I wanted something completely different and that is exactly what I got. Truth to be told, I will use my new knowledge of trees probably not to navigate the forest behind my house but I enjoyed learning. How does a tree influence its surrounding patch of earth and fellow trees? How is a tree influenced by weather, by time, by humans and how does it show in its branches, its roots, its leaves? I loved this part. Every page is such a testament of the author's passion for nature too and there were some very sweet rhymes to remember facts. I really look forward to my next walk in the forest and I will tuck this book under my arm and look, really look, at trees. My only ongoing problem were the names of the trees. I struggled to find the German name and had to over-use Google Translate to find out which tree was talked about right now... In my opinion, this book is underrated. I can differentiate firs and spruces now and I know that a larch is a conifer. (I thought it was similar to a oak? Embarrassing.. )