catherinekane44's review
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
This book is thoughtful, informative, paced very well, and strikes a balance between deeply researched science and meditative, lyrical writing that helps the reader digest its wealth of material. It did something I think all books should do, which is to spark curiosity. I found myself researching things like anatomical bee hearts, whether or not unpartnered sandhill cranes get depressed, and youtube videos of coastal tailed frogs' iconic crash landings. One aspect I particularly appreciated was the way the essays thoroughly explored their subjects on every level they could and yet still were comfortable leaving room for the perpetual unknowns. How did yellow cedars get out to eastern Oregon, to habitats that should be unsustainable for them? Where do queen bees hibernate? In the age of information, I like the idea that some parts of the world are still secret, protected from human research and categorization. Woolington leans into these lovely mysteries. I came away from this with a more complex understanding of the landscapes I grew up in and it has markedly influenced the way I interact with the worlds around me.
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