Daughters of Chivalry: The Forgotten Children of Edward I by Kelcey Wilson-Lee

Title: Daughters of Chivalry, The Forgotten Children of Edward I
Series: n/a
Author: Kelcey Wilson-Lee
Source/Format: Purchased; Paperback
More Details: Nonfiction; History
Publisher/Publication Date: Picador; March 21, 2019

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Virginal, chaste, humble, patiently waiting for rescue by brave knights and handsome princes: this idealised - and largely mythical - notion of the medieval noblewoman still lingers. Yet the reality was very different, as Kelcey Wilson-Lee shows in this vibrant account of the five daughters of the great English king, Edward I. The lives of these sisters - Eleanora, Joanna, Margaret, Mary and Elizabeth - ran the full gamut of experiences open to royal women in the Middle Ages. Living as they did in a courtly culture founded on romantic longing and brilliant pageantry, they knew that a princess was to be chaste yet a mother to many children, preferably sons, meek yet able to influence a recalcitrant husband or even command a host of men-at-arms

I started 2022 with some historical nonfiction. Kelcey Wilson-Lee’s Daughters of Chivalry: The Forgotten Children of Edward I.

One of the early lines from the introduction says: “Is she acquiescent, a person whom the most important things happen to or for, rather than an actor in her own right?” This book went to great length to show the layers of the lives of Edward I’s five daughters.

Wilson-Lee built a strong and concise narrative—based on surviving records and few instances of speculation—that followed them from early childhood to adulthood and their eventual marriages. It deftly explained the expectations (and limitations) for women at the time, while also setting the ultimate subjects of the book apart, by the privileges (education, fine foods, and good clothing) afforded to them; as well as the power and influence they were able to wield in their respective positons.

I liked how Wilson-Lee touched on the tricky subject of arranged marriages. The book covered the ways they were used to solidify Edward I’s influence, by forging those all-important alliances and connections. But, there was also a focus on what each princess stood to gain from the unions, such as expansive estates that were, in some instances, held jointly with their spouses.

The reign and eventual death of their father and the crowning of their brother, served as examples of time at the height of their influence, as well as further tumultuous periods (beyond war related conflicts) that came with the shift from “daughters of the king” to being “sisters of the king”.

All-in-all, Daughters of Chivalry was excellent.

Review: Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake

Title: Entangled Life
Series: n/a
Author: Merlin Sheldrake
Source/Format: Purchased; Paperback
More Details: Nonfiction; Science
Publisher/Publication Date: Random House Trade; May 12, 2020

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

When we think of fungi, we likely think of mushrooms. But mushrooms are only fruiting bodies, analogous to apples on a tree. Most fungi live out of sight, yet make up a massively diverse kingdom of organisms that supports and sustains nearly all living systems. Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways we think, feel, and behave. In Entangled Life, the brilliant young biologist Merlin Sheldrake shows us the world from a fungal point of view, providing an exhilarating change of perspective. Sheldrake's vivid exploration takes us from yeast to psychedelics, to the fungi that range for miles underground and are the largest organisms on the planet, to those that link plants together in complex networks known as the "Wood Wide Web," to those that infiltrate and manipulate insect bodies with devastating precision. Fungi throw our concepts of individuality and even intelligence into question. They are metabolic masters, earth makers, and key players in most of life's processes. They can change our minds, heal our bodies, and even help us remediate environmental disaster. By examining fungi on their own terms, Sheldrake reveals how these extraordinary organisms--and our relationships with them--are changing our understanding of how life works.

Toward the end of October, I needed to cleanse my palate before I dived into more fiction. So I picked up one of my recent purchases: Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake. It’s been on my TBR since last year, and I was excited to finally read it. I can officially say that I enjoyed this book. It was an excellent read that had a lot to say on the subject of fungi.

“Fungi are everywhere, but they are easy to miss.”—pg.3

I am not a big fungi enthusiast. I like Portobello mushrooms, and that’s about as far as it ever went. So Fungi aren’t a subject I’ve read too much about in the past. I was instantly intrigue by the idea of Entangled Life, especially after I read Peter Wohlleben’s The Heartbeat of Trees and was looking for something similarly nature science related. That book was a closer look at trees and forests. On the other hand, Entangled Life looked farther down the trunk of a tree, at the ecosystems right beneath our feet. What was revealed was an incredibly complex and interesting narrative that focused on what was taking place above and below ground. The book delved into how it was all connected, what fungi had to do with the development of the environment (based off what some studies had to say about it), and what role they could ultimately play in the future.

