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Oak: The Frame of Civilization
"A dazzling book, full of knowledge and rare wisdom, too" ―Thomas Pakenham, author of Remarkable Trees of the World Professional arborist and award-winning nature writer William Bryant Logan deftly relates the delightful history of the reciprocal relationship between humans and oak trees since time immemorial. For centuries these supremely adaptable, generous trees have supported humankind in nearly every facet of life. From the ink of Bach’s cantatas to the first boat to reach the New World, the wagon, the barrel, and the sword, oak trees have been a constant presence in our past. Yet we’ve largely forgotten the oak’s role in civilization. With reverence, humor, and compassion, Logan awakens us to the vibrant presence of the oak throughout our history and in today’s world.
336 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2005
78 people are currently reading
1076 people want to read
About the author
William Bryant Logan
18 books56 followersWilliam Bryant Logan is a certified arborist and president of Urban Arborists, Inc., a Brooklyn-based tree company. Logan has won numerous Quill and Trowel Awards from the Garden Writers of America and won a 2012 Senior Scholar Award from the New York State chapter of the International Society of Arborists. He also won an NEH grant to translate Calderon de la Barca. He is on faculty at NYBG and is the author of Oak and Dirt, the latter of which was made into an award-winning documentary. The same filmmakers are currently planning a documentary made from Air. He lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
February 6, 2013
The oak leaf is the main image of my corporate logo. It represents the generations of Burrusses that have worked the forests. It is easy to see why I picked-up William Bryant Logan’s book Oak, the Frame of Civilization at a vacationing bookstore. The title jumped at me. I knew the importance of the oak tree for my family’s company, Burruss Land & Lumber Company, and I knew how it was used in other Central Virginia companies but “the frame of civilization.” What was this all about?
It is sad to say that living in an age of technology that many people can not relate to any aspect of farming. Even I have to admit that working in a garden, picking tobacco, milking cows, stacking lumber or getting up before the first light appears were minor activities of my development. I am left cutting the grass and mutilating the weeds with my motorized weed-wacker. My father’s agrarian community is gone and his and his many friends’stories are more like a dream. As much as I would like to be part of my ancestral past, technology and institutionalized education are pulling me away from them. So what does this all have to do with Oak?
If you could create an imaginary band around the world that equated the northern and southern boundaries of the continental United States, you will most likely find oak. Oak have played a crucial role in the creation of major civilizations from Kyoto to Beijing, from Kashmir to Jerusalem, from Istanbul to Moscow, from Gibraltar to London then into the land of the Vikings, and from the early boats that crossed the many seas to America. Oak trees were common in all these locations. Balanocultures –those that survive on acorns – go back thousands of years throughout all of these regions. Like the American farmer this dietary knowledge is waning. It is hard to get excited about leaching acorns over devouring a succulent Big Mac, but oak acorns assisted in feeding many civilizations. Architecture, shipbuilding, and early roads were all crafted by artisans and engineers of these ancient civilizations. The oak tree crosses racial and cultural divide and unites our knowledge of construction, design, military defense, and art. Throughout Central Virginia the oak was used for utilitarian purposes in the mass production of furniture and house, truck, and railroad flooring. It adds grandeur to the fronts of our houses and shade to our porches.
Central Virginia is part of the oak legacy. Lane Furniture, Taylor-Ramsey Corporation, Moser Furniture, and Burruss Land & Lumber all had their special niche using the local tree. The regional work force of these companies easily topped a thousand people in the ’50s. Unfortunately, only one of these companies is still in existence. Oak allows us to know our past. It strengthens the roots that bind generations and creates civilizations. It takes us back, but it also brings us forward.
It is sad to say that living in an age of technology that many people can not relate to any aspect of farming. Even I have to admit that working in a garden, picking tobacco, milking cows, stacking lumber or getting up before the first light appears were minor activities of my development. I am left cutting the grass and mutilating the weeds with my motorized weed-wacker. My father’s agrarian community is gone and his and his many friends’stories are more like a dream. As much as I would like to be part of my ancestral past, technology and institutionalized education are pulling me away from them. So what does this all have to do with Oak?
If you could create an imaginary band around the world that equated the northern and southern boundaries of the continental United States, you will most likely find oak. Oak have played a crucial role in the creation of major civilizations from Kyoto to Beijing, from Kashmir to Jerusalem, from Istanbul to Moscow, from Gibraltar to London then into the land of the Vikings, and from the early boats that crossed the many seas to America. Oak trees were common in all these locations. Balanocultures –those that survive on acorns – go back thousands of years throughout all of these regions. Like the American farmer this dietary knowledge is waning. It is hard to get excited about leaching acorns over devouring a succulent Big Mac, but oak acorns assisted in feeding many civilizations. Architecture, shipbuilding, and early roads were all crafted by artisans and engineers of these ancient civilizations. The oak tree crosses racial and cultural divide and unites our knowledge of construction, design, military defense, and art. Throughout Central Virginia the oak was used for utilitarian purposes in the mass production of furniture and house, truck, and railroad flooring. It adds grandeur to the fronts of our houses and shade to our porches.
