Forest Walking

Starred review from January 24, 2022
Forester Wohlleben and editor Billinghurst reconvene for this enlightening look at the power of forests (after The Hidden Life of Trees). Being in the woods can force one to slow down and offers an opportunity to hone senses, the authors write, and they offer a guide to navigating woodland areas. This includes tips for seasonal walks, wildlife spotting, foraging, and outdoor attire, and they suggest some activities for children, too, such as painting with mud on a tree trunk and learning to play the beech leaf, which makes a squeaking sound when blown. Along the way, Wohlleben and Billinghurst provide insight into how forests operate: “Thrifty red spruces,” for example, “engineer an ecosystem” in soil that lacks nutrients, and even dead trees serve as homes for wildlife and provide nutrients to the earth. Trees “shape the soil, the climate, the frequency of fire, and the path taken by water in the surrounding landscape.” The survey is poetic and full of marvels, and readers will be encouraged by the authors’ insistence that a simple walk is all one needs to find adventure. This beautifully written homage will have readers ready to get outside.

March 1, 2022
Forester and ecologist Wohlleben, whose entrancing and enlightening accounts of his phenomenal arboreal knowledge and extensive forest sojourns, including The Heartbeat of Trees (2021), are international best-sellers, joins forces with writer and translator Billinghurst to entice readers to embark on their own woodland adventures. From the marvels of tree roots up to miraculously engineered trunks to branches and leaves, the authors cue readers to the tactile sensations, sights, sounds, smells, and tastes (snacking on pill bugs!) of American and Canadian forests. They elucidate with delight how lichen, slugs, ants, and fungi keep the forest vital and carbon safely buried. They share encounters with wolves, bears, moose, and all kinds of birds, each with a role in the forest's multidimensional "cascade of interactions." Wohlleben shares his own expeditions and discoveries and the elation they bring as he encourages readers to venture forth and suggests ways children can enjoy the forest as "a big messy playground." Brimming with expert practical advice and "fun forest facts," this is a profound invitation to fine-tune our observational skills and fully appreciate the forest as a vibrant, complex community.

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