Entangled Life is one of the most fascinating books I’ve read this year. I’m glad to have a copy of this book on my shelf, because I know I’ll ultimately return to it again and (probably) again.

ARC Review: The Brilliant Abyss: Exploring the Majestic Hidden Life of the Deep Ocean, and the Looming Threat That Imperils It by Helen Scales

Title: The Brilliant Abyss

Series: n/a

Author: Helen Scales
Source/Format: Publisher;eARC
More Details: Nonfiction; Science
Publisher/Publication Date: Atlantic Monthly Press; July 6, 2021 

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

"The oceans have always shaped human lives," writes marine biologist Helen Scales in her vibrant new book The Brilliant Abyss, but the surface and the very edges have so far mattered the most. "However, one way or another, the future ocean is the deep ocean." 

A golden era of deep-sea discovery is underway. Revolutionary studies in the deep are rewriting the very notion of life on Earth and the rules of what is possible. In the process, the abyss is being revealed as perhaps the most amazing part of our planet, with a topography even more varied and extreme than its Earthbound counterpart. Teeming with unsuspected life, an extraordinary interconnected ecosystem deep below the waves has a huge effect on our daily lives, influencing climate and weather systems, with the potential for much more--good or bad depending on how it is exploited. Currently the fantastic creatures that live in the deep--many of them incandescent in a world without light--and its formations capture and trap vast quantities of carbon that would otherwise poison our atmosphere; and novel bacteria as yet undiscovered hold the promise of potent new medicines. Yet the deep also holds huge mineral riches lusted after by many nations and corporations; mining them could ultimately devastate the planet, compounded by the deepening impacts of ubiquitous pollutants and rampant overfishing. Eloquently and passionately, Helen Scales brings to life the majesty and mystery of an alien realm that nonetheless sustains us, while urgently making clear the price we could pay if it is further disrupted. The Brilliant Abyss is at once a revelation and a clarion call to preserve this vast unseen world

One subject I haven’t read enough about is the ocean. So it’s something of interest to me. When I came across The Brilliant Abyss, I instantly knew I wanted to give it a go. Helen Scales wrote a truly fascinating book, which offered an in-depth look at some of the murkier depths of the ocean as well as a number of the amazing animals that live there.

The first portion of the book was spent expertly showing how diverse, delicate, and vital deep-sea environments actually are. The animals have a much bigger role to play in the depths of the ocean than what even I originally gave them credit for. The kind of resilience needed to survive at depths with crushing pressure, frigid temperatures and searing hot (and often toxic) hydrothermal vents is almost unimaginable—yet it exists. And The Brilliant Abyss excels at making this point.

So in the later to last potions of the book, the implications of the damaging and irreparable effects of deep sea mining and fishing was laid out on the table. Loss of habitat was one key factor—i.e. the destruction of old growth coral and the steep declines in animal populations that can’t keep up with demand. The argument Scales’s makes is backed up by a few examples. Such as when she talked thoroughly about the history of a deep sea fish called Orange Roughy.

The Brilliant Abyss was an excellent read. It leaned hard into the science behind what makes the ocean the ocean, and all the many ways the animals that live there have adapted to the characteristics of their environment. Many different studies were cited, which included a few detailed sections about Scales’s own experiences. In conclusion, the abyss is as brilliant as it is fascinating. 

About the author...

Dr Helen Scales is a marine biologist, writer and broadcaster. She is author of the Guardian bestseller Spirals in Time, New Scientist book of the year Eye of the Shoal, and the children’s book The Great Barrier Reef. She writes for National Geographic Magazine, the Guardian, and New Scientist, among others. She teaches at Cambridge University and is science advisor for the marine conservation charity Sea Changers. Helen divides her time between Cambridge, England, and the wild Atlantic coast of of France.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Atlantic Monthly Press) via Netgalley for this review, thank you!

ARC Review: The Heartbeat of Trees by Peter Wohlleben, translated by Jane Billinghurst

Title: The Heartbeat of Trees

Series: n/a

Author: Peter Wohlleben

Translator: Jane Billinghurst
Source/Format: Publisher; ARC
More Details: Nonfiction; Science
Publisher/Publication Date: Greystone Books; June 1, 2021

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees

A powerful return to the forest, where trees have heartbeats and roots are like brains that extend underground. Where the color green calms us, and the forest sharpens our senses. In The Heartbeat of Trees, renowned forester Peter Wohlleben draws on new scientific discoveries to show how humans are deeply connected to the natural world. In an era of cell phone addiction, climate change, and urban life, many of us fear we've lost our connection to nature-but Peter Wohlleben is convinced that age-old ties linking humans to the forest remain alive and intact. Drawing on science and cutting-edge research, The Heartbeat of Trees reveals the profound interactions humans can have with nature, exploring: the language of the forest, the consciousness of plants, and the eroding boundary between flora and fauna. A perfect book to take with you into the woods, The Heartbeat of Trees shares how to see, feel, smell, hear, and even taste the forest.

