I am so lucky and blessed to have read this book via Netgally,
It's honest, raw, fascinating and true,
The Author has done a great job with this book, we often thing humans are the superior beings, but we are not, We are one as a collective with nature.

Thank you for this book.

Let me say at the outset that this is a vital book, which has opened up to me, and no doubt to many others, an important aspect of the ecology of trees that will have far-reaching consequences for the planet. Suzanne Simard, whilst working in the forests of Canada, made the discovery that trees seem to possess complex information “superhighways” in their roots that allow them to share information, and for older trees to pass on knowledge to younger ones. This discovery has led to a revolution in how scientists view trees and forests, some even suggesting that trees have cognitive abilities. What does seem certain is that there is a relationship between tree roots and fungi called mycorrhizae, which serves as the means of communication between trees. Fascinating stuff, and most of the time I was gripped by the narrative of Simard’s research both in and out of the lab. However, I have to admit that the detailed science was occasionally too much for me and I found my attention wavering. My fault rather than the book’s, perhaps, but I could have done with “A Finding the Mother Tree for Dummies” version. However, the book is pretty much required reading for anyone concerned with the fate of our planet and the trees that we need so desperately, and there are plenty of TED talks and videos to explore the subject further.

I really could not get into this book. It read really well in the introduction. Perhaps I was not in the right frame of mind and if I revisited I may find it more interesting.

What an interesting and we'll researched book. Part autobiography and part scientific paper the author discusses the amazing concept of the wood wide web and mother trees. At first it seemed quite fanciful, but .by the end one realised that humans could actually learn a lot from trees and a little cooperation and nurturing goes a long way
Thank you to netgalley and penguin books for an advance copy of this book

A rich and powerful story, not just of how trees communicate and support each other, but of Suzanne's life and work, Finding the Mother Tree was one of the best memoirs I've read in recent years. Suzanne's ground-breaking research into trees and the practices we have foolishly relied on for years couldn't come at a better time. As we learn more about the world around us we can work to correct the errors that have proven detrimental to not just trees but all the creatures living on and amongst trees.

I really loved this book. It is life affirming, intelligent (but not overly so as to put off non-scientists), humorous and sad, too. It inspires hope that we can make this world better by implementing practices that work in harmony with nature.

My thanks to Penguin Press U.K. /Allen Lane for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Finding the Mother Tree: Uncovering the Wisdom and Intelligence of the Forest’ by Suzanne Simard. I also have its audiobook edition narrated by the author.

Suzanne Simard is the world-renowned scientist who first discovered the hidden language of trees and coined the term: Wood Wide Web to describe the complex interconnectivity between trees.

In 2018 I had loved ‘The Overstory’ by Richard Powers, which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won a Pulitzer. One of its central characters was inspired by the life and work of Suzanne Simard, the author of this memoir.

This was a fascinating memoir, charting Suzanne Simard’s groundbreaking work uncovering the secrets of trees. Some parts of the book were difficult to read as she writes of the clear cutting of the British Columbian forests and the early experiments she conducted in order to convince the Forestry professionals to change their practices.

Alongside the autobiographical aspects there’s a lot of information about trees as well as other members of the plant and fungi kingdoms. I didn’t understand all of the science discussed in the text though felt that I could always follow up if I wanted more background. Aside from an index the book contains a list of cited sources organised chapter by chapter.

Overall, I found this a thought-provoking and moving account of the life and work of this extraordinary woman.

Fans of "Gathering Moss" will love "Finding the Mother Tree". Plant intelligence is a field we need to be discussing a LOT more in our climate crisis, and Simard's brilliant research made me more curious to find out more. Thank you for this enlightening ARC!

This book opens with Suzanne (the author) as a young forestry worker (seasonal) understanding that recently planted seedlings in a clear felled area of forestry were not doing well. The question in her mind is why. Nearby naturally developing seedlings are doing just fine. The book then goes back to her childhood and her family's long involvement in forestry in Canada. The scene is well set for this book.