Central Virginia is part of the oak legacy. Lane Furniture, Taylor-Ramsey Corporation, Moser Furniture, and Burruss Land & Lumber all had their special niche using the local tree. The regional work force of these companies easily topped a thousand people in the ’50s. Unfortunately, only one of these companies is still in existence. Oak allows us to know our past. It strengthens the roots that bind generations and creates civilizations. It takes us back, but it also brings us forward.
October 3, 2012
Very nicely written, and bursting with passion for the subject. The problem is that, roughly halfway through the book, the author moves to presenting what could have been a series of short articles on oak, without really tying them together. Also, there are no in-text citations, just a list of sources at the back of the book. This tends to make me antsy in general.
February 21, 2025
2025 Reading Challenge #4: A book with a plant on the cover ☑
Read February 6-14
Author William Bryant Logan has certainly done some extensive research, outlining the oak tree’s role throughout human history, from culinary to carpentry. It was important for making everything from boats and barrels to bread and dyes. It’s a great collection of examples that prove oak really did build and support civilizations, but it did start to feel a bit tangential to me. For instance, I understand how boats were important for developing/spreading societies and how oak was important for boats, but I don’t think I needed so much detail about boatbuilding.
Although I admit that I’m not likely to check an author’s sources, it also struck me as a little odd that he did not include any in-text citations (offering just a list of sources at the very back). I started thinking about where he was getting his data because there were a few times he would describe a scene with unnecessary embellishment.
Here’s an example (from page 263): “Around sixty-five million years ago, at the beginning of the Paleocene epoch, a nut fell to the earth somewhere in what is now Thailand. A small hairy creature that looked like a cross between a squirrel and a rat worried the nut between its paws. It carried the suit away and buried it in a clearing. …This squirrel-rat had buried about two hundred that season. And it never again found that particular one.”
Closer to the beginning of the book, he describes the daily life of early acorn tribes, and although it is interesting and not implausible, the tone felt too certain for something that happened so long ago. I think a non-fiction author should maintain a sense of modesty and reservation about their assertions. It also helps when they mention their sources (e.g. “According to so-and-so…”), which Logan rarely did.
One thing I really enjoyed was all the bits of etymology (even if it wasn’t always directly related to the topic at hand). My favorite word origin was how the word “druid” comes from dru (“oak”) and wid (“to see or know”). The oak-planting matrimonial custom (p. 61) was also neat; I’m already married and have kids, but it made me want to plant some oak seeds “for” my children.
My other favorite parts were when Logan talks about actually going to places and seeing things, like the Korean supermarket (in search of acorn flour) and the local sawmill. Even though both of those sections are short, they felt more vivid than the thoroughly-described carpentry techniques, perhaps because his presence made it more personal. The parts about the oak/cynipid wasp relationship, and the oak’s unique shoot-root ratio and ability to pass genes back and forth between different species were also really cool. Perhaps these have less to do with being the “frame of civilization,” but I wish he had spent more talking about this sort of thing instead of framing joints and maritime confrontations.
Oak is certainly an interesting read with an impressive breadth of information; It just could’ve had more about the actual tree and not just how people have used it. My rating sits somewhere between 3 and 4 stars, but I think I am going to round down because something about Logan's writing never had my full attention.
And don’t forget, young lumberjacks: “The only position from which a falling tree does not appear to fall is directly in the line that it is falling,” (p. 213).
Read February 6-14
Author William Bryant Logan has certainly done some extensive research, outlining the oak tree’s role throughout human history, from culinary to carpentry. It was important for making everything from boats and barrels to bread and dyes. It’s a great collection of examples that prove oak really did build and support civilizations, but it did start to feel a bit tangential to me. For instance, I understand how boats were important for developing/spreading societies and how oak was important for boats, but I don’t think I needed so much detail about boatbuilding.
Although I admit that I’m not likely to check an author’s sources, it also struck me as a little odd that he did not include any in-text citations (offering just a list of sources at the very back). I started thinking about where he was getting his data because there were a few times he would describe a scene with unnecessary embellishment.
Here’s an example (from page 263): “Around sixty-five million years ago, at the beginning of the Paleocene epoch, a nut fell to the earth somewhere in what is now Thailand. A small hairy creature that looked like a cross between a squirrel and a rat worried the nut between its paws. It carried the suit away and buried it in a clearing. …This squirrel-rat had buried about two hundred that season. And it never again found that particular one.”
Closer to the beginning of the book, he describes the daily life of early acorn tribes, and although it is interesting and not implausible, the tone felt too certain for something that happened so long ago. I think a non-fiction author should maintain a sense of modesty and reservation about their assertions. It also helps when they mention their sources (e.g. “According to so-and-so…”), which Logan rarely did.
