This book was fascinating.

I have never thought about timber poaching in my life, and this book provided an excellent tutorial using the Pacific Northwest as a its source material. Another reviewer mentioned that it reads like a mystery novel/crime procedural, and I would agree with that assessment (in the most complimentary way). The author interviewed a number of the alleged poachers and went on ride-alongs with law enforcement. It also highlights the challenges of catching poachers, and the (weak, in my opinion) consequences for offenders. This book also briefly dives into the global problem of illegally harvested wood and the different resources and agencies available to combat it.

Some of the anecdotes include: discovering a redwood that's back half (the facing away from a hiking trail) that had been cut away and harvested, and starting a forest fire because a tree they were trying to harvest (illegally) had a wasp nest in it and they tried to burn it out.

It was riveting from start to finish.

It is a very interesting premise and a lot of intriguing information. That being said, it's written in a manner that was fairly dry and as much as I am very interested in this information I can't push myself to continue reading.

Tree poaching occurs in every national forest and can create large-scale destruction. In Tree Thieves, the author researches and investigates this phenomenon. In the United States alone, over one billion dollars worth of wood is poached annually, and one in ten trees cut down is the product of poaching. Bourgon expertly researches the changing history of forests in the United States and how communities have relied on them for their local economy. With environmental changes, the restriction of forest destruction has put activists at odds with local community members. The destruction of even one tree can have a devastating impact on the entire forest and the environment all around the world. However, local community members continue to want to harvest and poach if necessary to maintain their way of life.

Bourgon expertly delves into the historical problems of logging communities and the environment. While logging jobs are reduced, the need for high-quality work remains high. Poachers will not destroy an entire tree or forest. They work in stealth so as not to get caught. Rangers can find evidence of their destruction with leftover tools and evidence of humans going through brush. The poachers will cut the knob out of a tree to minimize detection, and the wood grain gets the highest price. This technique causes huge environmental disasters that cannot be recouped with fines and jail time. The cat-and-mouse games with poachers and rangers, the animosity of a community against the rangers, and the temptation to make a quick buck all collide in this book.

Fascinating history and a long-standing problem. A local community's economy impacts the world's ecology.

This was a strange and interesting topic, and the authot did a fantastic job. 10/10 would recommend to anyone who likes narratove nonfiction.

In the book, Tree Thieves, author Lyndsie Bourgon explores the phenomenon of the theft of trees and wood from public lands. This is a more common crime than most of would suspect. This book does a good job introducing the reader to the unseen things that happen in the woods.

The book begins with burl theft. Burls are growths that some trees produce that can help them regrow following damage. Coast redwoods have some beautiful burls, which craftspeople make into bowls, tables, and other wood creations. However, many burls grow on old-growth trees, which are mostly protected in parks. Burl thieves work at night and go into the forests and cut these off the trees. Sometimes, whole trees are felled to get the burls, which can grow 100 feet or more up the trunk of an ancient redwood. This reviewer worked in the parks in the area featured in the book and has seen firsthand the damage to the forest from these activities. One of the people interviewed in the book after discovering a wood theft site is a personal friend of mine. I’ve stumbled across burl theft sites and wood poaching sites many times in the parks. In fact, we had a name for the people who perpetrated these crimes in the parks. We called them wood pirates. Whatever name you know them by, their activities can wreak havoc on the forest ecosystem. Old-growth forests have never been logged, but burl thieves don’t mind felling a tree that may be 2000 years old, just to be able to cut off the burls and sell them. That tree may be home to countless species that live exclusively in the canopy, such as the endangered marbled murrelet and spotted owl. Other species, such as salamanders and tree voles, may live their entire lives in the tree canopy, never coming to the ground. Felling such a tree disturbs this ecosystem and can kill these sensitive species, not to mention the aesthetics of having an old-growth tree near a park road cut down to steal wood. In my parks, it was also common for thieves to cut wood for shingle bolts and fence rails. When trees fall into the rivers during winter high water events, those trees wash downstream. Wherever they wash up on the gravel bars, it is common for folks to drive there and cut them up. Wood poaching is a larger problem in these areas than most tourists who visit will ever see.