While this is the author's first book she has had many academic papers published. She has devoted a large part of her life to the study of trees particularly those in Canada. The initial puzzlement about the fact that seedlings are not thriving leads to a number of issues with the approach to forestry management in Canada. While Suzanne's work has largely involved Canada her idea have spread. She is the person responsible for the idea of the "wood wide web". When I heard about this - some years back - the idea interested me. However I hadn't found the time to find out more until now.

Suzanne's devotion to understanding trees and their wellbeing is remarkable. From her initial questioning of why seedlings don't thrive she follows "threads" both literal and metaphorical in the course of this book. From this we find out far more about Mycorrhizal fungi and the interactions between trees and fungi in the soil. Each "answer" to her studies tends to lead to further questions and discoveries. These discoveries really are remarkable to me and so important.

I do have some small reservations about this book. For me personally I would have loved to have seen some maps showing where her work took place. I would have also liked more photos of trees, plants and wildlife too I guess. My brain would have found seeing some of the data relating to her experiments easier to understand in the form of tables rather than narratives.

Ultimately this book is both a personal biography and the results of a number of an academic studies. This combination may not suit everyone. As far as I am concerned this is a very important book. It shows just how little we really understand about our planet. It also shows our resistance to change particularly when it involves big business. From the tiniest parts of fungi on tree roots to the survival of our world - if that is not important I'm not sure what is.

Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review

This is a fascinating subject, and one that has had much coverage in recent months, and it was so interesting to read the story of the interconnectedness of forest species from a scientist who has made it her life's work to study it. As a woman in the male-dominated world of forestry, I felt keenly her struggles to get the message across that a well managed mixed forest is far healthier and more profitable than the monoculture model. I suffered with her when she stood up to address conferences at which she knew many members of her audience were not even listening.

The writer's personal story is fascinating too and her relationship with the natural world is deep and passionate.

The only issue I have with the book is that the descriptions of her experiments are very long and very detailed. I think a more generalised approach would have suited me better, as the amount of technical detail was just too much to take in.

I was fascinated by this book and the concept of a mother tree and all the connections from it. Really interesting and well-written. Highly recommended.

I am no eco-warrior and Greta Thunberg creeps me out. Having said that, I have always felt that we have failed to treat the biodiversity of our planet fairly and have, in the last Century or so, treated too much of it as an infinite resource put there for us to destroy as we see fit.

That stance has come back in so many ways to bite us in the behind and this book sets out what we have done and are still doing to a major part of our ecosystem namely the forests.

For me, the book resonated because I have always felt that Nature has a far better grasp of what is to be done with the diversity of the living world than we ever have. Whilst the book is a little longer than I feel is necessary, it does demonstrate very eloquently that "no tree is an island" and that biodiversity works so much better when all of the participants are on the same page.

If you are even slightly curious about the ways that the various industries treat the available Natural Resources, like trees, as a cash crop, whilst paying lip-service to providing replacements for the generation they will likely not be alive to deal with, this is a must read book.

Suzanne Simard's book was a fascinating combination of scientific research and memoir. Suzanne grew up in British Columbia, Canada surrounded by nature and trees. When she entered the world of work, she saw the destructive nature of the logging industry and the harm that forestry policy wrought on trees. This led to a life researching trees to understand them better, their relationship with each other and their relationship with us.

This wasn't an easy road for Suzanne to travel and in the book we learn about the push back she got from policymakers and industry to her groundbreaking research findings that challenged the widely understood approach to forestry. We also learn about her life more widely and how her love for trees informs her love for, and relationship, with her family.

This book will challenge how you view trees and their, and our, place in the world.

This book just shot to the top of my list of "best-ever writing by a scientist", to vie with Dave Goulson's 'A Sting in the Tale'. I am, simply, in awe of Suzanne Simard's heroism, genius, and the beauty with which she has translated her science into a communicable story.

'Finding the Mother Tree' is fairly chunky, but I found myself racing through it. Something about Simard's style just gripped me. She never feels condescending, sharing the designs of her various experiments in great detail. You don't need to be a scientist or student yourself to understand the concepts and approaches that Simard conveys.
She also avoids the irritating habit that some science writers have of trying to wedge in flippant humour.

