Piragis Northwoods Company Bookstore is sponsoring a Book Signing with author John Pastor for his book White Pine.
Tuesday, June 20th, 2023 12:00 pm to 1 pm at the Grand Ely Lodge in Ely, Minnesota during Tuesday Group. Lunch is available for purchase at the event.
Tree enthusiasts will love John Pastor’s book White Pine: The Natural and Human History of the Foundational American Tree. A small, but sturdy read that weaves together the history of the iconic white pine tree.Throughout the book, ecologist and writer John Pastor takes readers on a walk through history, connecting the white pine forests we have today to a legacy of destruction and renewal. Through this book you will grow a new understanding as to why the white pine is both important and should be protected. Learn the trials and tribulations of what scientists had to go through to keep this tree alive to this day.
From the clear cutting era to the glorious white pine forests that we have today, Pastor’s book gives us a charming, yet informational story that will interest any nature lover. White Pine tells the century long tale of naturalists, foresters, and scientists attempting to restore the great white pine forests. Through this quest to save the white pine we learn how much of Americans’ understanding of key scientific ideas was shaped by this endeavor, from forest succession to the importance of fire, the white pine has been a strong pillar of truth and knowledge in the forest community. White Pine: The Natural and Human History of the Foundational American Tree doesn’t just highlight the past destruction of the white pine forest, but also gives us understanding of the importance and hope for the future of the pine tree.
The beauty isn’t just in the story, but also in the drawings spread throughout the book to further illustrate the importance of the white pine. This book will leave you both feeling more informed on how our knowledge of nature has been formed, but also feeling a sense of hope for the future of nature. With John Pastor’s combination of analytical and optimistic story telling, readers are sure to feel warm hearted and positive about the future of our world after reading this book.
From the back of the book
“White pine, a cultural icon and source of riches to generations, remains an awe-inspiring and yet enigmatic species in forests across eastern North America. Through engaging history, delightful personal narrative, and wide-ranging research, all accented by his wonderfully detailed pen and ink drawings, John Pastor presents the most insightful book yet on one of America’s foundational trees.” — David Foster, Director Emeritus, Harvard Forest, author of “A Meeting of Land and Sea” and editor of “Hemlock”
“In a beautiful blend of cultural and natural history, White Pine takes us on a journey to deeply know one species. From that depth comes the surprising discovery of all the life connected to it and a hopeful guide for our shared future.” — Lauren E. Oakes, author of “In Search of the Canary Tree”
“John Pastor’s wonderfully evocative writing about this iconic American tree is rooted in a lifetime of science and scholarship. It’s as much a deep history of the relationships between humans and nature as it is the story of a tree and its environment.” — Charles Canham, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, author of “Forests Adrift”
About the Author
John Pastor is an ecologist and Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, where his teaching and research focused on the natural history and ecology of northern ecosystems. He is the author of What Should a Clever Moose Eat? and Mathematical Ecology of Populations and Ecosystems, is co-editor of Large Mammalian Herbivores, Ecosystem Dynamics, and Conservation, and has authored or coauthored 22 book chapters and over 120 papers, mostly about the North Woods. He is a past co-chair of the Natural History Section of the Ecological Society of America and founding editor of “The Scientific Naturalist” series in the journal Ecology.