by Zoë Schlanger
Harper Perennial
5/13/2025, paperback
SKU: 9780063073869
Award-winning Atlantic writer Zoë Schlanger’s New York Times bestselling exploration of the hidden world of plant intelligence, “destabilizing not just how we see the green things of the world but also our place in the hierarchy of beings, and maybe the notion of that hierarchy itself.”—The New Yorker
To live and thrive while rooted in a single place, plants have adapted ingenious methods of survival. Recently, scientists have learned about their ability to communicate, to recognize their kin and behave socially, to hear sounds, to morph their bodies to blend into their surroundings, to store memories that inform their life cycle, and even to trick animals into behaving to their benefit.
The Light Eaters is a deep immersion into the drama of green life and the complexity of this wild world that challenges our very understanding of agency, consciousness, and intelligence. Zoë Schlanger takes us across the globe, digging into the soil with the scientists who have spent their waking days studying these amazing entities up close.
What can we learn about life on Earth from the living things that adapt, consume, and accommodate simultaneously? More important, what do we owe these life forms once we come to understand their rich and varied abilities? Examining the latest epiphanies in botanical research, Schlanger spotlights the intellectual struggles among the researchers conceiving a wholly new view of their subject, offering a glimpse of a field in turmoil as plant scientists debate the tenets of ongoing discoveries and how they influence our understanding of what a plant is.
Reviews:
“The Light Eaters is a masterpiece of science writing. Burning with open-minded curiosity, this exploration of the emerging revolution in plant science will challenge what you think you know and ignite a new way of seeing the plant world. Part detective story, part field trip and part philosophy, this brilliant book stretches the mind, toward a profound new understanding of the sophistication of under-appreciated plants. I feel it as an antidote to arrogance, as it engenders humility, respect and awe for the light eaters who make the world.” -Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
“To read The Light Eaters is to be astounded by the complex behaviors of these ostensibly lower life-forms. Ms. Schlanger’s prose is precise yet loving. . . . There are lots of gee-whiz moments here. . . . Fertilize your brain with The Light Eaters and you’ll never look at your favorite, or least favorite, plants the same.” -Wall Street Journal
“A brilliant must-read about the marvels of the green world. This book shook and changed me, revealing plant intelligence as more strange and wondrous than I could imagine. Zoë Schlanger’s explorations brim with curiosity and every page brings new revelation and insight.” -David George Haskell, author of Sounds Wild and Broken, The Songs of Trees, and The Forest Unseen
“A stunning book . . . will transform how you see not only plants but the nature of all life.” -Scientific American
About the Author:
Zoë Schlanger is a staff writer at the Atlantic, where she covers climate change. She previously covered the environment at Quartz and Newsweek. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the New York Review of Books, Time, NPR, and elsewhere. Schlanger was the recipient of a 2017 National Association of Science Writers reporting award. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.