20th November 2020
Book review: The Journeys of Trees: A Story about Forests, People, and the Future by Zach St. George
Clare de Villanueva reviews Zach St George’s new book
This book pulled together the strands of forestry, conservation and environmental activism for me. It has a focus on North America (and the occasional associated language differences which may be frustrating to an old-school reader!), but has broader applications for the concerns of anyone engaged in the future of our natural world. It returns to favourite topics in our circles such as what’s native, the validity of human intervention to ‘help’ struggling species, tree species’ response to past climate changes, scientists’ pursuit of research versus pursuit of funding, what’s realistic when it comes to restricting or mitigating the spread of pests and disease, and the role of commercial forestry in responding to climate change, pests and disease, and even their role in conservation. I wonder if he could have written more about historic indigenous management of (and reverence for) trees and forests, as he seems open to other aspects of the spirituality, heritage and romanticism of trees and the links with human development…but maybe that’s been done elsewhere. St. George certainly covers an ambitious set of topics with this book and it seems well-researched. I certainly enjoyed reading it, and my understanding benefited from the US-Canada perspective and the staggering difference in scale.
The Journeys of Trees: A Story about Forests, People and the Future was published by W W Norton & Company in August 2020, priced at £19.99.
Posted by: Clare de Villanueva
Clare de Villanueva is the Ancient Tree Forum's Projects & Partnerships Manager, and is an independent project consultant in the fields of science and environment. Clare has worked for Ancient Tree Forum since early 2018 on their Esmee Fairbairn funded work, and now supports ATF's regional groups and concordats.
