Could it be . . . is there any chance . . . that a glimmer of hope is still to be found . . . in the Kingdom Vegetabile? Might the wordless, motionless vegetables, so long considered mere 'things,' come to our rescue? This is the bracingly cheerful premise of the latest book by the storied pioneer of plant neurobiology, Stefano Mancuso ... here [Mancuso] goes a step beyond the study of vegetal minds into complete anthropomorphizing ... Mancuso lifts his gaze from a minute inspection of the flora to take a more global perspective, intertwining his fresh narrative with strains of thought drawn from biological history, ethnobotany, postcolonial theory, sociology, and philosophy ... Mancuso’s fluent multidisciplinary approach, relayed in warmly relatable prose, is evident ... Mancuso [...] insists that, through significant reorganization, will we be able to provide for all.
With The Nation of Plants, [Mancuso] veers more directly into the political implications of plant intelligence. Much of the book is a rebuke aimed at humans who might think they're the superior species on the planet ... There's less science and more politics in this book than in his previous works, but his argument is compelling and important ... it's also innovative ... The Nation of Plants is a whimsical, speculative foray into applying plant neurobiology to humanity's problems ...
... well-written, informative and surprisingly brief ... Mancuso is at his best when exploring the sheer abundance and adaptability of plants ... Perhaps not surprisingly, Mancuso falters in articulating how Articles calling for 'diffuse and decentralized vegetable democracies' or 'the inviolate rights of natural communities as societies based on relationships among the organisms' might look if put into practice. Mancuso falls back, instead, on well-worn examinations of (so many) human-induced problems from climate change to the havoc caused by introducing new species into established ecosystems, along with his opinions on migration, bureaucracies, and many other topics. The result is a book that’s unfortunately more about humans than plants.
A renowned scientist delivers a simple yet urgent call to action ... Despite the author’s sometimes tongue-in-cheek writing style, which most readers will find refreshing and pleasant, the subject matter is dead serious ... Mancuso concludes his elegant and cogent argument with straightforward advice accessible to anyone ... Insightful and arresting, this book offers an achievable road map to a more 'radiant future.'
Botanist Mancuso (The Revolutionary Genius of Plants) showcases his discoveries about plant communication in this passionate if quirky manifesto ... The whimsical approach will not be for every reader, but those open to suspending disbelief will benefit from a concise summary of plants’ past, present, and possible future role in sustaining life on Earth. Lewis Thomas’s fans should take a look.
