Underland by Robert Macfarlane

The unmissable new book from the bestselling, prize-winning author of Landmarks, The Old Ways and The Lost Words Discover the hidden worlds beneath our feet... In Underland, Robert Macfarlane takes a dazzling journey into the concealed geographies of the ground beneath our feet - the hidden regions beneath the visible surfaces of the world. From the vast below-ground mycelial networks by which trees communicate, to the ice-blue depths of glacial moulins, and from North Yorkshire to the Lofoten Islands, he traces an uncharted, deep-time voyage. Underland a thrilling new chapter in Macfarlane's long-term exploration of the relations of landscape and the human heart. 'He is the great nature writer, and nature poet, of this generation' Wall Street Journal 'Packed with stories based in geography, history, myth, gossip, legend, religion, geology and the natural world. Macfarlane's writing moves and enthrals' The Times on The Old Ways 'Irradiated by a profound sense of wonder... Few books give such a sense of enchantment; it is a book to give to many, and to return to repeatedly' Independent on Landmarks

An interesting trip across so much terrain. The rhythm of this book challenged me. The descriptive prose made me want to know more - especially about fungi connections between trees, karst geography, and glaciers.

This astonishing, fascinating book is the first Macfarlane I have read. I don't think it will be the last. A writer of rare power, yet immensely readable, Macfarlane takes on a journey to the world beneath our feet. The book is split into three “chambers” and within each one the author weaves together natural history, myth, superstition, archaeology and an account of his adventures in the underworld.

Macfarlane starts with caving, probably the most familiar underground space to the reader, delving deep into systems that take him far back in geological time. Vast cathedrals of stone full of majesty and loneliness. A deep world, alien and full of dangers. He recounts some of the fatal accidents that have befallen cavers over the years. A hideous death.

The exploration of the catacombs and hidden spaces beneath the city of Paris is truly memorable, and Macfarlane conveys the claustrophobia and wonder brilliantly. Each adventure is taken in the company of seasoned explorers, in this case urban ones, who have mapped the under-city and guard its secrets zealously.

On and on he goes, into ever deeper places, strange netherworlds hidden from sunlight. He tells of underground cities built hundreds of years ago in Turkey; of sinkholes and glaciers hidden within a mountain in the Balkans. Pushing himself to the limit physically, Macfarlane is not afraid to put himself in danger to see what he needs to see. Another memorable adventure is a solo trek in the dead of winter on a remote Norwegian island to see handprints on a cave wall, created thousands of years ago. Some of the earliest art know to man.

Finally he visits the retreating Glaciers on Greenland, dropping down moulins to see deep inside the great ice mountains. And then to modern man-made deep chambers where nuclear waste is to be stored, our own deadly legacy to future generations.

It's a fantastic book, and a great read, that really makes you think about the world, our place in it and the effect we as humans are having upon the planet.

Very highly recommended.