I adore being outside, no matter the season. Nature plays a significant part in Crossing the Pressure Line, and I hope readers appreciate my numerous references to birds, bugs, and trees.
Speaking of trees: if you revere them as much as I do, there are so many good books that celebrate and center on them. Here are my recent favorites:
Picture books
The Walking Tree by Joseph Taylor. Taylor, an accomplished artist, created his gorgeous illustrations using small broken pieces of skateboards!
Under in the Mud by Laureanna Raymond-Duvernell. This beautiful celebration of animals in winter will make you want to build a nest of your own, complete with a cup of hot chocolate.
Middle grade fiction
Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. This heartrending and hopeful novel is about inclusion and community, but at its heart, it’s a love song to the trees and creatures that call urban areas home.
Adult fiction
The Net Beneath Us by Carol Dunbar. Dunbar's haunting debut takes place in a tree-filled rural area off the grid in Northern Wisconsin.
Barkskins by Annie Proulx. Spanning more than 300 years, Proulx's epic examines the deforestation of North America. She calls trees "the underpinning of life."
The Overstory by Richard Powers. Inspired by the Redwoods of California, Powers structured his Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece around nine Americans who are profoundly impacted by trees.
Non-fiction
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (with an edition for young adults). As a botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Wall Kimmerer maintains that trees, plants, and animals are our oldest teachers. She takes readers on a passionate and scientific journey that will forever change the way you view the natural world.
What are your recommendations? I'd love to hear about your favorite tree book!