One of my most anticipated reads of 2021 was The Heartbeat of Trees. I’ve had my eye on Wohlleben’s other books like The Hidden Life of Trees and The Secret Wisdom of Nature, which I haven’t gotten around to yet. However, that said, I had a chance to read an early copy of The Heartbeat of Trees, and it was a thoroughly engaging read and an incredibly fascinating look at trees. 

Did you know about the sleep behavior studies done on trees? Well, neither did I. There’s much on the subject of trees I had never come across in most of the other nature/environment related books I’ve read prior to The Heartbeat of Trees. Wohlleben concisely wrote about the subject while also making it an engaging and complete narrative, which incorporated personal knowledge and the trips he made—for conservation/forest protection efforts—as well as citing many different studies. The Heartbeat of Trees is, toward the beginning, a look at the ways a person’s senses—like touch, taste, smell, and sight—can interact with the natural landscape around them. While later on, during my favorite parts of the book, Wohlleben dug his heels into the topic and delved into the science behind what makes a tree a tree, the distinction between the different kinds of forests (old-growth and plantation), and the ecosystems that thrive in those environments. The book stressed how delicate those environments were—how long they took to develop—and made a connection between global warming and the state of forests, as well as the strain put on forests by the lumber industry.

There are many passages I would have quoted in this review—as there were many quotable sections—alas my copy of the book is an ARC. Needless to say, The Heartbeat of Trees was an excellent introduction to the subject, and I highly recommend it.

About the author...

Peter Wohlleben spent over twenty years working for the forestry commission in Germany before leaving to put his ideas of ecology into practice. He now runs an environmentally-friendly woodland in Germany, where he is working for the return of primeval forests. He is the author of numerous books about trees.

About the translator...

Jane Billinghurst’s career has been in book publishing in the UK, the US, and Canada, as an editor, publisher, writer, and translator. She is the translator of the international bestseller The Hidden Life of Trees by German forester Peter Wohlleben.

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Greystone Books) for this review, thank you!

Review: Aristocracy by William Doyle

Title: Aristocracy 
Series: A Very Short Introduction #251
Author: William Doyle
Source/Format: Purchased; Paperback
More Details: Nonfiction; History
Publisher/Publication Date: Oxford University Press, USA; November 28, 2010

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Aristocracies or nobilities dominated the social, economic, and institutional history of all European counties until only a few generations ago. The relics of their power, in traditions and behavior, in architecture and the arts, are still all around us. This engaging Very Short Introduction shows how ideas of aristocracy originated in ancient times, were transformed in the middle ages, and have only fallen apart over the last two centuries, following the outbreak of the American and French Revolutions. William Doyle, an authority on eighteen-century European history, here strips away the myths in which aristocracies have always sought to shroud themselves, but he also astutely delineates the true sources of their enduring power. Their outlook and behavior affected the rest of society in innumerable and sometimes surprising ways, but perhaps most surprising was the way in which the centuries-old aristocratic hegemony crumbled away. In this Very Short Introduction William Doyle considers why this happened and what is left today.

I’ve been into history lately, and one of my recent nonfiction reads was Aristocracy by William Doyle. It’s a part of Oxford’s A Very Short Introduction series, which has been publishing since 1995. There are a number of titles I want to read from this series, but my first foray into it was with Aristocracy.

“Aristocracy is a word coined in ancient Greece. Originally it meant not a group of people but a form of government: rule by the best. But who were they?”—pg.1, Aristocracy, William Doyle.

Aristocracy was excellent, and it was way more informative than I originally thought it would be. It was a short book at just one hundred and two pages. Even so, it was a precise summery of the roles, privileges, and powers of the aristocracy through the ages. In its five chapters total, it covered everything from the way titles were obtained (or lost), as well as the eventual decline that came with changes to the public’s perception of the aristocracy.

I honestly had a great time with this read. The compact format didn’t require too much commitment, but it was a fascinating read regardless. 

Recent Nonfiction Reads....

I’m very behind on writing reviews for the nonfiction books I’ve been reading. So, today, I’m going to compile my thoughts into a single post and talk about all three of the books I recently—and not so recently—checked out from the library.