The book is a good introduction to this issue. The author interviewed several people who were caught and convicted of wood theft. Their reasons are mostly economic. Many of the small rural communities around the parks are economically depressed. The heyday of logging in the area has long past. Wherever people used to be able to make a good living in the woods as loggers, there are now communities without many available employment options. There is no old-growth left to cut, and the second-growth forests are not logged at the high volumes of the previous century. So, there are few jobs for folks who still live in the small communities. Most of the work in the park tourist industry is seasonal and only in summer, which leaves the rest of the year as a lean time economically. These small towns are far from the larger cities where there are more job opportunities, but mostly those are in service industries that don’t pay well. Drugs and crime are a big problem in these small communities. Wood theft is one of those crimes.

Bourgon goes on to show the other places where wood theft is a problem. There is a black market for many types of wood. Music wood from maples. Curly redwood for dashboards in high-end automobiles. Wood from tropical places that is prized by woodworkers also is subject to tree theft. There is a lab where tree genetics are used to help find out where particular wood came from. Rangers sometimes take the wood and have to match the grain pattern to the exact tree from which it was stolen. The science behind the investigative part of this story is fascinating.

The issue of tree theft is complex, and the author does a good job showing all sides by interviewing people in each group involved. The reader learns the background of why people turn to theft of wood to make a living. They also see how the folks charged with protecting the forests work to stop them. It’s a well-rounded piece of investigative journalism. It makes for a good read. It was particularly exciting for me with the local connection and knowing one of the interviewees. I highly recommend this book if you are interested in forests, environmental issues, or just want to read a good book about a very interesting subject.

There needs to be a subgenre called "natural thrillers" or "natural science thrillers." Bourgen's book fits right in with Vaillant's The Tiger or Kirk W. Johnson's The Feather Thief and I am here for it. Bourgen has done a remarkable job researching and collecting history, narrative, and science before putting it together in this gripping exploration of the timber black market. Bourgen is not tlling just one story, but many, and the nuance that provides creates an incredibly compelling read. A new favorite.

This was a really impressive read, a great book that demonstrates the power of investigative journalism and brings light to an issue that I (and I am sure many others) have never seen or realized was such an issue. The writing in this was wonderfully done, and the book was structured really well. This was incredibly well researched, and I loved how the author took it all the way back to the very definition of forest and the very first environmental law (that we know of) to provide the reader with a contextual understanding of how this issue developed and changed in the intervening years. Well written, researched, and utterly compelling and fascinating to read.

While I live in California and enjoy spending time in Olympic National Park in Washington, I was completely oblivious to the threat to our beautiful outdoors caused by tree theft.

This book was truly such an interesting read. I really enjoyed how the author took time to tell the history of how this issue began and walked us through how it’s evolved over time and region. What an eye opening read and something I’ll take with me from now on as I enjoy the wilderness.

Thank you Lyndsie Bourgon, Little, Brown Spark and NetGalley for the ARC of this ebook.

Thank you to Little Brown Spark for the free physical copy that I read along with the audio.

Have you ever thought about the timber black market? I had not either until this book. As a lover of trees it makes my stomach twist to read about these old-growth trees which are irreplaceable to our environment being chain sawed to pieces for profit. But that is what this book dives into. How tree poaching affects us and wildlife, but how it is also not as black and white of an issue as we may perceive it to be. The complexities of public land and the peoples that this public land imposes upon is a tangled web, and trying to untangle it can lead to some interesting results.

I enjoyed the knowledge this book gave and the investigative work that went into writing it, but I was easily bogged down in the details at times and found it a slog to finish reading.

TREE THIEVES is a magnificent debut by Lyndsie Bourgon — one that demonstrates impressive investigative journalism and nuanced, accessible storytelling on a very complicated topic. I keenly appreciated how Bourgon balanced sharing the results of her extensive research on old-growth tree poaching — which she introduces a fascinating angle on — with personal anecdotes and vivid scenery. She also deftly weaves in intriguing real-life characters that help boost overall engagement with the story.

