Last year I kept coming across Entangled Life in various, sometimes surprising contexts, and I was quite giddy and nervous to finally read it. So it’s with relief that I can now conclude that it’s certainly one of the best popularized books about biology I have encountered.

Merlin Sheldrake is a scientist who studies fungi, and as is often the case, the passion for one’s research topic spills over to other parts of life as well. In Entangled Life Sheldrake systematically goes through different aspects of fungi that have sparked, and keep sparking, that passion for him.
Considering that I’m approaching the finish line of my master’s degree in biology, I knew that a lot in this book would feel familiar, but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate how well different biological principles and aspects of fungal life were explained. There’s such an excellent balance of basic science, interviews and quotes, funny anecdotes and even philosophical ponderings and it’s all so beautifully expressed and tied together. I was in total awe and can only dream that one day I could write as well about my topic of research.

This isn’t a comprehensive book about fungi, nor does it try to be. Its purpose appears to be to spark that seed of fascination for fungi that can start expanding. And it certainly works. I was very much reminded of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Gathering Moss which I read last autumn. As you can gather from the title, Kimmerer’s research topic is mosses and her wonderful, inspiring writing is part of the reason why I’m doing my master’s thesis about mosses. Needless to say, both Entangled Life and Gathering Moss are wonderful nature books about wonderful taxonomic groups. I particularly love how they intertwine science with their own experiences – it makes the books feel personal.