📚Book Review📚
🌲Take to the Trees: A Story of Hope, Science, and Self-Discovery in America’s Imperiled Forests by Marguerite Holloway
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Genres: Non-fiction, Science and Nature

I enjoy nature and environmental novels, and this one hit the mark! This novel is an homage to a vital part of our ecosystem we often take for granted. Holloway takes us on a deep dive (or rather, high climb?) into the awe-inspiring world of trees and their caretakers.

Take to the Trees follows the author, who attends a Women’s Tree Climbing Workshop, and includes personal snapshots and challenges of the author’s and arborists’ lives, interspersed with details of the inner workings and plights of different trees.

I was fascinated by how different each tree species can be, and waxed poetic to my arborist husband about things like “vapor pressure deficit” and different techniques for climbing trees. It also highlights how our trees are being irreparably affected due to climate change, with a gentle message of environmental stewardship and communal responsibility.

I finished this book with a deeper appreciation of our shared flora. This book is a must-read for nature enthusiasts, environmentalists, and anyone seeking a more profound understanding of our relationship with the natural world.

Thank you to NetGalley and W. W. Norton for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I had a little trouble imaging exactly what this book would be like, and it turns out it's not really about one woman learning to climb trees, or what she learns from being around them, it's more about the sisters who run the workshop and their lives. The reader is also introduced to men and women around the globe who care about trees and study them closely. Through these people we are given fascinating looks into trees around the world, their history, development, uniqueness, and precarious futures.

I loved the interesting details about trees, including Aspen, Wollemi, Beech and Oak. Plus, the line drawings by Ellen Weiner are breathtakingly lovely. Mixed in are personal stories from the childhoods of the sisters, their experiences as female arborists, and encounters with various trees. I'm a reader who prefers to get my nonfiction straight, without many personal details mixed in, so this didn't work as well for me. But many readers will genuinely enjoy this well-written blending of biography and science.

Lovers of trees should be warned that while the overall tone of this book attempts to be positive about change, there is a lot of bad news for trees. Human encroachment and climate change are challenging them in ways they probably can't adapt to, and the future doesn't look good. I found myself wishing the author had saved the negative information for one or two specific sections instead of spreading it throughout the chapters, as it made for a fairly negative reading experience for me, though she tries to focus on the positive, and ends on a note of optimism.

However, if you're looking for a book that will entrance you with the beauty and wonder of trees and then show you specifics of why they're endangered, or if you like science nonfiction that mixes in strong personal stories, this may be perfect for you. It definitely a topic more people need to hear and understand, and this book makes an excellent introduction.

Thank you to WW Norton, the author and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book for review.