Briefly Noted Book Reviews | The New Yorker

genius of treesHarriet Rix (Crown). The central argument of this extensive treatise is that trees are excellent ecosystem engineers, able to influence “water, air, earth and fire” as well as the behavior of other organisms in their efforts to create the conditions necessary for the trees to survive. Using the latest scientific evidence, field reports, forays into evolutionary history, and sometimes surprising literary references, Ricks reveals the many ways in which trees bend the natural world to their ends, from seeding clouds with volatile organic compounds and extracting minerals with their roots, to fighting off rival wildfires and enticing animals (including dinosaurs, dodos, and humans) to spread their seeds. According to her, trees appear as beings with “deep free will”, worthy of our constant attention, care and respect.

Flashes of brillianceAnika Burgess (Norton). In this illuminating history, Burgess, a photo editor and writer, traces the birth of early photography, a period of restless inventiveness when, as she writes, “innovation was sometimes misguided, sometimes obsessive, periodically dangerous, and constantly fascinating.” She recalls both scientific and artistic achievements, including photographs of Nadar taken from a giant hot air balloon and underwater photographs taken with bulky diving equipment. Most striking are some of the dangers that early photographers faced: in the nineteenth century, their work required handling cyanide fixatives and flashlights, which were explosive enough to shatter windows and blow up houses.