GREAT. GOOGLY. MOOGLY.

This is not a happy book; it's not meant to be. It is meant to be a book about hard work, deep [almost unthinkable] sacrifice and a love of the land, what it can yield and the deep importance of honoring that and the seeds that feed us. Does this book accomplish that. It 100% does and so much more.

I knew absolutely nothing about the world's first seed bank [in fact, it is only been in the past 10 years that I learned about seed banks in general] and those who worked there, and that was absolutely fascinating [even the super-sciencey stuff I didn't quite understand]; the travel and care required was a bit mind-blowing and the scientists dedication to the seeds care was also a bit boggling as well.

While I DID know about the Siege on Leningrad, I didn't know all that happened there [the saving of the seeds just being one thing], amongst other things, the Soviet government's hand in refusing to send food for "fear of feeding the Germans"; this unfortunately was not a complete surprise given the Soviet's handling of their own people/soldiers later in the war [and if you do not know about that, I highly suggest you look up that part of history an be prepared to do a deep-dive into some seriously sadistic behavior], but it was still very shocking, and I was often left weeping by the end of a chapter [as an aside, I do not reccoment eating while reading this; every time I did, I had massive guilt. I will say it made me slow down and really APPRECIATE just what I was eating and what went into it].

The fact that we today eat food from germinated seeds that were saved during that time [at the cost of many lives] will change how you look at food forever. It will also make you think about what you would have done in their place AND will make you think about upcoming days and what we would do if our access to food suddenly stopped or was dramatically reduced [I know that this filled my thoughts while reading AND after].

Deeply researched [the author's note at the end delves into this more deeply] and very well written, this is a must-read book for everyone, especially now.

I highly recommend this book and hope it reaches all the people it needs to.

Thank you to NetGalley, Simon Parkin, and Scribner for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you, NetGalley and publishers.

The Forbidden Garden was not an easy read but it was a very important one. The story of the siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg) by the German army during WWII gives harrowing context to scientists working at the world’s first seed bank, and the choices they constantly and consistently made to preserve the precious seed collection they were entrusted with, even as the city around them and they themselves, faced starvation.

Thank you Netgalley and Scribner for this arc.

Vaguely buzzing around my brain is the knowledge that Leningrad was besieged during the German invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II. I knew that things were grim, as usually occurs in cities under prolonged siege, but now I know more about the desperate conditions. The book covers much more than merely the siege and what the Plant Institute scientists and employees endured. It begins with the arrival of Nikolai Vavilov, an enthusiastic visionary who mapped the future of seed banks and, through his supportive, nurturing personality, brought together the creme de la creme of scientists in the Soviet Union to kick-start what was left of a previous attempt at one that faltered during the Revolution and Civil War.

Many of the scientists Vavilov taught and or recruited had actual hunger history and so were dedicated to Vavilov’s idea of collecting various seeds from around the world in order to find ones with the properties that might lead to crop plants that could be used to feed their nation. Vavilov and his intrepid fellows traveled around the world, seeking the seeds of ancient varieties of plants that might be cross bred to increase yields and grow in harsher climates.

Stalin's paranoia led to him believing in the delusions of a scientific rival of Vavilov. Arrested during a trip to Ukraine, Vavilov would ultimately end up dying in the inhuman conditions of a Soviet prison leaving the Plant Institute to face the siege without him. Most of the book covers the heroic efforts of the staff there to save the precious seeds (also nuts, pits, tubers, etc) from cold, rodents, and thieves. Though several staff members succumbed to starvation, a few were killed or died later from bomb injuries.

Though a few staffers did entreat to be allowed to do so, and later high-ups who had been evacuated before the siege wrote to allow them to do so, most of the scientists believed in their mission and Vavilov’s vision. After the war, these seeds could be what would prevent starvation for themselves, their children, and their nation. To yield and consume what they had worked so hard to gather and save would negate everything that they stood for.

And indeed, crossbred varieties of crop plants that were developed from the seed bank have been planted around the world and increased yields. There are also more seed banks around the world now and, as scientists say, they’re in a race to gather and preserve. As I thought about that I stopped to remember what a miracle crop seeds are. Plant them, give them the conditions they need, and voila – food. B+

Excellent, meticulously researched book on the siege of Leningrad and decisions made by the seed bank workers. The story follows the seed bank staff and is supplemented with observations by other Russians living through the Nazi bombardment. The entire book kept me mesmerized. I highly recommend this nonfiction book that I anticipate will be on the New York Times booklist.

In no particular order, the scientists of the Plant Institute of Leningrad had to contend with the persistent Nazi attacks on the city, which damaged the building and the scientists themselves; the people of the city, who were starving and wanted to eat the Institute's collection, what we would now call a seed bank; rats and other vermin, who felt likewise; the cold, which threatened to kill the living treasures; their own hunger, as many would die on their watch; their own government, as the leader of the seed bank had fallen into political disfavor, and their own sense of morality, and whether feeding starving people now was more important than preserving natural history and the possibility that some varietal would prevent famine later.

This is an important story, and is is told well. For being at a particularly grim point in history and a de facto genocide on top of a de jure one, it is an uplifting read. One of the things that works structurally well is separating out the stories of Nikolai Valilov and Heinz Brücher (and William Venables). Too often the story of the former becomes more about his enemies, while the later helps triangulate both that of the scientists and of Valilov in showing the plainly evil as opposed to the more venial opposition elsewhere in the book.

The choice to narrativize the events leads to some weak moments. The history of the institute before Valilov is mostly skipped, which makes some of the comments about how some scientists were motivated to make up for the previous institute's failures lack dimension. Since it is also a history of the Siege of Lennigrad there are odd bits of pacing, like how most of '42 is skipped. This list was longer, until I reached the epilogue, where the author explains how the invasion of Ukraine cut his project short.

My thanks to the author, Simon Parkin, for writing the book, and to the publisher, Scribner, for making the ARC available to me.