Forest Euphoria: On Becoming, Belonging, and the Abounding Queerness of Nature

“Forest Euphoria reveals how science can serve as a refuge, a truth, and a means of survival. . . . This is a remarkable, urgently needed book—one which offers readers curiosity, comfort, and belonging.”—Judges’ Citation, National Book Foundation Science + Literature Program  “A full-throated celebration of the diversity of the natural world that encourages readers, regardless of how they may identify, to reconsider their place in it . . . Blending her own personal history growing up in New York’s Hudson Valley with insightful science writing, [Kaishian] takes a deep dive into some of nature’s overlooked yet rather ubiquitous non-heteronormative wonders.”—Time, “The 100 Must-Read Books of 2025”  “We’re told from a young age that ‘natural’ hierarchies govern the world. . . . But in Forest Euphoria, Kaishian urges us to reconsider this ‘natural’ order. By examining the vast diversity of the animal world, she invites readers to reexamine human society. Kaishian reflects on growing up with gender dysphoria and how the queer expansiveness of nature stood in stark contrast to rigid social and sexual binaries in her day-to-day life.”—Vanity Fair, “The 17 Best Books of 2025”  “A fascinating book that celebrates difference in unexpected ways . . . Kaishian makes a powerful case for trying to understand nature without the artificial binaries and hierarchies of human societies.”—The Washington Post “If nothing has compared to reading Braiding Sweetgrass or if you’re looking for something to broaden your understanding of and deepen your love for the world, this is the book you’ve been waiting for. It’s a perfect book for our fractured, difficult times.”—USA Today “Kaishian’s combination of science writing and memoir helps connect concepts of gender, sexuality and neurodiversity to the varied world of plants and animals, bringing a level of joy and wonder to both human and nonhuman experiences often maligned as ‘other’. . . . In asking ‘What kinds of knowledge can flourish when we celebrate queerness?’ Forest Euphoria brings the spirit of Pride to the study of nature.”—The Seattle Times  “Forest Euphoria pulses with vitality, in the wondrous beings we encounter and Kaishian’s vivid storytelling. I’m in awe of her ability to interweave the little-known lives of slugs and fungi with memoir and social movements, so that every page broadens one’s vision. Her expansive view of life provides an antidote to the loneliness of our species.”—Robin Wall Kimmerer, New York Times bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass “Forest Euphoria is a gorgeous celebration of the fact that when you give your heart to Science, it rewards you with a glimpse of something profound and beautiful.”—Hope Jahren, New York Times bestselling author of Lab Girl and The Story of More  “Just as nature resists easy categorization, so does this gem of a book. It is a heartfelt memoir. It is a lyrical feat of science writing. Perhaps above all else, it is a love letter to the messy, wondrous, complicated, binary-defying nature of the natural world—and, within it, us. I loved it.”—Ed Yong, New York Times bestselling author of An Immense World “An expansive, vividly-told science memoir that celebrates nature’s unsung little slimy guys (eels, slugs, fungi) alongside expanded concepts of queerness and neurodiversity. Kaishian finds belonging and connection in the natural world, and in the telling, leaves the reader with more to love. If you liked Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, this book is for you.”—Orion  “By revealing how the natural order of the world very often rejects the rigidity imposed by heteronormativity . . . Forest Euphoria stunningly illustrates what lessons we might be able to glean about queerness from wildlife.”—Harper’s Bazaar “If the first lesson in how to love nature is learning to see yourself in it—and to see it in you—then Forest Euphoria is a master class in how to love the world.”—Margaret Renkl, New York Times bestselling author of The Comfort of Crows “Forest Euphoria issues a joyous invitation to live with curiosity and love, and what could be a greater gift? I felt this invitation in the book’s scientific rigor; in its attention to the sophisticated affinity of all life; in its exacting work to orient a reader to the symmetries, puzzlements, and delights of our world.”—Megha Majumdar, New York Times bestselling author of A Burning “At a time when both science and the planet are under attack, [Forest Euphoria] offers a vision of the sciences as a space of refuge and imagination . . . [and] tenderly draws connections between ecological and personal discovery.”—Vulture “Nothing short of stunning. . . . Kaishian achieves something truly singular. She establishes a kaleidoscopic vision of interconnectedness that encompasses intricate webs of communication and cooperation, while acknowledging that much always remains to be discovered. Not remotely dry, Forest Euphoria is an evocative work of profound creativity that combines scientific rigor, personal narrative, and a call for an outlook that is better, more inclusive, more true and genuinely scientific.”—Shelf Awareness  “With immense knowledge, grace, experience, and lyrical prose . . . Kaishian persuades us that there is never just one way for living things in the natural world to reproduce or evolve or interact.”—Kirkus “[A] boundary-busting debut . . . Kaishian understands how other—and othered—organisms are closer to the human world than we typically think. It is a message gorgeously delivered: Kaishian possesses a poet’s understanding of lyricism and language, and her writing invites you to sink into a pool of wonder. I cannot think of anything better we ought to be doing right now.”—BookPage “A fantastic read . . . If you’re looking for a delightfully earnest, thoughtful, and nuanced exploration of nature, home, belonging, language, queerness, lineage, and how these things intersect, you’re in luck. . . . The whole book is a complicated love letter to all the pieces of the world—languages, trees, mountains, streams, animals, people—who’ve shaped [Kaishian].”—Book Riot “A liberating nature text that finds level ground and interrelatedness between humble microbes and the swirling cosmos, all abounding in queerness.”—Foreword Reviews (starred review) “Fascinating . . . Reverent . . . The lyrical prose imbues the scientific discussions with a sense of wonder [and] will leave readers in awe of nature’s many splendors.”—Publishers Weekly  “An exaltation of the nonhuman creatures whose stories might yet teach us how to radically revise our understanding of being and coexistence on this planet. . . . This book thrilled me to the bone. I will never forget it.”—Lidia Yuknavitch, author of The Chronology of Water  “An enchanting paean to the queerness that abounds in nature, both human and non-human. . . . Kaishian’s universe of intimacy with the more-than-human world is radical. Let it open you up to new sensations, desires, and expectations of life itself. . . . An instant, exuberant classic.”—Sabrina Imbler, author of How Far the Light Reaches “Expansive and intimate, replete with resonant insights and myriad fascinating accounts of the misunderstood lifeways that course through our own lives and throughout the globe. . . . In her sterling authorial debut, Kaishian dispels the notion that science cannot inspire magic.”—Doug Bierend, author of In Search of Mycotopia “Nothing short of a revelation. The earth is weirder, sexier, and queerer than we can imagine, and Kaishian’s poetic prose expertly balances a rigorous critique of the dominant paradigms driving ecocide as well as exulting in the sensual universes of organisms often maligned and misunderstood. The writing scintillates with spores and seeds and profound generosity.”—Sophie Strand, author of The Flowering Wand