White Pine: The Natural and Human History of a Foundational American Tree by John Pastor

White Pine: The Natural and Human History of a Foundational American Tree Reviews

• 
  Tyler

  This is one of my favorite genres. I love learning about trees!
  
  The Nature of
  The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees was a fantastic book. I hoped White Pine would deliver just as well, and John Pastor did not disappoint!
  
  Prior to reading this book, I had no knowledge of the pine tree’s role in U.S. settlers’ autonomy and independence, and ultimately, the Revolution. The Pine Tree Riot played a pivotal role in the events leading up to the war, and visiting the Pine Tree Tavern is now on my bucket list.
  
  This book contains a wealth of information about 17th - 20th-century logging in the U.S. as well as modern sustainable logging practices being used and more widely adopted today. We have come a long way since the first colonists arrived. I was shocked to learn that people believed in spontaneous generation until the mid-1800s. I had assumed plant reproduction was as obvious to humans as human reproduction.
  
  Unfortunately, human ignorance did not stop there. The U.S. Forest Service's Smokey Bear campaign did prevent a great deal of unnecessary damage, but it also prevented many natural fires from spreading, which is absolutely necessary for forest health. Native Americans have known this for centuries. They have such a harmonious way of coexisting with nature that should be put into widespread practice again. If you’re interested in learning more about other Native American landscape practices, I suggest
  1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus.
  
  The thing that I appreciate most about this book is Pastor’s optimism. He has respect for all cultures and stories and the way trees have affected us all, as societal groups and individually. We can all work together to sustain and responsibly harvest our nation’s beautiful pines and other foundational species, which are so critical to entire ecosystems. Many scientists and conservationists are focused on preserving rare and endangered species, but the preservation of foundation species is arguably much more important.
  
  Thank you, NetGalley and Island Press for the ARC!
• 
  Mike Flannery

  In, White Pine, John Pastor uses one species in one ecosystem as a vehicle to explore how plants evolve, how ecosystems function, balancing resource extraction with conservation, the origins of the American conservation movement, how we can help ecosystems cope with climate change, and other interesting topics.
  
  I picked up the book because I honestly just love White Pine trees. I also, like the author, enjoy exploring and spending time in the American North Woods. The book did a great job using academic research to teach about both topics and more.
  
  One discussion that I found especially interesting is the evolutionary history of pine trees which have their origin on the supercontinent Pangaea. One area that I found lacking is the book’s use of pictures and images. For example, there is a great discussion of how tree rings, soil type, and species distribution was used to create maps proving the importance of periodic fire. However, the map was never shown. I often found myself hoping in vain to turn the page and see the image the author is describing.
  
  Overall the book is a succinct and approachable way to not only learn about Pinus Strobus, but also the importance of ecology in any context.
• 
  Janelle

  This title caught my eye when it was published earlier this year for a few reasons. First, we just planted a white pine as the "tree of peace" at Gettysburg College's land acknowledgement dedication ceremony last fall, and I know the white pine has special meaning to indigenous peoples from this part of North America. Second, there are many white pines in my yard and some of them have blown over. A coworker of mine had one fall on her roof just last week. Finally, I've spent a lot of time in the "Piney Woods" of East Texas and was just curious about this important pine species.
  
  I feel like the subtitle (The Natural and Human History of a Foundational American Tree) overpromised and underdelivered. The "human history" part mentioned native peoples in passing here and there, but it was really a human history of how white settler colonists and, especially, loggers, saw this tree.
  
  Still, there was some interesting history here. I didn't know about the Pine Laws of the early 18th century, for instance (the tea tax gets all the PR!) which ultimately led to the Pine Tree Riot in 1772. The British Crown wanted all the white pine for ship masts and the colonists were predictably resourceful about skirting those laws. I also didn't realize how the American Revolution cut off the Royal Navy from its best source of ship masts (which had to be replaced every 3 years) and contributed to Washington's 1781 victory of Cornwallis (because the British masts broke and slowed their resupply mission, allowing the French to easily get through to set up a blockade). Colonial history!
  
  Some of the ecology sections were a bit more science-detailed than I was interested in, but I perked up again when Pastor wrote about the beginning of the forestry movement in the U.S. Of course, Gifford Pinchot turns up (he keeps popping up in my PA life) and I learned he was named after the artist Sanford Gifford, who painted the influential
  Hunter Mountain, Twilight. This was an interesting art history connection. I note that the painting is now in the hands of a foundation, which means it probably just serves as a tax loophole for a rich dude who may have made a fortune off whatever the modern version of logging is (likely some other form of resource extraction). I also learned that Pennsylvania had one of the highest numbers of CCC camps in the 1930s-40s because of Pinchot's friendship with Roosevelt, and that the CCC system was modeled after Pinchot's reforestation program for PA. I see these CCC works all the time in my visits to PA state parks. The more you know!
  
  This was an interesting diversion but I'll probably scurry back to fiction now. I do appreciate the white pine more than I did before reading this!
• 
  Steve Voiles

  If you love trees and forests and believe in ecology as the key to a sustainable future, this is a book for you. Pastor's work is comprehensive and at times reads like a page-turner mystery. I could not put it down.
  As a Minnesotan I have always looked at grand old white pines with awe; now I will do so with reverence as well. America came into being in no small part because of the white pine. Our history is full of connections with the white pine; it even led in a direct line to the American Revolution. It led us into an understanding that science, properly done, must include connections between species, not just the consideration of individual one—ecology. The white pine propelled Thoreau's writing; it led to the formation of the Forest Service. It goes on and on.
  What an achievement of scholarship, communication and story telling!
• 
  Jessica Samuelson

  This nonfiction book takes an in-depth look at the white pine tree, a foundation species of the Northwoods ecosystem that stretches from Maine to Minnesota. The author uses the white pine to trace changing attitudes of Americans toward natural resources and conservation. I was particularly intrigued by the ways that white pine influenced early conservation efforts like CCC reforestation projects and the plant quarantine act as well as the establishment of the U.S. Forest Service.
  
  Thank you to NetGalley and Tantor Audio for an Advanced Reader Copy audiobook. ⁠
  
• 
  Jenn Adams

  I'm a big fan of trees and I enjoyed listening to this. If you're not that jazzed about them, chances are this may be boring for you/won't necessarily win you over
• 
  Adam

  Good mix of history, science, and information on conservation, very interesting puzzle piece in the history of the United States.
• 
  Tate Geiger

  John failed to quote, mention, or acknowledge the existence of women in his book
• 
  anklecemetery

  This was a pretty dry read, even for me. Pastor is clearly passionate about the subject, and it was a good background listen for some equally dry spreadsheet work.
• 
  Dylan Schnabel

  NetGalley and the publisher provided me with a copy of the audiobook.
  
  John Pastor gives us a history and a glimpse into the future of the majestic American white pine in this wonderful book.
  
  Pastor does a brilliant job of summarizing the white pine's importance to both indigenous peoples and the westward expansion of Europeans as they moved through the country. He does an excellent job of displaying how the poorly thought out practices of these Europeans decimated the white pines while giving us a look at the present and what's being done to preserve and help these American treasures thrive.
  
  He also gives us a glimpse into today's and tomorrow's threats to the pines, while providing a bit of hope for its future.