Simply put, TREE THIEVES is a must-read.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

🌳 Book Review 🌲

Thank you to @netgalley and @littlebrown for the ebook of Tree Thieves. I was approved for this on it’s pub day, June 21st, and my husband and I were so excited. That’s because I’d read to him the email introducing this book a couple weeks prior:

“About a decade ago, an 800-year-old western red cedar was stolen from a provincial park along the far west coast of British Columbia. The cedar was a 160-foot-tall sentinel in a lush, mossy forest. By 2012, it had survived generations of risk, growing through windstorms and clear-cut logging in the centuries beforehand. But that year it was cut down and smuggled out of the park in the middle of a spring night.

For me, the cedar’s theft opened a door. After reading about the poaching, I was surprised that anyone could possibly fell a tree of that size. And when I learned that BC Parks officials had no idea where it went, I was confused. So I walked through that door, and set out to understand what was happening in the forest that night. While the stolen cedar was taken from a park only a couple hours’ drive from my home, I’ve since tromped down forested paths in California, Washington, England, and the Peruvian Amazon, to gather the stories and perspectives that have ended up in Tree Thieves.”

This book is as amazing as this blurb sounds! I read this one with my husband and we both learned a lot and discussed it so much! If you’re into GOOD non-fiction, then pick this one up!

I got the audiobook from my library for the last few chapters and the narrator is also fantastic. So, whether you want to read or listen, you’re good to go!

It should seem obvious that tree poaching, particularly protected ones is something that happens on a regular basis. Places that used to thrive with logging turned into tourism to survive or stall out, with no other viable industry in the area. This is what happened to Orick in Northern California after the Redwood parks were established. Here they often take the burls off the big trees or take cuttings off trees already felled. The poachers don’t understand that even these actions are harming the trees and forest, as burls are protection and even a logged redwood can regrow from the stump.

The book didn’t only focus on Orick and Redwoods, looking into illegal tree cutting further north in Canada, and elsewhere. As timber prices climb tree poaching increases.

Perhaps the book would have been stronger if remained focused on just the one location in Northern California, since the material gathered from the people who poach and those who go after them to stop was extensive.

I was quite engaged with this topic and information but found myself frustrated with how the book was organized. It was a little chaotic and not well formed out.

Hopefully this book will help bring more attention to this topic, as trees are extremely important resource in so many ways, and the more we leave standing, especially the older forests, the better the plant’s health will remain. It's shocking how little monetary value is placed on the trees illegally cut down. It's also sad that people who live in small towns that didn’t turn to tourism has to resort to illegal ways to survive.

While I am interested in nature conservation and the environment in general, I had no idea that tree poaching is so ubiquitous in the most precious American forests. So, for me, this book was enlightening and eye-opening. The parts about forests themselves and the scientific background of both their history and the effects of destroying them in the process of tree thievery I found the most fascinating.

The particular cases of such crimes were a little too detailed for me, and to be frank–sometimes a little boring. But the thing I appreciate most about this book is its deep empathy and unbiased attitude towards the people who take these magnificent giants from the forest. It would be so easy just to condemn and hate them–but life isn’t so simple and trying to understand their motives was so much more rewarding.

Thanks to the publisher, Little, Brown and Company, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

I am an Army lawyer and the first thing I had ever heard regarding the topic of lumber/timber theft was during a prosecution course where the instructors mentioned that lumber/timber theft was amongst the most common crimes that civilians commit at Joint Base Lewis McChord (an Army and Air Force installation ~30 miles southwest of Seattle in Washington state). That fact really surprised me and was just an interesting thing I told those around with me. Seeing this book on NetGalley for request piqued my interest because I wanted to learn more!

I learned a lot about not just timber theft and the impact it has environmentally and socioeconomically overall, but also with a specific focus on the PNW where I now live. It also mentions timber theft in the Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri, where I was stationed for two years at Fort Leonard Wood, often called “Fort Lost in the Woods.” I learned a lot about environmental law, history, ecology, conservation, even where the term “forest” comes from. The main messages in this book are incredibly important to our environment and it was really interesting to me to learn more about the areas and specifically trees in which I actually live(d). Otherwise, the timber black market and environmental struggle would have went on around me with my ignorant bliss. I will definitely appreciate trees a lot more now!

Thank you to NetGalley, LBC, and the author for an advance e-galley!

