Fallen. The second life of trees

When a tree falls, put down by a storm, the forest does not stand by and watch. The seemingly dead wood soon repopulates with life and becomes a new space for plants, animals, fungi, bacteria and many other living things. It is full of life and sustains the cycle of nature and the biodiversity of the forest.

Nothing is wasted: everything is regenerated and everything is needed to continue the amazing cycle of nature.

In this book we will discover what happens to a fallen tree in the forest over the seasons and years. It remains seemingly motionless throughout the book, but as time passes it is transformed until it produces a new sprout, on the last page. It is the story of the tree, but also the story of the forest and its inhabitants.

The book is structured by themes and seasons, each spanning a double-page. The double-pages are of three kinds: introductory (illustrations and text), focus pages (with in-depth content and species illustrations), and silent pages (illustration only). The topics covered are (autumn) insects; mosses and lichens; fungi and mollusks; (winter) birds and small mammals; rotten wood and bacteria; (spring) wildflowers and pollinators; (summer) large carnivores; and humans. The book was produced by the authors of Solo Dance, with the same passion and scientific rigor. The iconographic apparatus, created and approved with scientific meticulousness, blends digital technique with freehand illustrations. Most of the species presented are new to science popularization for children in Italy.

Final PDFs available

Publication: November / December 2023 (Italy)

represented worldwide except China and Taiwan