One thing I really enjoyed was all the bits of etymology (even if it wasn’t always directly related to the topic at hand). My favorite word origin was how the word “druid” comes from dru (“oak”) and wid (“to see or know”). The oak-planting matrimonial custom (p. 61) was also neat; I’m already married and have kids, but it made me want to plant some oak seeds “for” my children.
My other favorite parts were when Logan talks about actually going to places and seeing things, like the Korean supermarket (in search of acorn flour) and the local sawmill. Even though both of those sections are short, they felt more vivid than the thoroughly-described carpentry techniques, perhaps because his presence made it more personal. The parts about the oak/cynipid wasp relationship, and the oak’s unique shoot-root ratio and ability to pass genes back and forth between different species were also really cool. Perhaps these have less to do with being the “frame of civilization,” but I wish he had spent more talking about this sort of thing instead of framing joints and maritime confrontations.
Oak is certainly an interesting read with an impressive breadth of information; It just could’ve had more about the actual tree and not just how people have used it. My rating sits somewhere between 3 and 4 stars, but I think I am going to round down because something about Logan's writing never had my full attention.
And don’t forget, young lumberjacks: “The only position from which a falling tree does not appear to fall is directly in the line that it is falling,” (p. 213).
February 21, 2012
I enjoyed the part that described how each craft or profession relates to the oak, but I confess I'm too ignorant of construction principles to get much out of long descriptions of types of joints and carpentry whatnot. No wonder Josh likes it.
March 3, 2021
At times I loved this book and at times I had to skim. Some of the material is very dry and other parts (like where the author imagines how civilizations diverge because one group of people moves away) sound ludicrously simplified (and sentimental—never are these groups driven away by force, and have to learn to make do elsewhere). These parts felt like a high school essay. Other parts are too scholarly. The result is jarring.
The best parts of the book inform the reader how fundamental oak trees have been. I did not know that they used to be a staple food, easier to harvest than grains. It's funny too, that we don't know that, even though there were 100 tribes on the west coast of present day California whose cultural practices were intimately connected to acorns and oaks (until these people were uprooted, etc; see note about sentimentality above).
There are extended sections on architecture, naval history, etc., that I had to skim. I also couldn't read a half page paragraph listing insects that live on oak trees (Kinsey was fascinated by gall wasps; this author doesn't share or mention Kinsey's enthusiasm and swamps the reader with dry detail).
So this book was at times beautiful and at times just too much. I guess it depends on what interests the reader —if you're keen to plough through masses of details about being a cooper, or ship builder, then you'll be happy with this parts.
The best parts of the book inform the reader how fundamental oak trees have been. I did not know that they used to be a staple food, easier to harvest than grains. It's funny too, that we don't know that, even though there were 100 tribes on the west coast of present day California whose cultural practices were intimately connected to acorns and oaks (until these people were uprooted, etc; see note about sentimentality above).
There are extended sections on architecture, naval history, etc., that I had to skim. I also couldn't read a half page paragraph listing insects that live on oak trees (Kinsey was fascinated by gall wasps; this author doesn't share or mention Kinsey's enthusiasm and swamps the reader with dry detail).
So this book was at times beautiful and at times just too much. I guess it depends on what interests the reader —if you're keen to plough through masses of details about being a cooper, or ship builder, then you'll be happy with this parts.
June 25, 2023
I devoured this book as I found WBL’s writing compelling and informative. My only major qualm was the constant mention of “merchant ships” and the note that “until the middle of the 19th century, shipyards in Europe and the Americas represented the largest industry in the world”… without acknowledging another important note as to why this may have changed. These were not just “merchant” ships… many of these were slave ships. The “age of oak” ended not just because of the steam-driven warships made of iron, but also because that war resulted in a decimation of an industry for a certain kind of “merchant”.
Otherwise, I very much enjoyed the fascinating botanical detail woven into the story of humanity, from pre-homo sapiens to present day. The story of oak tree’s evolution is one intertwined with the evolution of creatures dependent on what it had to offer… Homo sapiens included
“Perhaps God is not what they had been taught by their priests, and perhaps progress is not what we have been taught by ours.”
Otherwise, I very much enjoyed the fascinating botanical detail woven into the story of humanity, from pre-homo sapiens to present day. The story of oak tree’s evolution is one intertwined with the evolution of creatures dependent on what it had to offer… Homo sapiens included
“Perhaps God is not what they had been taught by their priests, and perhaps progress is not what we have been taught by ours.”
September 2, 2020
I adore books that consider history through an unexpected lens: Mark Kurlansky's Cod or Barbara Freese's Coal are examples. Here we have a brilliant entry into the genre, a study of civilization by way of the oak. From balanophage cultures (nut eaters) to the first roads, buildings and ships, humans' relation with the oak is a fascinating and symbiotic one. The takeaway for me was the artistry of those builders, shipwrights, carpenters, fellers and foresters who, through inspiration, experience, trial and error, helped in the development of agriculture, trade, art and war.
