How does Mason bring the local flora and fauna into the novel?

How does Mason bring the local flora and fauna into the novel? What did you make of beetles and spores and seeds sharing the stage with human characters?

mason treats flora and fauna almost as primary characters; the story follows the disappearance of old species and evolution and spread of new species, and shares the roll of beetles, spores, and seeds to this evolution.

I agree with christiec. The flora and fauna were characters in the novel. I didn’t think I would be so fascinated by plant biology, the majesty of the wildlife, the folly of trying to control nature.
I learned a new word…catamount.
I think mason’s choice of words and unflinching descriptions and obvious reverence for the woods was so beautiful. It really spoke to me.

The chapters that dealt with the changing flora and fauna were some of my favorites. The decline of the Chestnut tree and the introduction of the Elm Beetle were at the same time disheartening but interesting. Although we might not notice it, spores and beetles and seeds are always on stage.

Mason gives us a full pictures of North Woods by telling the story of the people who populated the area, its flora and fauna, and how they affected each other. I was also fascinated by the story of the Chestnut tree and the Elm Beetle. And catamount was a new word for me too!

Mason uses the flora and fauna as full blooded characters. He masterfully pulls us into the love affair of a beetle to explain the spread of Dutch Elm disease. He takes us on the journey of a spore to illustrate the Chestnut blight. He explains the movement of seeds from the Isle of Wight to Massachusetts with such lyrical prose it becomes a story within another story. If only my botany text had been so written!

The flora and fauna were some of the continuing characters of the story; it was a lesson of the effect of man on the land, certainly made me think long and deep about climate change and how long it has gone on.

I loved the characterization of insects and spores and seeds. It makes me want to know so much more about the environment. Locally, for several years we have been experiencing something known as Sudden Oak Death and I wish someone would explain it to me as Daniel Mason has done with this book

This novel was filled with descriptions of nature, from the apple orchard to the downfall of the chestnut and elm trees. I’m generally more of an “action” lover when it comes to novels, so I have to admit that while I tried to appreciate all the descriptions of the flora and fauna, sometimes it was too much for me.

Besides the agricultural interests of the characters, Mason employs pictures, diagrams, and a few photographs to explain how seeds and plants are dispersed over a wide area, by wind, animals, and human interactions with the landscape. I had to google some of the names and terms he used to find out more. He did an impressive amount of research for this novel!

From the first residents and throughout the book Mason describes the flora & fauna surrounding the yellow house. Each description goes into amazing detail so that the reader had a clear picture of each meadow, grassland, stream, bird, dragonfly and frog.

The novel starts with description of the ground cover and just escalates throughout each story. It is like the landscape is a character of it's own.

Growing up in the woods of NH I spent time noticing the trees. I loved the soft moss by the brook. Living in Massachusetts I spent some time in Western Massachusetts. Finding the perfect apple was a fun part of the story. The owners of the cabin and how they changed the lay of the land was a story of its own.