The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi: Exploring the Microscopic World in Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies

by Keith Seifert

For readers of Entangled Life and The Hidden Life of Trees comes an illuminating account of the “invisible” fungi that share our world: from the air we breathe to the dust beneath our feet.

The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi traces the intricate connections between fungi and all life on Earth to show how these remarkable microbes enrich our lives: from releasing the carbon in plants for the benefit of all organisms to transmitting information between trees, to producing life-changing medicine, to adding umami flavor and B vitamins to our food.

Divided into sections, each one exploring an environment where fungi live, this enthralling, science-backed book ventures into our homes, bodies, farms, and forests to profile the fungi that inhabit these environments, most of them invisible to the naked eye. Along the way, the author, the esteemed career mycologist Keith Seifert, explains the latest research into where these fungi came from: how yeast, lichens, slimes, and molds evolved and adapted over millions of years. And he shows us that, surprisingly, fungi share almost a quarter of human genes. We may have more in common with yeast and slime than we think …

But not all fungi are good for us. In fact, fungal diseases lead to over 1 million deaths each year and more than a quarter of our food goes to waste. How can we strike a better balance with our microbial cousins, both for their sake and ours? The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi urges us to better understand our relationship with fungi—and to plan our future with them in mind—while revealing their world in all its beautiful complexity.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Nature, Biology, Audiobook, Science Nature, Natural History

296 pages, Hardcover

First published May 24, 2022

Reviews

[Petra X · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can you imagine reading a trainspotters manual? Or a concise stamp collectors manual of stamps issued in the UK between 1820 and 1825? Sounds seriously boring, right? This books like that. The writing, which is good, conveys the enthusiasm of the fungi-obsessive author without actually inspiring even a semblance of it enthusiasm in me. That was a long-winded way of saying, I'm bored and dread picking up this book. I tried to read it on the plane home yesterday, but wound up watching puerile tv instead, anything but...

I really think I'm the wrong reader for the book as I gave up Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures after a quick skim-through. I tried both books though because I am interested in the dominant species of the earth that are not people. Ants for instance, and I thought perhaps moulds and fungi.
__________

I'm trying really hard to get interested in the world of fungi, but really it's a load of spores and strands and occasional fruiting bodies and perhaps because it is so broad, there is nothing to concentrate on, to follow. I'm bored.

[Alan (on December semi-hiatus) Teder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emphasizing the Micro
Review of the Greystone Books hardcover edition (May 24, 2022)

I was drawn to The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi: Exploring the Microscopic World in Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies, due to the title's similarity to Peter Wohlleben's The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate: Discoveries from a Secret World (2015). It seemed a good sign that Wohlleben himself had blurbed the new book by saying:

"Explore the complex and ingenious ecosystems where fungi are found and discover how these marvels of nature enrich our lives."

You don't have to read very far into Hidden Kingdom of Fungi to appreciate that Seifert is obviously a hugely qualified expert in the field. The challenge is that making information about microscopic spores and moulds of interest to the general reader is not as easy as having them appreciate other forms of life such as trees, for which they likely already have positive attraction and associations with.

So this book is a bit of a hard nut to crack and the introductory chapters don't ease you into it. I suspect many general readers will get bogged down as I did, especially with the detailed terminology involved. I did persevere though and the more interesting 'human relatable' aspects are all there and with many fascinating details that go beyond just the use of yeasts for fermentation and the culinary appreciation of mushrooms. There are things such as the discovery of penicillin, the creation of LSD (a chemical derivative of an ergot fungus) and the rather incredible appreciation that we are living in constant contact with a microscopic world that can simultaneously be of benefit or of danger to us. A late chapter about the future implications of myco-technology was especially fascinating.

So this is a qualified 4 rating from me. It doesn't get into 5 'amazing' territory, as the journey is not easy, but you are definitely in the hands of an expert and your patience will be rewarded if the topic is at all of interest to you.

[Renee Godding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and informative, but didn't wow me...

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi: Exploring the Microscopic World in Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies, by Keith Seifert, is a fascinating book examining the mycological world of spores, moulds and other fungi. The book examines this fascinating plane from many angles, examining how many fungi live and procreate, and how they exist in mutualistic, or symbiotic relationships, or as parasites, and sometimes all three in a life cycle, to many organisms. Some of the most interesting content in this book is on fungi inhabiting plants, and the way they interact with trees and within a forest environment. Further to this, sections exist on fungi that live within animals, how they interact with crops, and how they have been used by humans in fermentation processes, and as materials.

This book was fascinating, and has given me a newfound respect for both the shear quantity and resourcefulness of microscopic colonies of fungi that live all around us, and we are constantly interacting with and even breathing in. The relationship between human and fungi is deep and intricate - we use it to make beers, breads, and many of our foods. It is sometimes a pest and sometimes a source of nutrients for our crops. It lives on the skin and hair of our pets, plants and even our selves. It lines our walls, fridges and its spores form a massive accumulation of biomass that is constantly flying through the air, and exists inside our lungs. These relationships are usually benign, and oftentimes beneficial. The yeast fungi that causes dandruff is said to protect our skin from other fungi and bacteria, for example. Seifert shows that most fungal relationships are either beneficial or harmless, while some can be harmful. The line between mutualistic relationship, and parasitism is often blurred, and fungi that often exist as mutualistic partners in plants and animals can sometimes betray them as they age, or conditions change. A fascinating book through and through, not to be missed by those interested in the fungal kingdom, and especially looking to read up on the microscopic world of fungi.