July 12, 2015
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2485017.html
Logan tries to show that the oak tree is Awfully Important to Western Civilisation, and indeed makes a reasonable case for the place of oak in various foundational texts and physical structures of our society. In particular, I liked the points made about the nutritional value of acorn flour (though it's odd that it isn't used more) and the oak structure of Westminster Hall and of early modern sailing ships. There were some odd slips (Burley for Burghley, Wainright for Wainwright) and the naval warfare theme got more than a little sidetracked when it came to the nineteenth century. It's a reasonable effort, though reflecting rather than communicating the author's obsession with the subject.
Of course, he completely omits those civilisations and culture for whom oak was not an option. I'm a little troubled by the nativist resonances of his equating Europe and the Middle East with pre-Columbian North and Central America, and the fact that this particular focus erases Africa and other places where oak doesn't grow.
I would also have liked to know more about how oak fitted in with other types of wood in the ancient world. It's interesting that Ötzi the iceman carried many different types of wood crafted into tools - none of them oak, as far as I can tell from a quick scan of the websites. Logan's focus on oak, important as it was and is, rather obscures the rest of the forest.
Logan tries to show that the oak tree is Awfully Important to Western Civilisation, and indeed makes a reasonable case for the place of oak in various foundational texts and physical structures of our society. In particular, I liked the points made about the nutritional value of acorn flour (though it's odd that it isn't used more) and the oak structure of Westminster Hall and of early modern sailing ships. There were some odd slips (Burley for Burghley, Wainright for Wainwright) and the naval warfare theme got more than a little sidetracked when it came to the nineteenth century. It's a reasonable effort, though reflecting rather than communicating the author's obsession with the subject.
Of course, he completely omits those civilisations and culture for whom oak was not an option. I'm a little troubled by the nativist resonances of his equating Europe and the Middle East with pre-Columbian North and Central America, and the fact that this particular focus erases Africa and other places where oak doesn't grow.
I would also have liked to know more about how oak fitted in with other types of wood in the ancient world. It's interesting that Ötzi the iceman carried many different types of wood crafted into tools - none of them oak, as far as I can tell from a quick scan of the websites. Logan's focus on oak, important as it was and is, rather obscures the rest of the forest.
December 13, 2012
This is a very readable book with a few persistent problems.
Let's start with what's good about it. If you're interested in acorns as food, naval history from Pepys to ironclads (US Civil War), barrel making, leather tanning or wooden-roof construction, and a pop description of oak propagation (Corvidae), and a little (char)colliery, this book is for you.
The book falls apart, well had me scratching my head in discussing acorn-economy cultures in the fertile crescent, specifically the Zagros Mountains. He puts words in the mouth of cultures moving from acorn-based to wheat-based economies. But it's no fucking Guns, Germs and Steel, he only mentions acorns and wheat, so where's the goddamn science? And in the naval and church chapters, you'd think no one used a plank that wasn't radially cleavable oak. He sets out to talk about the lands from Britain to Carthage to Japan and talks about Persian in prehistory, then history happens between Nordic peoples between Oslo and Boston, but he ends up slighting Scandinavia's Pinophyta. Not as strong in the genre of commercial histories as say Cod cause it feels like it's stretching thin.
I liked a lot of this book, so I'll say I really like his ideas on California having acorn-food cultures because there wasn't pressure on the oak for firewood (since the biggest tree ever was destroyed to roast it's own Chestnuts, right?). Also liked reading about "Old Ironsides."
Let's start with what's good about it. If you're interested in acorns as food, naval history from Pepys to ironclads (US Civil War), barrel making, leather tanning or wooden-roof construction, and a pop description of oak propagation (Corvidae), and a little (char)colliery, this book is for you.
The book falls apart, well had me scratching my head in discussing acorn-economy cultures in the fertile crescent, specifically the Zagros Mountains. He puts words in the mouth of cultures moving from acorn-based to wheat-based economies. But it's no fucking Guns, Germs and Steel, he only mentions acorns and wheat, so where's the goddamn science? And in the naval and church chapters, you'd think no one used a plank that wasn't radially cleavable oak. He sets out to talk about the lands from Britain to Carthage to Japan and talks about Persian in prehistory, then history happens between Nordic peoples between Oslo and Boston, but he ends up slighting Scandinavia's Pinophyta. Not as strong in the genre of commercial histories as say Cod cause it feels like it's stretching thin.
I liked a lot of this book, so I'll say I really like his ideas on California having acorn-food cultures because there wasn't pressure on the oak for firewood (since the biggest tree ever was destroyed to roast it's own Chestnuts, right?). Also liked reading about "Old Ironsides."
February 4, 2008
Everywhere man has developed, there have always been oak trees. The author, an arborist, opens with a story about a Jewish couple in Brooklyn preparing for another child. Logan is hired to come confirm the imminent demise of a tree in their yard. When he arrives, however, he finds a perfectly healthy tree and some desperate homeowners.
The couple, their house already crowded, desperately needed to expand, but the apple tree was in the way. It turned out that their sect of judaism prevented them from felling any tree that bore fruit. If the arborist would give any indication at all that the tree was sick, (even if temporarily) they could rip out the tree and build their extension without fear.
