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  • The Hidden Life of Trees

  • What They Feel, How They Communicate - Discoveries from a Secret World
  • By: Peter Wohlleben
  • Narrated by: Mike Grady
  • Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (1,416 ratings)
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The Hidden Life of Trees

By: Peter Wohlleben
Narrated by: Mike Grady
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Summary

How do trees live? Do they feel pain or have awareness of their surroundings? Research is now suggesting trees are capable of much more than we have ever known.

In The Hidden Life of Trees, forester Peter Wohlleben puts groundbreaking scientific discoveries into a language everyone can relate to.

In The Hidden Life of Trees, Peter Wohlleben shares his deep love of woods and forests and explains the amazing processes of life, death and regeneration he has observed in the woodland and the amazing scientific processes behind the wonders, of which we are blissfully unaware.

Much like human families, tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them and support them as they grow, sharing nutrients with those who are sick or struggling and creating an ecosystem that mitigates the impact of extremes of heat and cold for the whole group. As a result of such interactions, trees in a family or community are protected and can live to be very old. In contrast, solitary trees, like street kids, have a tough time of it and in most cases die much earlier than those in a group.

Drawing on groundbreaking new discoveries, Wohlleben presents the science behind the secret and previously unknown lives of trees and their communication abilities; he describes how these discoveries have informed his own practices in the forest around him. As he says, a happy forest is a healthy forest, and he believes that ecofriendly practices not only are economically sustainable but also benefit the health of our planet and the mental and physical health of all who live on Earth.

After a walk through the woods with Wohlleben, you'll never look at trees the same way again.

©2015, 2016 Ludwig Verlag, Munich, part of the Random House GmbH publishing group. Jane Billinghurst. Tim Flannery. “Note from a Forest Scientist” by Dr. Suzanne Simard. (P)2016 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"The matter-of-fact Mr. Wohlleben has delighted readers and talk-show audiences alike with the news long known to biologists that trees in the forest are social beings." (The New York Times)

What listeners say about The Hidden Life of Trees

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Imperial measures? 🤦🏻‍♂️

This is a really interesting book which will make you see trees and forests in a completely new light, with lives just as dramatic as shorter lived creatures, just on a different timescale...BUT, my experience was very nearly completely ruined by the stupid decision to convert all the measurements into imperial units, presumably for an American audience. For a science book, that is simply unforgivable. So many times I was trying to work out what 0.001 of an inch was, I completely lost track of what was being said. I’ve read plenty of popular science books by American authors which, correctly, use metric units, the standard units for all scientists, so this change was as unnecessary as it was stupid

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42 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Well worth a listen

Really interesting and offers an opportunity to understand trees in a completely new light. Essentially as creatures themselves. Same bloke narrating as for Richard Forteys 'Wood for the Trees' so good tone and pace. Only snag as with all audiobooks is that you can't see the references to the scientific literature that is cited but a really nice listen nevertheless. Set up your hammock and enjoy!

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18 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

absolutely fascinating

This book has changed so much about how I see trees and forests and ecosystems. it's on my Listen Again list. I would recommend it highly. Beautifully written and beautifully narrated. The most surprising moment was about conifer forests and how they make us feel.

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16 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating, magical, thought provoking

This book is both absolutely fascinating and completely magical! If you love science and nature you will love this.
You will learn some amazing facts, the kind that make your jaw lower towards the floor...

I was left with an over riding feeling of...how on earth do we treat our farm animals/fellow humans as we do, when even non sentient (or are they!?) beings like trees have such complex inner lives and societies.

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7 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

More science, less anecdotes.

Narration OK but not gripping.

Story is based on ancedotes rather than rigorous science, of which there is plenty. You'd be better off finding a science podcast about current research into trees

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5 people found this helpful

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Mind warming

This thoroughly enjoyable book is hugely thought provoking. It brings a stark light on received wisdom and should be mandatory for all environmental policy makers. I’m really looking forward to walking in the woods with newly gained insight.

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Great. If a little too enthusiastic!

What fantastic insights. I will never look at trees in the same way again. The only negative is that Wohlleben gets a little too enthusiastic about his trees and personifies them too much which spoils the effect here and there.

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4 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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interesting book

Very interesting book albeit some pretty wilful anthropomorphising attimes. A fantastic body of knowledge on the workings of a forest. The rhythm of the narration is a little out of step with the book and you may also find yourself drifting off a bit.

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3 people found this helpful

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very interesting read

I really enjoyed this book, you can really see how the patterns found in nature mirror or own lives

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3 people found this helpful

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Wonderful

This book has completely changed my view of trees. They are now old friends, not bits of wood sticking out of the ground for felling. Thank you.

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2 people found this helpful