The Secret Life of Fungi

Discoveries from a Hidden World

By: Aliya Whitely

Narrated by: Alison Larkin

Fungi are unlike any other living thing - they’re almost magically unique. Welcome to this astonishing world....

Fungi can appear anywhere, from desert dunes to frozen tundra. They can invade our bodies and live between our toes or our floorboards. They are unwelcome intruders or vastly expensive treats, and symbols of both death and eternal life. But despite their familiar presence, there’s still much to learn about the eruption, growth, and decay of their secret interconnected world.

Aliya Whiteley has always been in love with fungi - from her childhood taking blurry photographs of strange fungal eruptions on Exmoor to a career as a writer inspired by their surreal and alien beauty. This love for fungi is a love for life, from single-cell spores to the largest living organism on the planet; a story stretching from Aliya’s lawn into orbit and back again via every continent.

From fields, feasts, and fairy rings to death caps, puffballs, and ambrosia beetles, this is an intoxicating journey into the life of an extraordinary organism, one that we have barely begun to understand.

©2021 Aliya Whitely (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

Intro to understanding fungi. Must Have

Enjoyable to listen to. Brings awareness to the delicacy of the mushroom to the beauty that can be deadly! Mist have I. Your Library.

BASIC

This wasn't a bad book exactly, but neither was it a good one. It was a sweet little introduction to fungi, but in absolutely no way was it to the level of detail & interest for which I was hoping. it was very VERY much a lay person's introduction to fungi, but not nearly enough information for even the most basic of enthusiasts. It has quaint little tie-ins with some childhood experiences, a state of appreciation for but never a deep engagement. I can feel the awe & appreciation that the author has for the fungal kingdom, but not the more in-depth and detailed experience I was looking for. Cute, made for some for whom an introduction to fungi is the goal (it's great for that) but by no means is it any MORE than an introduction.