Paperback, 550 pages
French language
Published Sept. 6, 2018 by Le Cherche midi.
The Overstory is a novel by Richard Powers published in 2018 by W. W. Norton & Company. It is Powers' twelfth novel. The book is about nine Americans whose unique life experiences with trees bring them together to address the destruction of forests. Powers was inspired to write the work while teaching at Stanford University, after he encountered giant redwood trees for the first time.The Overstory was a contender for multiple awards. It was shortlisted for the 2018 Man Booker Prize on September 20, 2018 and won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction on April 15, 2019, as well as the William Dean Howells Medal in 2020. Reviews of the novel have been mostly positive, with praise of the structure, writing, and compelling reading experience.Patricia Westerford, one of the novel's central characters, was heavily inspired by the life and work of forest ecologist Suzanne Simard. Westerford pens the fictional novel …
The Overstory is a novel by Richard Powers published in 2018 by W. W. Norton & Company. It is Powers' twelfth novel. The book is about nine Americans whose unique life experiences with trees bring them together to address the destruction of forests. Powers was inspired to write the work while teaching at Stanford University, after he encountered giant redwood trees for the first time.The Overstory was a contender for multiple awards. It was shortlisted for the 2018 Man Booker Prize on September 20, 2018 and won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction on April 15, 2019, as well as the William Dean Howells Medal in 2020. Reviews of the novel have been mostly positive, with praise of the structure, writing, and compelling reading experience.Patricia Westerford, one of the novel's central characters, was heavily inspired by the life and work of forest ecologist Suzanne Simard. Westerford pens the fictional novel The Secret Forest, which mirrors notable ecological texts such as The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate- Discoveries from a Secret World by German forester Peter Wohlleben and The Secret Life of Trees by British science writer Colin Tudge.
Une super saga de l'amérique des 20ieme et 21ieme siècles, avec une place importante donnée aux arbres.
Halfway through I thought I'd already read this story, but then I realized I was thinking of [b:The Stand|149267|The Stand|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1213131305l/149267.SX50.jpg|1742269], which was twice as long but with much better pacing. I also started to suspect that the characters of [b:The Overstory|40180098|The Overstory|Richard Powers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562786502l/40180098.SY75.jpg|57662223] would not be okay with the number of trees that were cut down to publish such a bloated book. While at times I was tempted to DNF, I didn't completely hate this book. It was hard for me to keep track of all the characters, even with the lengthy exposition dedicated to each at the beginning, and I failed to emotionally connect with any of them. What compelled me about this book was the perspective of the forests and trees, and the sense of scale of their footprints and timeline--I'm not sure that the stories of any of the humans in this …
Halfway through I thought I'd already read this story, but then I realized I was thinking of [b:The Stand|149267|The Stand|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1213131305l/149267.SX50.jpg|1742269], which was twice as long but with much better pacing. I also started to suspect that the characters of [b:The Overstory|40180098|The Overstory|Richard Powers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562786502l/40180098.SY75.jpg|57662223] would not be okay with the number of trees that were cut down to publish such a bloated book. While at times I was tempted to DNF, I didn't completely hate this book. It was hard for me to keep track of all the characters, even with the lengthy exposition dedicated to each at the beginning, and I failed to emotionally connect with any of them. What compelled me about this book was the perspective of the forests and trees, and the sense of scale of their footprints and timeline--I'm not sure that the stories of any of the humans in this particular book did that broader perspective enough justice. Overall I didn't particularly enjoy reading this book, but it did give me some things to think about.
