How I Became a Tree

"With . . . tender attentiveness to the non-human, [this] narrative speaks of more compassionate and resilient modes of existence than those devised by the perennially agitated makers of history."-Pankaj Mishra, The Guardian, "Summer Reading" "Sumana Roy has written-grown-a radiant and wondrous book, which roots and branches in complex, provocative ways, helping us recognize trees for the 'strange strangers' they are, companion-citizens with which we think and remember, yes, but also alien beings that draw love, hate, indifference, and even lust from us humans."-Robert Macfarlane, author of The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot "This is one of the most original, delightful, inspiring books I have read in a long time. It will enchant and move the reader with its unique imaginative mindset, its humorous touches, and its defiance of convention."-Mary Evelyn Tucker, Yale University "A poetic, probing meditation on how trees are, to paraphrase Levi-Strauss, 'good to think with.' Sumana Roy gives us a fresh and surprising look at a topic as old as the Epic of Gilgamesh, or to put it another way, almost as old as the oldest living trees."-Robert Moor, bestselling author of On Trails: An Exploration "A genuinely exceptional work that is as poetic as it is scholarly-quirky, enlightening and enriching."-Chandak Sengoopta, Birbeck College, University of London