Daily WellnessApr 8, 2025
Get ready to add a few more books to your to-be-read list! For those of us who are obsessed with both herbalism and the magic of plants, there’s nothing better than curling up with a steamy cup of tea and a good book. Especially when it's woven with beautiful stories about plants and people.
Below you’ll find 5 must-read books, including both non-fiction and fiction options – happy reading!
If you’re looking for a real page-turner, rest assured you won’t be able to put this New York Times Bestseller down. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens features a young woman named Kya, who’s left to raise herself in the marshes of North Carolina after her family abandons her at a young age. There is so much to her story: romance, mystery, and a murder! It all takes place in the breathtaking backdrop of the South, where Kya is entrenched in a mystical world of naturalism and botany that will have you swooning over marshlands.
A rich, magical new book on belonging, identity, romance, trauma, nature, and renewal. This story intertwines a quest for a native species and a long lost love. It’s a moving, beautifully written, and delicately constructed story of love, division, transcendence, history, and eco-consciousness. The Island of Missing Trees is Elif Shafak’s best work yet. This book is recommended by Herbalist & Product Education Manager Lina Watanabe who shared, “This book is a beautiful story that follows multiple generations and is uniquely narrated by an anthropomorphic Fig tree. The historical aspect of including the Greco-Turkish war within a love story is both interesting and compelling.”
Delve into a fictional world that’s rooted in the powerful connection between humans and trees. In The Overstory by Richard Powers, nine Americans’ stories are intertwined as they share unique experiences with trees and, inevitably, address the destruction of the forest. The intergenerational fables take you from the Timber Wars of the Pacific Northwest to the antebellum New York as humans confront what it means to live in harmony with the natural world. This book is both a New York Times Bestseller and Pulitzer Prize winner.
This is the first book to explore the interconnected web of the global herb industry and its many stakeholders. It’s an invaluable resource for conscious consumers who want to better understand the social and environmental impacts of the products they buy. Our Herbalist & Researcher Heather Saba recommended this read and shared, “Ann Armbrecht’s book, The Business of Botanicals, is an eye-opening deep dive into the complexities of the herbal industry. This book is an essential read for anyone working in the industry, passionate about plants, or looking to become a more conscious consumer. Ann paints her thorough research in a captivating way and illuminates important facets of the supply-chain that oftentimes go overlooked.”
With more than 2 million copies sold worldwide, this beautifully-written book journeys deep into the forest to uncover the fascinating and surprisingly moving hidden life of trees. In The Hidden Life of Trees forester and author Peter Wohlleben convincingly makes the case that the forest is a social network. He draws on groundbreaking scientific discoveries to describe how trees are like human families. After learning about the complex life of trees, a walk in the woods will never be the same again. Recommended by Herbal Education Coordinator Elizabeth Draper, she said, “It’s a fascinating book that describes how trees communicate, support each other and form alliances with other inhabitants of the forest.”
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