Winner of the New England Book Award and finalist for the Vermont Book Award, How to Love a Forest is a fearless and tender exploration by forester Ethan Tapper that asks what it means to live in a time when ecosystems are in retreat and extinctions rattle the bones of the earth.
Our world is caught between two extremes: those who do too much and those who do nothing. Tapper challenges both approaches, arguing that the actions we must take to protect ecosystems are often counterintuitive, uncomfortable, even heartbreaking. With striking prose, he reveals how bittersweet acts—loving deer and hunting them, loving trees and felling them—can actually be expressions of compassion rather than destruction.
Join Tapper as he introduces you to the fascinating world beneath and above the forest floor. Meet the majestic wolf trees that stand as sentinels of the forest, discover the ephemeral beauty of spring wildflowers that bloom and vanish in days, and explore the mysterious creatures of the rhizosphere and necrosphere that work tirelessly to sustain life.
This book weaves a new land ethic for the modern world, reminding us that what is simple is rarely true, and what is necessary is rarely easy. Tapper argues that only those who truly love trees should cut them, and that our incredible power as humans must be used to heal rather than harm the ecosystems that sustain all life.
Whether you're a forest enthusiast, environmental steward, or simply someone who cares about the natural world, How to Love a Forest offers a profound and practical guide to navigating the complex, beautiful, and sometimes painful work of tending our changing world.