The book looks at myriad stories like this; how cultures rose and fell, because of or in direct association with the presence of oak trees in the region. The religions (druid literally meant "oak knowledge"), cultures and lore of civilization are all told in an extremely knowledgeable narrative that is as informative as it is compelling.
The couple, their house already crowded, desperately needed to expand, but the apple tree was in the way. It turned out that their sect of judaism prevented them from felling any tree that bore fruit. If the arborist would give any indication at all that the tree was sick, (even if temporarily) they could rip out the tree and build their extension without fear.
The book looks at myriad stories like this; how cultures rose and fell, because of or in direct association with the presence of oak trees in the region. The religions (druid literally meant "oak knowledge"), cultures and lore of civilization are all told in an extremely knowledgeable narrative that is as informative as it is compelling.
August 13, 2016
William Bryant Logan picks book topics better than any author. A book about dirt? A book about oak? Brilliance!
Oak, especially for fans of Dirt, delivers. Logan may make some sketchy (though totally intriguing) claims into the history of man, but along the way he drastically changed the way I understand humans and our relationship to nature. Plus oak trees are fascinating! I can't wait to start eating acorns and building things with traditional framing joints. Bravo Logan -- you've changed my life.
Logan consistently does my favorite thing: he uses etymology to build his reasoning and his story. When you learn the derivation of the common name 'Johnson' you, like me, will have the greatest small talk tidbit of all time.
Only drawback from me is that there's just a bit too much about boats in here. I'm not a boat guy.
Oak, especially for fans of Dirt, delivers. Logan may make some sketchy (though totally intriguing) claims into the history of man, but along the way he drastically changed the way I understand humans and our relationship to nature. Plus oak trees are fascinating! I can't wait to start eating acorns and building things with traditional framing joints. Bravo Logan -- you've changed my life.
Logan consistently does my favorite thing: he uses etymology to build his reasoning and his story. When you learn the derivation of the common name 'Johnson' you, like me, will have the greatest small talk tidbit of all time.
Only drawback from me is that there's just a bit too much about boats in here. I'm not a boat guy.
Read
October 25, 2020William Bryant Logan is here to tell you that oak trees have played a pivotal role in human civilization, that is, in human success, in our surviving, spreading across the globe, developing new skills and technologies.
Oak is special in that it has not just concentric growth rings, but rays that run from the center to the outside. The wood can be split cleanly along these lines, allowing a person who had only a hammer and chisel to create boards, and once he had boards, he could build houses and ships. Once he had ships he could travel and trade. Once he started building he expanded the parts of his brain involving problem solving and spatial imagination.
The bark of oak trees contains tannin, which is used to tan leather. Leather is necessary for making shoes, bottles for carrying liquids, before they had bottles, and thongs and straps for tying things together. Oak (as well as other woods) was used to make charcoal, and that charcoal fueled the industrial revolution. Oak was the best wood for making barrels, and the ability to store and transport wine, oil, and all kinds of commodities without leakage was vital. Oak galls, which are growths created by a kind of wasp, have been the source of inks and dyes.
Much of this oak-related technology required cooperation and planning. In Spain, communities managed oak groves as commons land, so that everyone got a share of acorns to feed the pigs, and wood, and a chance to grow crops in the clearings. Felling oaks required people to work together, and a knowledgeable brain and sharp eye to determine good wood from bad. Whole towns and families would join in bark-stripping parties to gather bark for the tanners. Oak for shipbuilding was not shaped to the desired curve, but the trees that were already growing in the desired shape would be put to that purpose.
Logan describes these now-vanished crafts with great detail and relish. There are diagrams of the multiple ingenious methods of joining beams together, all labeled with a vocabulary of forgotten words. At first I thought, who needs to know this? But I came to share Logan’s admiration for the craftsmen of the past. For Hugh Herland, who built a complex wooden roof for Westminster Hall in 1397, which spanned 68 feet without any support beams. Logan describes the multiple stresses of gravity and wind that the carpenter accounted for, and how this elegant roof has stood for 600 years.
And for the many coopers who could sight down the length of a barrel stave, shave it a bit, and have it fit perfectly together. When a barrel was ready to be bound together, the cooper would shout “Truss ho!” and all the other men in the shop would come to help bend the wood over a fire and help hammer on the metal bands. When a young man finished his apprenticeship, they would toss him into his barrel and roll him around the shop, and out the door.
But for me, by the far the most interesting part of the story is the first, that people can eat acorns, and used to, as a staple food. Logan believes that acorns played a major role in humans’ transition from hunter-gatherers to settled farmers, which has been almost completely ignored by historians. This may be. There is a lot of speculation in his prehistory, as there is always at least some speculation in any prehistory.
