The Forest Unseen: A Year's Watch in Nature

David George Haskell

Mar 2012 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

A biologist reveals the secret world hidden in a single square meter of old-growth forest—a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Pen/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award 

Combining elegant writing with scientific expertise, The Forest Unseen "injects much-needed vibrancy into the stuffy world of nature writing" (Outside, "The Outdoor Books That Shaped the Last Decade")

In this wholly original book, biologist David Haskell uses a one- square-meter patch of old-growth Tennessee forest as a window onto the entire natural world. Visiting it almost daily for one year to trace nature's path through the seasons, he brings the forest and its inhabitants to vivid life.

Each of this book's short chapters begins with a simple observation: a salamander scuttling across the leaf litter; the first blossom of spring wildflowers. From these, Haskell spins a brilliant web of biology and ecology, explaining the science that binds together the tiniest microbes and the largest mammals and describing the ecosystems that have cycled for thousands- sometimes millions-of years. Each visit to the forest presents a nature story in miniature as Haskell elegantly teases out the intricate relationships that order the creatures and plants that call it home.

Written with remarkable grace and empathy, The Forest Unseen is a grand tour of nature in all its profundity. Haskell is a perfect guide into the world that exists beneath our feet and beyond our backyards.

Ratings and reviews

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About the author

David Haskell’s work integrates scientific, literary, and contemplative studies of the natural world. He is a professor of biology and environmental studies at the University of the South and a Guggenheim Fellow. His 2012 book The Forest Unseen was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award, and won the 2013 Best Book Award from the National Academies, the National Outdoor Book Award, and the Reed Environmental Writing Award.  Along with his scholarly research, he has published essays, op-eds, and poetry.