If A Tree Falls

Every day more of the world’s forests disappear. Trees are cleared for agriculture, lost in wildfires and harvested for the valuable products they supply. Called the lungs of the planet, forests play a critical role in climate moderation. What happens when they’re gone? Are replanting and afforestation efforts helping? In If A Tree Falls: The Global Impact of Deforestation, author Nikki Tate gives an accessible and balanced look at forest practices throughout history, the growth of industry and the fight for preservation. Global deforestation affects us all. Find out what you can do to protect forests today and keep them healthy for future generations.

A revealing memoir of a family and a “wrenching journey into deafness from the standpoint of a mother, a wife, a daughter, a philosopher, and a Jew” (Ilan Stavans, author of On Borrowed Words: A Memoir of Language). When her daughters were born deaf, Jennifer Rosner was stunned. Then she discovered a hidden history of deafness in her family, going back generations to the Jewish enclaves of Eastern Europe. Traveling back in time in her mind, she imagined her silent relatives, who showed surprising creativity in dealing with a world that preferred to ignore them. Here, in a “gentle meditation on sound and silence, love and family” Rosner shares her journey into the modern world of deafness, and the controversial decisions she and her husband made about hearing aids, cochlear implants and sign language (Publishers Weekly). Punctuated by memories of being unheard, Rosner’s imaginative odyssey of dealing with her daughters’ deafness is at its heart a story of whether she—a mother with perfect hearing—can ever truly hear her children.

Kirsten's world is crumbling. Her parents are barely speaking to each other and her 'best-friend' has fallen under the spell of queen bee, Brianna. For Walker the goal is simply to survive in the private school his mother has moved him to because she doesn't want him to mess up with most of the kids in his old school. Then Kirsten discovers something that has a big impact on both her and Walker's lives.

When the Tree Falls is Jane Clarke's second collection. These lyrically eloquent poems bear witness to the rhythms of birth and death, celebration and mourning, endurance and regrowth. An elegiac sequence, inspired by the loss of her father, moves gracefully through this second collection.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

One-hundred years after one of the most severe ecological and economic disasters in US history began, environmentalist Douglas Buege returns to the scene of the crime to uncover modern attempts to right the terrible wrong. The American chestnut, once dominant throughout Appalachia, faced near extinction from a fungal blight likely introduced on foreign stock imported at Long Island. Its future lies in the hands of a variety of groups and individuals striving to bring the tree back. The American Chestnut Foundation and the American Chestnut Cooperators Foundation, with radically different approaches, use current understanding of genetics, ecology, mycology, and botany in their efforts to save a beloved species. The big question remains, Will it ever be enough? The Twenty-First Century has already been termed "the Age of Extinction," promising immense reductions in Earth's biodiversity. One-tenth of tree species across the globe face extinction in our lifetimes. Buege sets out to teach us the strengths and weaknesses of plans to save American chestnut in hopes that other species hemlocks, ashes, oaks, butternuts, and other threatened trees may benefit. Perhaps humanity can undo some of its damage before it's too late.

Some of us are in the habit of thinking about what we know; what we have experienced and are experiencing; and what we would like to focus on more deeply. While this habit is evidenced in differing ways it is clearly a process that seems to form part of the essence of who human beings are. And there is plenty to think about every day. Furthermore, this habit of thinking about life, has resulting in many interesting inventions, movements, and even inspiration about life. This is important. For when we are limited in our ability to engage in self-reflection, we stand a chance of becoming unbalanced. For it is possible to have what might be called a poverty in thinking and making sense of those thoughts, feelings, and beliefs. While it is also possible to think so much that one is stuck and in a ruminating rut that can cause disorders of the mind, heart, and soul. While it is not usually good to have a sparsity of thoughts and experiences it is also not usually good to be overwhelmed by them What is good is to have an appropriate abundance of wonderment that leads to stimulation of person and community. And so here we are – at the beginning of a book consisting of many pages containing thoughts about what the author and others know; what she and others have experienced; and some things many would like to focus on more deeply. And this time the material will be presented in a format similar to the previous publication, One Lesson at a Time 1– as a model for structured journaling, including content for contemplation, and hopefully rich sources for reframing memory, and furthering inspiration that leads to growth and development on the reader’s personal and perhaps communal levels.