nature book (nonfiction) rec?

[Anonymous]

Lab girl
Overstory

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, everyone, these are great suggestions with quite a few I haven't read yet.

Here are a few of my favorites that haven't been mentioned yet, in case anyone else is looking.

Proust and the Squid by Maryanne Wolf
The Nature of Oaks by Doug Tallamy
A World on the Wing by Scott Weidensaul (bird migration)
The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman
The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf (bio of Humboldt)
The Language of Butterflies by Wendy Williams

The Genius of Birds is AMAZING

[Anonymous]

I just bought a book on plants that are edible and useful for medicinal purposes in my geographic region (not DC any more). It's fascinating how many plants we lump together as "weeds" are actually edible! I'm enjoying it (and the many different tastes of weeds I've been able to try!). There is probably something similar available for the mid-Atlantic.

[Anonymous]

On Trails by Moor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, everyone, these are great suggestions with quite a few I haven't read yet.

Here are a few of my favorites that haven't been mentioned yet, in case anyone else is looking.

Proust and the Squid by Maryanne Wolf
The Nature of Oaks by Doug Tallamy
A World on the Wing by Scott Weidensaul (bird migration)
The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman
The Invention of Nature by Andrea Wulf (bio of Humboldt)
The Language of Butterflies by Wendy Williams

Jennifer Ackerman is amazing

[Anonymous]

Another Bill Bryson to try (other than A Walk in the Woods) is A Brief History of Nearly Everything. I read it on a vacation years ago and it had a profound impact on me. It tracks the history of the universe and the earth from the Big Bang to the rise of human civilization, focusing a lot on the history of our understanding of these things, getting into the development of math and physics and geology from the time of the ancient Greeks to the 20th century. But it's a layperson's overview of these things, so it's very accessible.

I found it so soothing and informative. Thinking about it makes me want to read it again.

[Anonymous]

Hidden Life of Trees
H is for Hawk

[Anonymous]

The one about the octopuses (not octopi as I learned in the book.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Another Bill Bryson to try (other than A Walk in the Woods) is A Brief History of Nearly Everything. I read it on a vacation years ago and it had a profound impact on me. It tracks the history of the universe and the earth from the Big Bang to the rise of human civilization, focusing a lot on the history of our understanding of these things, getting into the development of math and physics and geology from the time of the ancient Greeks to the 20th century. But it's a layperson's overview of these things, so it's very accessible.

I found it so soothing and informative. Thinking about it makes me want to read it again.

This is my go to audio book to listen to when I have insomnia!

[Anonymous]

The Gulf about the ecological history of the Gulf Coast is amazing. Later chapters get kind of depressing but it was a fascinating and beautiful book.

I’ve heard good things about Fish Don’t Exist, Secret Life of Lobsters, and Pilgrim at Tinker Creek.

An Immense World by Ed Young

[Anonymous]

If you want to go old school, Sand County Almanac is one of my favorites. And I really like the Nature Fix - I wouldn’t say it’s soothing, but it was very inspiring and it’s on my re-read list.

[Anonymous]

Not quite what you asked for (gardening rather than nature) but I loved

Noah’s Garden by Sara Stein

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Another Bill Bryson to try (other than A Walk in the Woods) is A Brief History of Nearly Everything. I read it on a vacation years ago and it had a profound impact on me. It tracks the history of the universe and the earth from the Big Bang to the rise of human civilization, focusing a lot on the history of our understanding of these things, getting into the development of math and physics and geology from the time of the ancient Greeks to the 20th century. But it's a layperson's overview of these things, so it's very accessible.

I found it so soothing and informative. Thinking about it makes me want to read it again.

This is my go to audio book to listen to when I have insomnia!

I listen to Bill Bryson books to fall asleep too! A brief History, At Home, Mother Tongue, the Body. They are all just perfect for giving you something mildly interesting to listen to in a soothing voice. Keeps my thoughts from wandering into worry/rumination so I can fall asleep!

[Anonymous]

I really love David Quammen’s nature writing. It’s not exactly soothing / meditative but “The Song of the Dodo” about island ecology is quite interesting.