Some cultures in the world still do eat acorns. Logan gets some acorn flour and acorn jelly from a Korean food store. He said that the acorn jelly was essentially tasteless, but kept him so full that he missed his lunch and didn’t even notice. He said that in past ages, a food that would have kept hunger at bay would have been very highly valued. And acorns could be gathered once a year in the fall, and stored in pits or baskets. They had to be soaked to leach out the bitter tannins, but then they could be pounded into flour.
This is interesting, because I like to keep an eye out for what can be foraged, lest bad luck come to us in the future. But also I recently read Stephen Baxter’s Northland trilogy, where acorn-eating plays a large role. Stephen Baxter imagines, what if a hunter-gathering society had developed technology and literacy, while remaining hunter-gatherers, avoiding the oppressive social systems, malnutrition and disease that accompanied early agricultural societies. His Northlanders eat fish and eels, and lots and lots of acorns. It almost sounded like Logan and Baxter had been talking to each other, or at least reading the same books. Both present the era of acorn-eating, which Logan calls “balanoculture,” as a kind of golden age, where nutritious food literally fell in abundance from the trees.
I have also recently read The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett, where acorns are eaten by the outlaws in the forest, and by the starving. Acorns in 12th century England were a food of last resort, but they were a food.
Logan ends his book by praising the oak for its own qualities. Oaks are endlessly adaptable. They can be found around the world. Some are evergreen, some are deciduous. Some are tall and straight, some are broad and spreading. They have extensive root systems. Their roots can bind together under the ground, sharing food and water. Oaks, he says, are tenacious, persistent, and generous. They have supported the lives of birds (particularly jays), insects, and animals, as well as humans. This is certainly a book that will make you appreciate oak trees in a way you never did before.
Oak is special in that it has not just concentric growth rings, but rays that run from the center to the outside. The wood can be split cleanly along these lines, allowing a person who had only a hammer and chisel to create boards, and once he had boards, he could build houses and ships. Once he had ships he could travel and trade. Once he started building he expanded the parts of his brain involving problem solving and spatial imagination.
The bark of oak trees contains tannin, which is used to tan leather. Leather is necessary for making shoes, bottles for carrying liquids, before they had bottles, and thongs and straps for tying things together. Oak (as well as other woods) was used to make charcoal, and that charcoal fueled the industrial revolution. Oak was the best wood for making barrels, and the ability to store and transport wine, oil, and all kinds of commodities without leakage was vital. Oak galls, which are growths created by a kind of wasp, have been the source of inks and dyes.
Much of this oak-related technology required cooperation and planning. In Spain, communities managed oak groves as commons land, so that everyone got a share of acorns to feed the pigs, and wood, and a chance to grow crops in the clearings. Felling oaks required people to work together, and a knowledgeable brain and sharp eye to determine good wood from bad. Whole towns and families would join in bark-stripping parties to gather bark for the tanners. Oak for shipbuilding was not shaped to the desired curve, but the trees that were already growing in the desired shape would be put to that purpose.
Logan describes these now-vanished crafts with great detail and relish. There are diagrams of the multiple ingenious methods of joining beams together, all labeled with a vocabulary of forgotten words. At first I thought, who needs to know this? But I came to share Logan’s admiration for the craftsmen of the past. For Hugh Herland, who built a complex wooden roof for Westminster Hall in 1397, which spanned 68 feet without any support beams. Logan describes the multiple stresses of gravity and wind that the carpenter accounted for, and how this elegant roof has stood for 600 years.
And for the many coopers who could sight down the length of a barrel stave, shave it a bit, and have it fit perfectly together. When a barrel was ready to be bound together, the cooper would shout “Truss ho!” and all the other men in the shop would come to help bend the wood over a fire and help hammer on the metal bands. When a young man finished his apprenticeship, they would toss him into his barrel and roll him around the shop, and out the door.
But for me, by the far the most interesting part of the story is the first, that people can eat acorns, and used to, as a staple food. Logan believes that acorns played a major role in humans’ transition from hunter-gatherers to settled farmers, which has been almost completely ignored by historians. This may be. There is a lot of speculation in his prehistory, as there is always at least some speculation in any prehistory.
Some cultures in the world still do eat acorns. Logan gets some acorn flour and acorn jelly from a Korean food store. He said that the acorn jelly was essentially tasteless, but kept him so full that he missed his lunch and didn’t even notice. He said that in past ages, a food that would have kept hunger at bay would have been very highly valued. And acorns could be gathered once a year in the fall, and stored in pits or baskets. They had to be soaked to leach out the bitter tannins, but then they could be pounded into flour.
This is interesting, because I like to keep an eye out for what can be foraged, lest bad luck come to us in the future. But also I recently read Stephen Baxter’s Northland trilogy, where acorn-eating plays a large role. Stephen Baxter imagines, what if a hunter-gathering society had developed technology and literacy, while remaining hunter-gatherers, avoiding the oppressive social systems, malnutrition and disease that accompanied early agricultural societies. His Northlanders eat fish and eels, and lots and lots of acorns. It almost sounded like Logan and Baxter had been talking to each other, or at least reading the same books. Both present the era of acorn-eating, which Logan calls “balanoculture,” as a kind of golden age, where nutritious food literally fell in abundance from the trees.
