April
Teaching the Trees: Lessons from the Forest, by Joan Maloof
"Not so long ago," Maloof notes, "the largest trees lived in the forests, and the trees in parks and yards were modest by comparison; today, in many parts of the world, the tables have turned." Concerned that so few old-growth trees exist, Maloof offers a lovely collection of essays as spur and solace. A meditation on beech trees explores the trees' relationship to red-backed salamanders, the twayblade orchid, and flying squirrels. An essay on maples recalls the years of childhood, when whirly-gigs (maple seeds) rained down from the trees in Maloof's yard. Unexpected details grace the book. The sweet-gum tree, for instance, which doesn't flower until it is 20 years old, produces two types of flowers that bloom simultaneously, and its aromatic sap, prized by the Aztecs, was used as medicine as well as incense. A biologist by training, the author makes good use of poetry and history to demonstrate the connections between the trees and the rest of the planet's inhabitants. A gem. Rebecca Maksel
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