THIRTEEN WAYS TO SMELL A TREE

Aroma is the primary language of trees. They talk with molecules, conspiring with one another, beckoning fungi, scolding insects and whispering to microbes. An olfactory journey which reboots our aromatic memory and reminds us of how our lives are intertwined with the wonder of trees. Each chapter summons a new aroma - leaf litter and wood smoke, pine resin and tannin, quinine and bay leaf - with a witty and erudite companion leading us through the woods and the world. The 13 essays explore the evocative scent of trees, from the smell of a book just printed as you open its first pages to the calming scent of Linden blossom and to the ingredients of a particularly good gin and tonic. The spikey, herbal odour of European juniper berries; a tang of lime juice from a tree descended from wild progenitors in the foothills of the Himalayas; bitter quinine from the bark of the South American cinchona tree, take a sip and feel the aroma and taste of three continents. Slow down, breathe in and experience a smell and allow your sensory awareness to activate and blossom. Sit under the boughs of a ponderosa pine. Roll a laurel leaf between your fingers or rest your hands upon the bark of your favourite tree. Inhale and share the story. 192pp, satin pagemarker.