I have also recently read The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett, where acorns are eaten by the outlaws in the forest, and by the starving. Acorns in 12th century England were a food of last resort, but they were a food.
Logan ends his book by praising the oak for its own qualities. Oaks are endlessly adaptable. They can be found around the world. Some are evergreen, some are deciduous. Some are tall and straight, some are broad and spreading. They have extensive root systems. Their roots can bind together under the ground, sharing food and water. Oaks, he says, are tenacious, persistent, and generous. They have supported the lives of birds (particularly jays), insects, and animals, as well as humans. This is certainly a book that will make you appreciate oak trees in a way you never did before.
October 22, 2014
Awe-inspiring. Makes its case that most important turning points in the development of our civilization were because of the oak tree. The author has an original and illuminative mind.
April 7, 2020
A bit long on detail.... but a very interesting read.
April 25, 2021
An extensive history of oak trees written by a man very much in love with his chosen subject, with just enough sense not to say anything too sweeping or silly. I generally prefer books that are a little more rigorous in supporting their conclusions, but I would recommend this book to anyone interested in natural history. I found the parts about how oak trees were a likely staple of early human diets to be particularly intriguing.
The author's christian asides, while recurrent and slightly obnoxious at times, are generally a low key cultural overlay and don't get any worse than eye roll worthy.
I can see what other reviews mean when talking about the unfocused middle chapter, but I think it works fairly well as is. It could perhaps have used better framing to connect the disparate topics, and I would have appreciated something more comprehensive than just the standard Anglo-Saxon cultural context (the early inclusion of Korean cuisine got my hopes up), but overall I have no complaints.
5 Stars
The author's christian asides, while recurrent and slightly obnoxious at times, are generally a low key cultural overlay and don't get any worse than eye roll worthy.
I can see what other reviews mean when talking about the unfocused middle chapter, but I think it works fairly well as is. It could perhaps have used better framing to connect the disparate topics, and I would have appreciated something more comprehensive than just the standard Anglo-Saxon cultural context (the early inclusion of Korean cuisine got my hopes up), but overall I have no complaints.
5 Stars
August 21, 2017
'Amazing' sounds pretty excessive for most books, but this one definitely was more than 'I really liked it' - I intentionally selected Oak from my stacks because I was sure I'd move it out of the house after I finished (and wondered why I'd purchased it in the first place, tbh!) - wrong. Logan has loaded this book with anthropology, botany, archaeology, etymology, architecture, the history of ships, Pangaea, carpentry, zoology, economics, ecology, the list seems endless. Though it might sound like a very wonky read, the author has the ability to render the vast majority of the information understandable to the reader - the one wish I had was that there were a few more sketches to illuminate discussion of archaeological finds and more/better examples of carpentry joints; I did struggle to picture these in my mind as I read, and poked around on Google to try to get a few more visuals. But those are small quibbles - it was a fascinating read, a definite keeper.
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June 22, 2025“Passion is never boring…” So begins the first promotional blurb (from the Arizona Republic) on the back of my copy of Oak: The Frame Of Civilization. Opening the book, I read William Bryant Logan then geek out for 300 pages on all things oak. Some of it was boring. Some of it was interesting. I felt fortunate that happenstance had me felling, bucking, and splitting two large oaks in my yard while I read this.
Logan posits that acorns were the first grains of civilization. He goes into detail about shelter and cathedral building, shipbuilding, and includes a genuinely thrilling account of the USS Constitution (“Old Ironsides”) battling the superior British fleet in the War of 1812.
I have been instilled with tremendous respect—even more than I already had—for Oak trees…and trees in general.
The final chapter, comparing the Eiffel Tower to Oak trees, was kind of a stretch. Maybe the whole book was.
Logan posits that acorns were the first grains of civilization. He goes into detail about shelter and cathedral building, shipbuilding, and includes a genuinely thrilling account of the USS Constitution (“Old Ironsides”) battling the superior British fleet in the War of 1812.
I have been instilled with tremendous respect—even more than I already had—for Oak trees…and trees in general.
The final chapter, comparing the Eiffel Tower to Oak trees, was kind of a stretch. Maybe the whole book was.
March 26, 2025
Full of information about the uses of oak over the course of our (almost exclusively Western) civilization. Much of it is a lot of fun to read (see the chapters about the battles in the gigantic oak-made men-of-war sailing ships).
When he does get to discussing the trees themselves -- dendrology, various species, etc. -- it was helpful.
I admit that I got a bit weighted down in the chapters on building the churches and all the details about the carpentry. Same for the pages about building the sailing ships -- although the reader's payoff came in the battle scenes.
Lots of speculation about things -- "Perhaps," "they might have," and other conditionals. I wondered about that, although there is an extensive, and helpful, bibliography at the end.
When he does get to discussing the trees themselves -- dendrology, various species, etc. -- it was helpful.
