A professional tree climber encounters gorillas, snakes, spiders, and birds of prey, as well as answers and perspective, hundreds of feet up, all over the world Every child knows the allure of climbing trees. But how many of us get to make a living at it, spending days observing nature from the canopies of stunning forests all around the world? As a wildlife cameraman for the BBC and National Geographic, James Aldred spends his working life high up in trees, poised to capture key moments in the lives of wild animals and birds. Aldred's climbs take him to the most incredible and majestic trees in existence. In Borneo, home to the tallest tropical rain forest on the planet, just getting a rope up into the 250-foot-tall trees is a challenge. In Venezuela, even body armor isn't guaranteed protection against the razor-sharp talons of a nesting Harpy Eagle. In Australia, the peace of being lulled to sleep in a hammock twenty-five stories above the ground- after a grueling day of climbing and filming-is broken by a midnight storm that threatens to topple the tree. In this vivid account of memorable trees he has climbed ("Goliath," "Apollo," "Roaring Meg"), Aldred blends incredible stories of his adventures in the branches with a fascination for the majesty of trees to show us the joy of rising-literally-above the daily grind, up into the canopy of the forest.
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“Narrator Samuel Roukin expertly runs the gamut of emotions narrating wildlife photographer James Aldred’s memoir…Roukin conveys Aldred’s awe at these gigantic trees and the magic of the wildlife…Roukin fully inhabits Aldred’s fear when he’s attacked by bees and a harpy eagle, chased by a bull elephant, and riding out a massive thunderstorm…Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile
“A book of heart-stopping bravery and endurance, packed with astonishing—and sometimes gruesome—encounters.”
— Helen McDonald, New York Times bestselling author“A vertiginous, white-knuckled adventure through some of the most spectacular forests in the world.”
— Washington Post“Truly, Aldred offers a feast for the imagination, one that will draw you back to the landscapes that you’ve loved and pull you forward toward new ones…Not to be missed.”
— BookPageBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
James Aldred grew up on the edge of a forest and spent his teenage years exploring it. By fourteen he was building forest shelters and sleeping rough in the woods. By sixteen he was spending much of his time up in the branches. These days, when he is not filming in far-flung countries, he lives in the west country of the UK with his wife and children.
Samuel Roukin, Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a British film and stage actor who is best known for his role as Snatcher in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. He has also appeared in Bright Star and Miss Austin Regrets.