shows how climate change impacts the natural ranges of tree species and how scientists are creating strategies to mitigate this influence. A fascinating, eloquent, and often surprisingly funny journey into the troubled relationship between people and trees in a future that is now. This is the smartest book yet on how to think and live in the age of climate change.--J. B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World A thoughtful and timely meditation on how our changing world disrupts the bonds between trees, the lands they root in, and the people whose lives they nourish--and what we might do about it.--Sonia Shah, author of Pandemic and The Next Great Migration An elegant--and urgent--paean to trees.--Jim Robbins, author of The Man Who Planted Trees How does a tree travel? From that seemingly koan-like question, Zach St. George creates an illuminating, enchanting, and occasionally alarming portrait of an earth in flux. I will treasure this book long into our uncertain future.--Robert Moor, author of On Trails I was once asked by a scientist, 'Are you ready to put a sprinkler system on the giant sequoias?' Zach St. George takes us on a journey to understand why this question is so important and the answer so complex.--Jonathan Jarvis, former director of the National Park Service and coauthor of The Future of Conservation in America These stories vividly evoke the deep bonds between people and trees. In the paradoxical, surprising journeys of trees is writ the sylvan future of forests and cities alike.--David George Haskell, author of The Forest Unseen This captivating book makes deep acquaintance with five species of tree, revealing that life is constantly on the move and nature needs space to survive. Forests, it turns out, migrate across vast dimensions of space and time, engaged in an invisible ballet Zach St. George helps us to see.--Mary Ellen Hannibal, author of Citizen Scientist

I was once asked by a scientist, 'Are you ready to put a sprinkler system on the giant sequoias?' Zach St. George takes us on a journey to understand why this question is so important and the answer so complex. -- Jonathan Jarvis, former director of the National Park Service and coauthor of The Future of Conservation in America An elegant-and urgent-paean to trees. -- Jim Robbins, author of The Man Who Planted Trees This captivating book makes deep acquaintance with five species of tree, revealing that life is constantly on the move and nature needs space to survive. Forests, it turns out, migrate across vast dimensions of space and time, engaged in an invisible ballet Zach St. George helps us to see. -- Mary Ellen Hannibal, author of Citizen Scientist How does a tree travel? From that seemingly koan-like question, Zach St. George creates an illuminating, enchanting, and occasionally alarming portrait of an earth in flux. I will treasure this book long into our uncertain future. -- Robert Moor, author of On Trails A fascinating, eloquent, and often surprisingly funny journey into the troubled relationship between people and trees in a future that is now. This is the smartest book yet on how to think and live in the age of climate change. -- J. B. MacKinnon, author of The Once and Future World These stories vividly evoke the deep bonds between people and trees. In the paradoxical, surprising journeys of trees is writ the sylvan future of forests and cities alike. -- David George Haskell, author of The Forest Unseen A thoughtful and timely meditation on how our changing world disrupts the bonds between trees, the lands they root in, and the people whose lives they nourish-and what we might do about it. -- Sonia Shah, author of Pandemic and The Next Great Migration

Author Information

Zach St. George is a science journalist and author of The Journeys of Trees. His writing has appeared in National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine, Harper’s, The Atlantic, Outside, Smithsonian, Scientific American, and more. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

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