I admit that I got a bit weighted down in the chapters on building the churches and all the details about the carpentry. Same for the pages about building the sailing ships -- although the reader's payoff came in the battle scenes.
Lots of speculation about things -- "Perhaps," "they might have," and other conditionals. I wondered about that, although there is an extensive, and helpful, bibliography at the end.
July 24, 2025
DNF didn’t think I’d ever write DNF but this was dry lol. Seemed more like a book for carpenters to learn about how stuff like “the first miter joint was made on a ship” etc. my husband who is a carpenter might like it lol.
Also there was a lot of religious sort of things said by the author which I found strange and unnecessary. I understand oaks were used to build the first churches and religious places of worship. And that is super interesting but it just gave vibes like a preacher was telling the stories in the book. I thought this book was about oaks lol. Anywho maybe one day I’ll pick it up again because there are some fun facts about oaks I did not know, and it has given me yet another reason to believe they are the superior tree. But it was just dry AF.
Also there was a lot of religious sort of things said by the author which I found strange and unnecessary. I understand oaks were used to build the first churches and religious places of worship. And that is super interesting but it just gave vibes like a preacher was telling the stories in the book. I thought this book was about oaks lol. Anywho maybe one day I’ll pick it up again because there are some fun facts about oaks I did not know, and it has given me yet another reason to believe they are the superior tree. But it was just dry AF.
February 25, 2017
The author undoubtedly gave the majestic oak its due respect. Finishing this book the reader will come out with comprehensive knowledge on histories of oak's ecology and economy (and cultural place) . At times with a little bit more details on oak's botany and manufacturing. The book is not focused; it keeps alternating between scholarly, poetic and historical. Though one would start to understand how oak was important to civilization (western civilization), the author somehow did not capture critically the economics that made oak an important tree. If any other tree genus was substituted for oak in this book, it will fit easily.
October 18, 2017
Sick at home, used the day to finish this lovely book. I've never taken a hard look or thought onto how trees spread, and the intricate relations humans have developed with trees over our existence. This book dives into the history, inspirational throughout, with quotes on the beauty, ingenuity, and resilience of the oak tree.
At times it can get too caught up in the details, like through intricacies of forest to production to boat building, but they're essential to get a grasp of how symbiotic, crucial this tree is.
Can't recommend enough. I'll probably reread it a couple of times in the future, to remind me how and where humans have come.
At times it can get too caught up in the details, like through intricacies of forest to production to boat building, but they're essential to get a grasp of how symbiotic, crucial this tree is.
Can't recommend enough. I'll probably reread it a couple of times in the future, to remind me how and where humans have come.
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October 13, 2025I thought this book was a real mixed bag but that's possibly because it wasn't what I expected. Don't get me wrong, there were sections I absolutely loved, and, broadly speaking, his general thesis that Oak trees fueled and shaped civilizations all around the world was pretty convincing and new and interesting information for me. But there was also way too much detail for what I wanted at times. For example I'm just not that interested in the minute details of using oak for ship building. The details on Oak trees themselves were incredibly interesting and this book is going to stay on my shelf for that alone. For those interested mostly in that subject, check out the chapter "Oak Itself."
December 31, 2023
My reaction to this book was very mixed. I did not care for all of the speculation in the beginning about how oaks influenced the spread of civilization and thought the author was unnecessarily wordy in many parts as he listed every possible item in a category (for example, every bug that might live off of an oak). I did think the more factual sections about how the oak was used in early boat building and other construction was interesting as well as the information about the tree itself. The author might consider using footnotes in future books.
November 18, 2016
Excellent informative book about the history of civilization from the earliest acorn eaters, to the agrarian peoples who fattened pigs on the acorns, to the naval societies who built oak ships, to today's surgical screws developed from the oak's ability to reinforce limbs based on the stress loads. Highly recommended.
September 13, 2017
This book gives a fascinating account not only of the life of the oak tree, but its crucial place in forests, ecology, and human history. The author eloquently shares why the oak is important to our culture, history, and even our world today. A great read when you're looking for something about nature, history, or just factoids.
March 23, 2017
A very interesting and engaging book for the most part. I got a little bogged down with the sections on buildings and ships. It was fascinating though to learn how the oak has shaped humanity as a food source and raw material for so many useful items.
March 20, 2021
I just felt sad about the author seeing oak as a product for human wellbeing. But every one should read these book for how we used other creatureas as our pleasures and destroy them while there is a way to live together.
July 29, 2023
Wanted to like this more than I did. Tons of factoids strung together haphazardly, and some rather dubious theories that would have benefited from some citations to back them up. I did finish it, but only by scanning the least third.
August 25, 2025
Much very interesting information about oak trees and how they were amazingly instrumental in becoming source material for humanity and for other creatures. Wasn’t happy with the lengthy treatise on shipbuilding as the nomenclature was unique and not adequately defined. Worth the read.
May 9, 2017
Very detailed. Lots of history. Engagingly written. Surprises abound. Fans of The Age Of Sail will find an interesting chapter.
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