Close to Home: The Wonders of Nature Just Outside Your Door

by Thor Hanson Narrated by Stacy Carolan

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

City dwellers and country folk alike will find a new connection with the nature around them thanks to this thoughtful mesh of personal anecdotes and natural history.

An award-winning natural-history writer opens the door to the nature that thrives in our yards, gardens, and parks

We all live on nature's doorstep, but we often overlook it. From backyards to local parks, the natural places we see the most may well be the ones we know the least.

In Close to Home, biologist Thor Hanson shows how retraining our eyes reveals hidden wonders just waiting to be discovered. In Kansas City, migrating monarch butterflies flock to the local zoo. In the Pacific Northwest, fierce yellowjackets placidly sip honeydew, unseen in the treetops. In New England, a lawn gone slightly wild hosts a naturalist's life's work. And in the soil beneath our feet, remedies for everything from breast cancer to the stench of skunks lie waiting for someone's searching shovel.

Close to Home is a hands-on natural history for any local patch of Earth. It shows that we each can contribute to science and improve the health of our planet. And even more, it proves that the wonders of nature don't lie in some far-off land: they await us, close to home.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Close to Home arrives at a welcome moment: If there are two things we all need right now, they are kinship with the natural world and an escape from the heartbreaking daily news of the human one.”—The Washington Post

“After reading Close to Home, by the conservation biologist Thor Hanson, you may be inspired to step outside and turn over a fresh leaf, look closely under a bit of tree bark or stick your hand in the dirt and see what you come up with. ... What are you waiting for?"—David Barash, Wall Street Journal

“A captivating mix of engaging stories, accessible science and interesting facts!” —The Seattle Times

“Hanson’s writing is engaging and informative… Readers will be inspired to take a closer look at the amazing but often overlooked plants and creatures hiding in plain sight and to take steps to foster biodiversity in their own backyards.”
 —Booklist

"A fascinating look at interesting creatures going about their business in the most mundane habitats, demonstrating that observing nature is available to all. For readers who relish accessible scientific studies and lyrical nature writing." —Library Journal

"Readers who assume a backyard consists of weeds, shrubbery, rodents, local birds, and bugs are in for a surprise… Plenty of exotica live among us.” —Kirkus Reviews

“An educational and inspiring book from cover to cover.” —Porchlight Books Blog

"Thor Hanson has done it again! In this surprising, upbeat, and exciting book, we learn that not only everyday wonders, but actual scientific discovery awaits us Close To Home. The perfect mix of science and story, told by a master of both. I loved it!"  —Sy Montgomery, author of The Soul of an Octopus

“Thor Hanson’s Close to Home invites us to step into the ordinary and discover the extraordinary. From natural science experiments to the search for new species, Hanson reminds us that awe and wonder are as close as our own backyard. With Hanson as our guide, a walk around the block becomes an opportunity to explore, to conserve, to ask questions, and to broaden our horizons.”—Amy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanist

"Thor Hanson’s Close to Home, written with classic Hanson prose and enthusiasm, is as addictive as it is entertaining. Hanson teaches the value of looking high and low, near and far, at the fascinating natural systems we have never noticed right in our yards. And, very much to my liking, he tells us how to enhance those systems with minor tweaks to our landscapes. Thor Hanson has forced me to use the dreaded cliche: I couldn’t put it down!"
 —Doug Tallamy, author of Nature's Best Hope

“Packed with inspiration and insight, the wonders of the living world are vividly revealed in this beautifully crafted invitation to curiosity and exploration.”—David George Haskell, author of The Forest Unseen

"When we love a book we typically say, 'I couldn’t put it down.' Close to Home is different. This book inspires such a rush of curiosity, I simply had to put it down over and over again so I could run out the door and investigate: peer beneath leaves for never-known insects, or turn my ear to the subtle language of neighborhood birds, or reach my hands into the soil to touch the under-earth beings beneath my everyday notice. What joy. Thor Hanson’s love for his subject is infectious, and reminds us that access to the deep knowledge we need in this complex ecological time does not lie only within institutional walls, but in the everyday conversations between our wild minds, our wild hearts, and the wild earth." —Lyanda Lynn Haupt, author of Rooted

Library Journal

02/01/2025

Conservation biologist Hanson (Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid: The Fraught and Fascinating Biology of Climate Change) shares his experiences observing and learning about nature on his rural property on an island off the coast of Washington. Divided into three parts—"Seeing," "Exploring," and "Restoring"—his essays encourage readers to pay close attention to the plants and animals in their own backyards. He wants readers to see them through someone else's eyes, such as a child's, or through new perspectives. He discovers diminutive, potentially new species in his yard while also tracking bumblebee activity, exploring soil science, watching wildlife, and observing animals that are active at night. The book concludes with ways to help nature by restoring habitats and identifying limiting factors in the environment that prevent animals from inhabiting their natural dwellings. The experiences of others and the importance of citizen scientists are woven throughout Hanson's essays as he explains studies and interviews experts on the book's topics. VERDICT A fascinating look at interesting creatures going about their business in the most mundane habitats, demonstrating that observing nature is available to all. For readers who relish accessible scientific studies and lyrical nature writing.—Sue O'Brien

APRIL 2025 - AudioFile

Biologist Thor Hanson describes how during the Covid pandemic he attuned his senses to the wildlife right in his backyard. Narrator Stacy Carolan strikes a curious tone as he narrates the author's explorations of nature in Kansas City. Carolan's delivery is laid-back yet quickly paced as he presents the author's observations on the daily life that was going on all around him, including the activities of creatures that usually go unnoticed, such as birds, frogs, butterflies, wasps, and pollinators. In particular, Hanson discusses observing wildlife at night and introducing children to the wonders of their local environment. He also weaves in references to works of other nature chroniclers and the importance of biodiversity and restoration. S.E.G. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2025-01-16
Exploring the wild world behind his house.

Conservation biologist Hanson lives in the Pacific Northwest, so most of his property is a temperate rain forest, but its rich biome serves him well. Author ofThe Triumph of Seeds: How Grains, Nuts, Kernels, Pulses, and Pips Conquered the Plant Kingdom and Shaped Human History, he writes that readers who assume a backyard consists of weeds, shrubbery, rodents, local birds, and bugs are in for a surprise. Evolution, ecology, and biological novelties proceed at their usual pace when humans settle nearby. Plenty of exotica live among us. Eighty percent of the small things on this planet and quite a few larger ones have yet to be named, and amateurs discover most of them. An ordinary bed sheet, brightly lit, attracts a torrent of moths including the occasional unknown. Over a hundred thousand households plant the same species of sunflower in their backyards and then take notes on the bees that visit. It was only after 1980 that scientists discovered a distinct habitat in forest canopies. Assisted by a local tree surgeon, Hanson struggles high up a backyard Douglas Fir and discovers an unnerving new environment. In the opposite direction, any patch of ground holds as much life below the surface as above, so soil may be the richest biome on the planet. Or perhaps it’s the world after dark; a Google search produces 235 million hits for “diurnal biology” versus a mere 12 million for “nocturnal biology.” Humans are more afraid of darkness than guns. This is not likely to change any time soon, as the author bumps around with a flashlight, fending off a territorial owl that represents a genuine danger.

Far from the first natural history of the backyard, but a good one.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940192186404
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	03/11/2025
Edition description:	Unabridged

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