The Way Through the Woods: On Mushrooms and Mourning

The Way Through the Woods: On Mushrooms and Mourning

A grieving widow discovers a most unexpected form of healingâ‚¬"hunting for mushrooms.

â‚¬Å“Moving . . . Â Long tells the story of finding hope after despair lightly and artfully, with self-effacement and so much gentle good nature.â‚¬Ââ‚¬"The New York Times

Long Litt Woon met Eiolf a month after arriving in Norway from Malaysia as an exchange student. They fell in love, married, and settled into domestic bliss. Then Eiolfâ‚¬s unexpected death at fifty-four left Woon struggling to imagine a life without the man who had been her partner and anchor for thirty-two years. Adrift in grief, she signed up for a beginnerâ‚¬s course on mushroomingâ‚¬"a course the two of them had planned to take togetherâ‚¬"and found, to her surprise, that the pursuit of mushrooms rekindled her zest for life.

The Way Through the Woods tells the story of parallel journeys: an inner one, through the landscape of mourning, and an outer one, into the fascinating realm of mushroomsâ‚¬"resilient, adaptable, and essential to natureâ‚¬s cycle of death and rebirth. From idyllic Norwegian forests and urban flower beds to the sandy beaches of Corsica and New Yorkâ‚¬s Central Park, Woon uncovers an abundance of surprises often hidden in plain sight: salmon-pink Bloody Milk Caps, which ooze red liquid when cut; delectable morels, prized for their earthy yet delicate flavor; and bioluminescent mushrooms that light up the forest at night.

Along the way, she discovers the warm fellowship of other mushroom obsessives, and finds that giving her full attention to the natural world transforms her, opening a way for her to survive Eiolfâ‚¬s death, to see herself anew, and to reengage with life.

Praise for The Way Through the Woods

â‚¬Å“In her search for new meaning in life after the death of her husband, Long Litt Woon undertook the study of mushrooms. What she found in the woods, and expresses with such tender joy in this heartfelt memoir, was nothing less than salvation.â‚¬Ââ‚¬"Eugenia Bone, author of Mycophilia and Microbia
Country USA
Brand Random House
Manufacturer Random House
Binding Hardcover
Color Black
ReleaseDate 2019-07-02
UnitCount 1
EANs 9781984801036

Country	USA
Brand	Random House
Manufacturer	Random House
Binding	Hardcover
Color	Black
ReleaseDate	2019-07-02
UnitCount	1
EANs	9781984801036

The Way Through the Woods: On Mushrooms and Mourning

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