THE FOREST A Fable of America in the 1830s

Clarke Peters has a distinctive, resonant voice. He performs this multifaceted audiobook authoritatively with a good ear for story and a fine pace. His careful diction works well with the collection of sketches, profiles, historic moments, and interludes on art history that author Nemerov has brought together and defined as a fable of the 1830s. His revealing discussion of what happened to hemlocks shows his appreciation of the environmental costs of the era. His insights into the decade's art and personalities--from naturalist David Douglas (of fir tree fame) to Edgar Allan Poe, Samuel F.B. Morris, and Andrew Jackson--bring the listener a deeper understanding of this seminal period when our forests were mostly ravaged, New York City burned, and the Hudson River School of painters emerged. A.D.M. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2023]