Farming and the Food Supply by Debra A. Miller

Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; hardcover
Author: Debra A. Miller
Publisher/Publication Date: Greenhaven Press; June 21, 2011

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My Thoughts: When I think of global warming, the usual things that come to mind are extreme weather patterns and a rise in the annual, global temperature to name just a few. So, I was interested in reading more about how global warming would affect the food supply, which is what led me to Farming and the Food Supply by Debra A. Miller. This book had information from several sources; although, the majority cited a report put out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2007. Farming and the Food supply was published in 2011, so some of the information could be a little outdated.  It was still an interesting read that made a lot of good points about the subject. Farming and the Food Supply also did a good job at talking about a broad range of subjects all with the common denominator of food/food supply, global warming, and the impact that food production has on the environment as well as potential solutions. All in all, this book was a good introduction to the subject. And if you’re looking or willing to delve further into researching the topic, there was also a handy section—page 117 to 123—that lists a number of different sources (like books, periodicals, websites, etc.) for further research.

Undercover Operation by Edna McPhee

Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; hardcover
Author: Edna McPhee
Publisher/Publication Date: Lucent Press; August 12, 2017

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My Thoughts: I liked this book. It was a quick read that went over some of the basic details of how undercover operations are conducted as well as some of the history. There was mention of people like Mary Bowser, Sam Davis, and Mata Hari just to name a few. There was also a chapter for different types of investigations and another for technology. I do have to say that some sections of the book were more technical than others. And like with Farming and the Food Supply, it was more of a book to give a general idea of things while if I want to read something with more technical details, I would have to look elsewhere. Despite that, Undercover Operations was a good book.

American Art Deco by Carla Breeze

Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; hardcover
Author: Carla Breeze
Publisher/Publication Date: W.W. Norton Company; July 17, 2003

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My Thoughts: Out of the three nonfiction books I read, American Art Deco was probably my top-favorite. If you follow me on Instagram, I mentioned this book a while ago. It was the second book I read about Art Deco, and unlike the first one, American Art Deco focused on the US iteration of the architectural style. It discussed influences and buildings/art from around the country. It was a thoroughly eye-opening and fascinating read. I also drew some pencil sketches while reading American Art Deco. I’ll eventually talk about that page on a different blog post, but for now, if you want to see it, it’s on my Instagram…. 

So, those are the last three nonfiction books I’ve read. I do want to read more about some of these topics. What are some of your recent nonfiction or fiction reads?

February Discussion Post: Nonfiction

I finally get to use this post graphic that I made over two years ago, but that’s beside the point. Today, I am actually going to post the discussion post that I’ve been slowly working on since January. As far as how often I’m going to do discussion posts I really don’t know, but I’m going to try for at least once a month. So, here is my February discussion post…

It took me a while to decide on a topic I wanted to write about. I didn’t want to just talk about favorite genres, format, or tropes. I feel like I’ve already kind of sort of discussed those things before. So, I kept that in mind as I planned for my first discussion post of 2017. Of course, in the end, I did find a topic. So, I want to talk about nonfiction and why it’s important to me—especially since the world is starting to look like the synopsis of Fahrenheit 451 and 1984. No seriously, if you don’t believe me, look the books up, you’ll see.

Why is nonfiction important to me?

Whenever I think of nonfiction I automatically go towards one of my favorite subjects: History. But, history also makes me think of nonfiction as a whole range of subjects—from science to memoirs, even psychology. Anything that deals with information, actual facts or the details about someone or something, that’s what I’m talking about today.

It’s no secret that we live in a time where finding the information we need is literally only a click away. I can’t count on one hand how many times I’ve heard or even said the phrase “just google it”. That availability is great, because it allows ready access to things I want to know more about. Nonfiction is like a portal to the past and present. Mostly, it’s fact. But sometimes, that fact could be skewed by opinions, which is where critical reading and thinking comes into play. Having that ability to discern opinion and fact is getting to be crucial. I think it’s important to know, to be knowledgeable—or at least well-read—about the things that are happening around me whether that’s obscure bits of history, current affairs, or even the state of the environment. Simply put, I want to know, and nonfiction is one of the ways I can find the information I need to form an opinion about something that I find important.

Nonfiction is important to me because it gives me the option to learn about just specific subjects or varied topics all at once, which is something I appreciate.

So, in conclusion…

Nonfiction, like any form of literature, isn’t always perfect but it is important. Reading to learn is something I enjoy doing, but I fully understand that picking up nonfiction just because, isn’t for everyone. I think what it comes down to is reading preference, which is subjective and dependent upon the person.

What are your thoughts on nonfiction?