Twelve Trees: The Deep Roots of Our Future

“Every species of tree offers lessons to the world,” according to this enchanting study. Lewis (Belonging on an Island)—a curator at the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in Southern California—expounds on the biology and ecology of African baobabs, Great Basin bristlecone pines, and Central African forest ebony, among other tree species. Explaining the extraordinary abilities of California’s coast redwoods, Lewis notes that the trees “generate some two million pounds of negative pressure” to pull water from their roots to their uppermost branches, a journey that takes weeks to complete. Lewis also explores trees’ relationships with humans, discussing how the Indian government has implemented strict bureaucratic rules controlling the growth and sale of East Indian sandalwood trees, which are often poached and sold for huge sums because of their importance to traditional Asian medicine (“When a farmer has approval to harvest, a government official must come in person to uproot the entire tree”). The plentiful trivia fascinates, and Lewis has a talent for complicating conventional wisdom. For instance, he contends that despite California residents’ denigration of the invasive blue gum eucalyptus as the “nation’s largest weed,” it provides crucial shelter for migrating monarch butterflies, whose needs aren’t met by native vegetation. The result is a loving paean to all things arboreal. Agent: Wendy Strothman, Strothman Agency. (Mar.)