Customer Reviews

Republic of Shade: New England and the American Elm

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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When I first saw this book I was intrigued by the title and could not wait to read it. The introduction almost made me cry. This book is truely a wonderful and entertaining read. Everyone, from botanist to a person who couldn't tell an elm from an oak should read this book. It ties horticulture, American history, and botany together in a fascinating way. I could not stop reading this once I started. Campanella brings his reader from the colonial and early American love affair with the elm to modern disease breeding. I honestly recomend this book to any one wanting to learn about a fascinating and untold story. Fantastic!!

An outstanding work. This book deeply aquaints the reader with this quintessentially American tree and answers any question as to why the love of Elm persists despite the tragedy of DED. Prior to reading this book, I was unaware just how great a role this tree has played in our American history, from the period before the first settlers to modern day. Excellent photographs and a great read, connecting the Elm of our past with those of our present and beyond -- long live the Elm!

This well-researched, yetlightly scholarly book looks at American culture from a different angle. Rather than through polictical and economic events, the culture of one of the first settled regions of America is chronicled from the standpoint of a common native tree. The deliberate cultivation of the American elm, so plentiful in New England and elsewhere in America, is seen to have been driven first by practical considerations (shelter for home and animals), then by political/social ones (community improvementand "moral values") and later by economic ones (tourism). It seems that the region shaped the elm's use just as it shaped the region's commplexion and identity.
As one who works with trees I was expecting more plant-based information on the American elm rather than a sociopolitical, cultural approach. Yet I found this a more fascinating and educational treatment: elm as cultural, rather than landscape, icon. A highly interesting and not tedious read with a little something for everyone.