When the Forest Breathes: Renewal and Resilience in the Natural World

《尋找母樹》作者、《紐約時報》暢銷作家蘇珊．希瑪爾最新力作，揭開森林深處的再生交響樂。當科學與感性交織，我們將學會如森林般思考，在告別與重生之間，找回守護地球與內心的溫柔力量。

《紐約時報》暢銷書 • 這位開創「樹木間複雜溝通」概念的科學家，如今根據自然界根深柢固的再生循環，為拯救我們的森林提出了強有力的願景。

「一堂關於森林內部運作的大師課。……這是將科學作為對世界表達愛的一種行為。」—— 柔伊．施蘭格（Zoë Schlanger），《The Light Eaters》作者

成長於致力於合理森林管理制度的伐木世家，開路先鋒生態學家蘇珊．希瑪爾親眼目睹了伐木公司如何讓森林陷於更高的山火、水資源危機以及動植物滅絕的風險之中。但她的研究有潛力繪製出一條新航線。她揭示了森林是一場由精細打磨的再生循環所構成的交響樂——從分解原木的真菌，到將遺傳知識傳遞給後代的垂死老樹——這些正是保護森林的關鍵。透過與當地原住民社群密切合作（其負責任的林業模型長期以來廣遭漠視），希瑪爾檢視了人為干預——特別是對林冠層「母樹」的破壞——如何危及新生命的成長與壽命。她主張，如果我們能尊重樹木用以分享跨世代智慧的工具，我們就能在未來的歲月中守護這些神聖之地。

當她思索年長生物如何為新生命的茁壯創造條件時，希瑪爾在自己的生活中也面臨著失去與再生的平行韻律：看著兩個女兒長大成人，並珍惜與生病母親共處的最後時光。《When the Forest Breathes》充滿了對森林的驚嘆，以及長期維繫森林的複雜照護實踐，這是一個至關重要的提醒，告訴我們自然界關於適應力、韌性與社群所能教導我們的一切。

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The scientist who pioneered the concept of sophisticated communication between trees now offers a powerful vision for saving our forests, based on nature’s deep-rooted cycles of renewal.

"A masterclass on the inner workings of forests. . . . This is science as an act of love for the world.” —Zoë Schlanger, author of The Light Eaters

Raised in a family of loggers committed to sensible forest stewardship, trailblazing ecologist Suzanne Simard has watched as timber companies leave forests at higher risk for wildfires, water crises, and plant and animal extinction. But her research has the potential to chart a new course. The forest, she reveals, is a symphony of finely honed cycles of regeneration—from mushrooms breaking down logs to dying elder trees passing their genetic knowledge to younger ones—that hold the key to protecting our forests. Working closely with local Indigenous communities, whose models of responsible forestry have been largely dismissed, Simard examines how human interventions—particularly destruction of the overstory's mother trees—endanger new growth and longevity. If we can honor the tools that trees have honed for sharing intergenerational wisdom, she argues, we can protect these sacred places for many years to come.

As she considers how older living things facilitate the conditions for new growth to flourish, Simard faces parallel rhythms of loss and regeneration in her own life, watching her two daughters grow into adults and savoring her final days with her ailing mother. Animated by wonder for our forests and the intricate practices of caretaking that have long sustained them, When the Forest Breathes is a vital reminder of all the natural world has to teach us about adaptability, resilience, and community.