Tree Thieves centers around the poaching of old growth redwoods in the Pacific Northwest. Lyndsey Bourgon gives a well balanced view not only highlighting the importance of these trees to the environment and our atmosphere but also spotlighting the cultural and economical implications inherent in protecting them. Through the deep dive into the redwood story as well as maples in the music industry and indigenous peoples leading conservation efforts in the Amazon, she shows that the preservation of our forests must begin with community. This is a solid follow up read to those who enjoyed The Overstory or Janesville.

A story about a lesser known crime - the theft/poaching of wood across the United States. Bourgon talks about the history of tree poaching and forensics of tree poaching. I really liked the history of poaching here, but found other sections less compelling. Still an interesting concept though.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A nuanced and detailed account of Tree poaching the Pacific Northwest, as well as around the world. This book does a great job of explaining the rippling effects of tree poaching as well showing the many different viewpoints to take into account. It's more than just one tree to both sides.
It is well written narrative style that is engaging, but doesn't over-inflate for effect. The people spotlighted are treated with respect as well as stand a examples for larger narratives in the conversation on tree poaching and conservation. The author does a great job of understanding their own biases and the book doesn't push for any agenda instead letting you contemplate the consequences and viewpoints to come to your own conclusion.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy of this book on power, crime, money and lumber.

The problem with being a careful steward of the environment and stripping nature down to the last bit of profit that can be made with even saw dust, is of course money. Lumber is big business. Old- growth trees can be used to make musical instruments, line the dashboard of luxury cars, make one of kind tables and more. Conservation costs money too. To protect or make havens for trees cost money, and with that money comes privilege and the attitude that money brings with it. Add to this that generations of people who had worked in lumber, suddenly find themselves without a job, future, or a say in their own communities, maybe breaking a law, that really isn't that big a law, doesn't seem so bad. Mother Nature's got a lot of tree children, she won't miss a few. Until it's much more than a few. In Tree Thieves: Crime and Survival in North America's Woods, writer, oral historian and 2018 National Geographic Explorer examines the timber black market, the reasons why it exists, why people do it, and how law enforcement is reacting with both scientific and old-fashioned policing methods.

The book begins with a history of the timber industry with a focus on the Pacific Northwest and Canada. Many flooded the area as the profits were good, jobs were plentiful and living out of doors and far from others was quite an enticement. As the industry grew, the environment began to suffer, with flooding and other destruction starting to be noticed. Then came the conservation movement, with a background in eugenics that I had no idea, but after reading makes a whole lot of sense. Soon areas became government land, and parks, jobs were drying up and entire areas were beginning to lose what they had. The war of the tree huggers and the tree murderers was one of both class and money, a rift that continues to this day. And as jobs, dried up, drugs became a factor, all those trees, no matter on whose property it was on was too much of a temptation. In addition there is also a chapter on the global timber black market, which is of interest. As are the sections on enforcement, dealing with how the government makes cases, enforces laws, and the science used to determine and identify lumber.

The book is a lot more than trees. There is a lot of science, study, thoughts on the conservation movement, life in the Pacific Northwest, and much more. The writing is very good with a lot of different voices telling their stories from both sides of the timber- line. The research and just interviewing is quite extensive, and the author must have worn through a lot of boots putting this book together. The feelings of everyone involved is quite apparant, and shows a lot of care. The writing is very good, with everything including the science explained well, with never a lull in the narrative, and leaves the reader with a lot of things to think about at the end.

Much more than a crime novel, more a cultural study of an area that is changing for the better or worse, it is hard to determine. Recommended for readers of Mary Roach's Fuzz, Susan Orlean's Orchid Thief, the Falcon Thief by Joshua Hammer. Also one of the scientists mentioned in the book is Ken Goddard who wrote some very good thrillers involving Fish and Game Detectives, which are also quite good.

The writing within this book is informative, clear and concise and educating.
The information provided within these pages is so so crucial to read and to take away from.
This book intertwines many different topics and themes such as; the environment, cultures and class.

Furthermore, this book is packed full of science and information about indigenous cultures. Reading this book will help to educate many and bring to light issues that not enough are talking about.

I am very grateful to have been given the chance to read this!

This book is available for purchase starting June 21st, 2022 and can be purchased from various retailers such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.