A Field Guide to North American Trees

by Garrett Ashley

42 pages, Paperback

Published July 10, 2025

Reviews

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was an interesting approach to form, and some evocative writing.

[Stan Lake · Rating 5 out of 5]

“A Field Guide To North American Trees—poems” by Garrett Ashley is a short collection of poetry that the author has framed in the format of a field guide. I love the idea of it. As someone who both loves poetry and has read a good many field guides, it’s a great mix of the two. Ashley vacillates between making natural history parallels about various South Eastern trees and memories from his past. Each poem is broken down in sections outlining things like habitat, range, bark, twigs, fruit, flowers, and etc. Each section on any given tree could give you notes on actual tree characteristics or memories from various family members like his grandparents or former loves. This was a unique way to frame a poetry collection.

[JM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poetry in the frame of a guide to trees, with each piece named after a tree: poems sectioned off into "Description", "Leaves", "Bark", "Range", "Fruit" and the like. Most pieces are about something other than a tree, but the themes dance in and out like a haze, chopped to pieces by the regular sectioning of the guidebook structure.

There are a lot of bits that I enjoyed, but no full piece really stuck with me. "An aroma like grease, a year in bones. Where are you, when will you be home?" "I am suitable for compact spaces. We become more compact the more we lose." The poems about grandparents were my likely favorites.

Was it good? Yes, but not "bone-crushingly good". The unique structuring hurt more than helped, I think, but I appreciate the commitment to the unusual format.

[Carolyn Newton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Field Guide to North American Trees by Garrett Ashley is a deeply insightful work that brings the reader into a close communion with the sometimes dignified and sometimes quirky world of southern forests. Ashley’s voice is rich with melody and humor and perception. Readers will chuckle over the sumac’s “seepage” and lament the butchering of the crepe myrtle at the hands of city workers. The grandmother is a recurring treasure, and her appearance in the Tree of Life is a gift. This is a work to be read and reread with joy.