Hidden Kingdom: The Surprising Story of Fungi and Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies

(Hardback)

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Description

• From a leading mycologist: Keith Seifert, now retired, spent 40 years studying fungi across five continents. He was president of the International Mycological Association, an executive editor of Mycologia, and associate editor of several other scientific journals.
• A uniquely all-encompassing book about fungi: most popular fungi books focus on the kind of fungi that you can see and that live with plants. Seifert looks at a variety of different types of fungi, including those that are invisible to the naked eye, and those that live in relationship to humans, agriculture, animals, forests, cities, and more.
• There are now 56 species of fungi that are considered endangered. And yet the Endangered Species Act does not explicitly protect fungi.
• Fungi play a critical role in climate change. Fungi hold promise for breaking down plastics and generating new types of biofuels, and such research is helping to draw interest in fungi and the important role they play in biodiversity and combating climate change.
• Interest in fungi is explodingafter the publications ofThe Hidden Life of TreesandEntangled Life,and the recent Netflix documentaryFantastic Fungi,which sparked readers curiosity about how humans are connected to fungia topic Seifert explores more in-depth.
• Fun Fact!: the fungi featured on the cover is an Ergot: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ergot

Reviews

Fans of Merlin Sheldrakes Entangled Life and Suzanne Simards Finding the Mother Tree will enjoy Seiferts latest... A perspective-shifting guide to our microfungal matrix.
Kirkus

"Seifert, in this fascinating, engaging, and approachable work, provides an improved understanding of how fungi surround and affect our lives."
Booklist

An excellent primer for the ecological and forest-interested layperson.
The Globe and Mail

Explore the complex and ingenious ecosystems where fungi are found and discover how these marvels of nature enrich (and sometimes threaten) our lives.
Peter Wohlleben, New York Times-bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees

If you are interested in mushrooms, like so many people are these days, but want to delve deeper than the headlines, this is the book for you.
Eugenia Bone, author of Mycophilia and former president of the New York Mycological Society

Delightful A wide-eyed grand tour of [an] alien world [that] makes me love these multi-gendered, cell-wall-having, network-forming bugs all the more.
Adam Rogers, senior correspondent at Wired and author of Full Spectrum: How the Science of Color Made Us Modern and Proof: The Science of Booze

Flat-out fabulous. [The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi is] an enlightening introduction to fungi, yes, but its also a real page-turner. Dr. Seifert is a spectacularly skilled writer. He truly puts the fun in fungi.
Andy MacKinnon, author of Alpine Plants of the Northwest

An excellent, intimate introduction to fungi and mycology that will appeal to general science readers and those interested in learning about our biologically interdependent world.
Library Journal

An authoritative and gripping expos of fungi with an exciting vision of how they might contribute to a more sustainable Earth. This book will increase your respect for fungi and could challenge your view of the worldinside and on you, your home, and outdoors.
David L. Hawksworth, Hon. President, International Mycological Association

"Fungi, the author tells us, are the meek that long ago inherited the Earth ... For the innately curious, 'The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi' will be an eye-opening introduction to a secretive world that most of us know too little about."
Richard Schiffman, Washington Post

Author Bio

Keith Seifert spent more than 40 years studying fungi on five continents. At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, he did research on microscopic fungi from farms, forests, food, and the built environment, to reduce toxins and diseases affecting plants and animals. He was president of the International Mycological Association, an executive editor of Mycologia, and associate editor of several other scientific journals. He lives near Ottawa, Canada. Dr. Rob DunnisProfessor of Applied Ecology at North Carolina State University and the author of seven books, includingDelicious,Never Home Alone,andA Natural History of the Future.Hes written forScientific American, Smithsonian Magazine,andNationalGeographicand regularly advocates for citizenscience. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.