I loved Richard Power's 'The Overstory', which features a woman said to have been based on Simard, and recently enjoyed Meg Lowman's 'The Arbonaut' too. 'Finding the Mother Tree' completes a triptych, for me. I feel enlightened, saddened, and uplifted. I feel privileged to have read this book.

(With thanks to Allen Lane and NetGalley for this ebook, in exchange for an honest review)

Suzanne Simard takes us on a journey of discovery both scientific and personal as she describes the relationships between trees, their environment, their relationships to each other and to us.
Trees connect to each other underground, unseen yet communicating, supporting and sustaining each other.
Finding the Mother Tree is part memoir part natural history with insides into the research and discovery of who we are and how forests are crucial to our health and the health of our planet.

In Finding the Mother Tree a world-leading expert shares her amazing story of discovering the communication that exists between trees, and shares her own story of family and grief. Dr. Suzanne Simard was born and raised in the rainforests of British Columbia and has forged a lifelong relationship of love and respect with the trees. This relationship was the driving force behind her decision to dedicate her life to better understanding the forest and the network that connects the plant life within. With humour, emotion, and the narrative drive of a lifelong storyteller, Dr. Simard takes readers on an intimate journey of groundbreaking scientific discovery. Linking her research to her personal experiences, she recounts her life's work uncovering the Wood Wide Web, the underground mycelium network that connects all the trees and plants within a forest.

It is a network that allows them to share not only nutrients, but information, all of which originates from the hubs called Mother Trees. Readers will journey with Dr. Simard into this massive experiment, from dramatic encounters with wildlife to the groundbreaking Aha moments in a lab, from learning how to utilize this network to promote plant growth to what this network can teach us about combatting climate change. Dramatic, funny, touching, and evocative, Finding the Mother Tree offers an intimate and personal look at discovery. This book is not about how we can save the trees, but about how the trees might actually save us. An exquisitely written, richly informative and utterly compelling hybrid of fascinating facts about the natural world all around us and personal memoir. An accessible, wonderful and eminently readable book. Highly recommended.

I feel like I should probably preface this review with a disclaimer: I do not have a scientific background, and a lot of the concepts and theories in this book were completely new to me. But Dr Simard's conversational style, interweaving autobiography with scholarship, makes this complex subject accessible.

This is a book about connection, and at its heart lies the links between the personal and the professional, family and forest. I enjoyed the insight into the lengthy process of research and experimentation, and the challenges Dr Simard faced in communicating her groundbreaking findings with the world. Her research has had a global impact, but it has also been a powerful personal journey.

Part natural history, part memoir, Finding the Mother Tree is a fascinating insight into the secret framework of forests.

Thoroughly fascinated by Suzanne Simard! It is so interesting to learn that all trees are connected underground and on the part the mother tree plays to keep her kin alive and blooming. Now I find myself trying to identify the Mother tree when I am out and about and have definitely found my interest in nature growing.

Very interesting science memoir. Not what I'd usually read but it caught my attention as I enjoy nature and forests. Very relevant to today with everything that is going on with climate and environmental change. Thought provoking book.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Press UK - Allen Lane for the ARC.

Prof Simard’s research on forests has transformed our understanding of how trees communicate with each other.

In this memoir from the self-styled forest detective, we see early inspiration come from her logging family and life in British Columbia woodland. We follow her career, to her discovery, during her PhD, of the Wood Wide Web, and the more recent breakthroughs on resource transfer, defence signalling and kin recognition signalling.

The scientist’s work has contributed to innovative and sustainable forestry practices. She is now turning her attention to mitigating the effects on forests of climate and environmental change.

My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Press UK – Allen Lane for the ARC

Prof Simard’s research on forests has transformed our understanding of how trees communicate with each other.

In this memoir from the self-styled forest detective, we see early inspiration come from her logging family and life in British Columbia woodland. We follow her career as a silviculturist and academician, to her discovery, during her PhD, of the Wood Wide Web, and the more recent breakthroughs on resource transfer, defence signalling and kin recognition signalling.

The scientist’s work has contributed to innovative and sustainable forestry practices. She is now turning her attention to mitigating the effects on forests of climate and environmental change.

My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Press UK – Allen Lane for the ARC.