This is written as essentially a love letter to queer biology and nature, with side notes about different creatures. You can really feel the love the author has for all forest ephemera/euphoria. There’s a lot of exploration of queerness and how nature reflects and intersects with queerness.

This book is the perfect blend of science, memoir, and theory. It paints a vivid picture of the natural world through the lens of queer ecology. It touched all the points I could ask for in a work of creative nonfiction--practical, conceptual, and personal.

I loved this read! As both a queer woman and a nonprofit worker that works towards sustainability and conservation of the world, this book just resonated so deeply with what I believe to be true. I've always had a strange relationship with nature; both a longing to be amongst it and a fear of it in its entirety. Through this book, I've recognized that the fear has come from the mentality pushed forward through society to alienate our nature from us. Kaisian's work made me feel reconnected with the world.

"Humans are part of this collective body, whether we choose to protect it or not, whether we choose to remember or not."

I loved the ways Kaishian interconnected her story with that of nature, specifically creatures normally looked down upon such as eels or fungi. By learning the ways other cultures interact with nature, Kaishian has opened me up to a new worldview that I can pull from to help me connect. I would absolutely recommend this book to others.

Very cool book. I like when you’re talking to someone new and they light up when they get to talk about something g theyre passionate about. That’s the same kind of feeling I got while reading this.

This book is more about a personal journey with anecdotes about how differents life-forms have reproductives and living strategies that don't fit in the general human need for bi-categorisation than a book about biology in all its diversity. The author's love for nature and its weirdness is palpable throughout the book and make for a good read. There are a lot of personal anecdotes too, sharing the pages with data of various species of animals, insects and fungi.
A nice exploration of queerness, nature's weirdness and how both can intersect.

I was looking for a book exactly like this when I stumbled upon the ARC request on Netgalley. I was so stoked when I got the approval notice.

Patricia's love for nature is palpable in this book. Her way of writing made a more information based book still very enjoyable to read, and the info she shared on nature was such a fun and eye-opening experience. I really enjoyed my time reading this.

Nature truly is queer.

Eels use magnets to find saltwater? Cicadas can count to 17? Crows know when you’ve been mean? Patricia Kaishian is the weird, queer, bug kid who maybe got picked on, writing a love letter to what others don’t understand. I want to be her best friend (maybe that’s because she’s a queer, neurodivergent, millennial Scorpio like me). The prose was readable, and I devoured it. From slugs to mushrooms to crows, I learned so many things and greatly appreciate the world around me for someone who truly cares. Kaishian’s love of nature is palpable throughout the page and I enjoyed going on this journey with her. The staunch narratives weaved throughout what might be dry material made this book so much more real, showed the time and effort done in the research process, and helped build credibility through humanity.

Nature is weird, fascinating, and queer. This book has an almost spiritual nature and brought me a sense of peace to read. There are so many great facts within the pages about parts of our world I’d never really explored. Let’s all become queer to places.

Thank you to Spiegel & Grau and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.