[Lucy Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A tree hugger is a fungus hugger”

I was torn between 3 or 4 stars for this review but decided to be generous because the 3 star might have been because I work in law so I’m already sick of Latin and there was a lot of Latin in this!

Anyway, I think this book is very well written on the whole but might be too complicated for someone without an interest in mycology. You can tell the author is mad about fungi which is infectious, but if you’re not someone who would find the non-mushroom related sides of fungi interesting then maybe it is not for you. I personally found it a good addition to Entangled Life which I loved and was my first portal into the world of fungi. This book is different because it talks far more about fungi as microbes, fungi within leaves (endophytes) and fungi when fermented, as well as hidden fungi in our homes. I also loved his discussion of how fungi can aid with some of the largest environmental troubles of our times and his passage on what a world where the future was fungi would look like was beautiful! It was eye-opening that we could make this a reality (and indeed the ideas are already there).

Couldn’t be 5* to me because I did get lost in places and I felt like there was too much information and I needed more of a WOW factor or some poetically worded passages to help me consolidate the information, but that could just be me and my preferred reading styles. I did really appreciate how he saw fungi and their related symbiotic relationships as good AND bad, and exposed that, because often everyone raves about the good about fungi OR the bad and a more holistic assessment is lost. Overall, I did learn a lot (particularly about microbes) and also had a lot of food for thought so I’d still recommend it if you are intrigued in some of the darker, mouldier and less sexy aspects of fungi.

[Jasmine]

I loved Merlin Sheldrake's Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures, so I was hoping that The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi would also be a interesting read, but I was greatly disappointed. I can't quite put my finger on it, but where Entangled Life was fascinating from the very first sentence, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi was just... off, and I couldn't even get through the first chapter.

What convinced me that this was a terrible book and that I should give up was when early on in the first chapter, Seifert starts explaining in detail (and rather poorly at that) about PCR (polymerase chain reaction), Sanger sequencing, and pipettes, in an attempt to explain how fungus can be identified and classified by DNA sequencing.

My degree was microbiology and immunology, so I understand all that, but it added no value whatsoever to the topic at hand, and was explained so poorly that someone without knowledge of biochemistry or microbiology would have no idea what Seifert was going on about. He simply could have said that fungi can be identified by DNA sequencing and leave it at that. Seifert strikes me as someone who is intelligent and knowledgeable, but who is unable to socialize with people.

If you are looking for a good book about fungus, skip this one and read Sheldrake's Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures.

[Cav · Rating 3 out of 5]

"FOR MOST OF US, dust is dust. We don’t think much about what it is or what it might mean. It is simply the powder of our world. It drifts onto the floors of our homes and hospitals, blows through farms and forests, and settles on the sea floor. It swirls around the globe, wafting across oceans from one continent to another, from one country to another. Its parts are too tiny for our senses to register; it seems too banal to be important..."

The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi was a very detailed examination of the topic. Although there was a lot of interesting info covered here, the book's writing style left a bit to be desired. More below.

Author Keith Seifert spent more than forty years studying fungi on five continents. At Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, he did research on microscopic fungi from farms, forests, food, and the built
environment, to reduce toxins and diseases affecting plants and animals.

Keith Seifert :


The book opens with a decent preface and intro. Unfortunately, I found this writing to be the high water mark of the book. The author drops the quote above near the start of the book, and it continues:

"...But what happens if you take a tablespoon of dust or dirt and stir it into a quart of water? Add a tablespoon of that slurry into another bottle, then press repeat and dilute it one more time. If you looked at the murky blend through a microscope, you’d start to appreciate the complexity of dust. Tiny crystals and mineral chunks mix with flakes of rotten wood, legs and hairs of insects, soot, odd-looking eggs, and fibers from plants and your clothes. Microscopic algae and protists bump into each other and veer off like windup toys. Dust is alive.
If you treat the diluted mud with a dye that binds to DNA—the chemical compound that makes up the genes of all living things— and shine ultraviolet light through it, microscopic life lights up like the Milky Way, a universe in a drop of water.2 Bacteria and viruses shine like stars. Pollen grains drift by like glowing blimps. And among all these particles are the extending tubular cells, geometrical spores, and budding yeast cells of fungi."

The author drops this quote, speaking to the book's aim:

"This book is a journey through the hidden world of fungi and their relationships with humans, other living things, and our environment.
We will look at how we use fungi, and how they use us, as we strive for a sustainable future.
Looking back, I can see that my family history and childhood experiences set me on a path with an unexpected result. I didn’t plan to be a fungus guy—who does?"

Sadly, I found much of the writing in the book proper slowly became pretty technical, dry, and long-winded as it progressed. The author rattles off one Latin name of fungi after another. Over and over again. My finicky attention began to wander. Now, fault me all you will for not staying engaged, but there is almost nothing I dislike more in my books than unengaging, long-winded scientific prose that drowns the reader in a sea of minutia. And this book had no shortage of that...


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Although there was a ton of info presented here, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi did not meet my expectations. I have read a few other books about mycology, and sadly this one didn't measure up. I found a lot of the writing here to be overly flat and boring (sorry).
3 stars.

[Angie Boyter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun facts about fungi
When most people hear the word “fungus” they tend to think of either mushrooms or an annoying toenail problem, but fungi are everywhere, pervading the world and our environments and bodies in ways that are beneficial, neutral, and harmful. In The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi author Keith Seifert takes the reader on a tour of the tremendous diversity of molds, yeasts, mushrooms, and other fungi and their effects on our lives.
Unless you are a mycologist (a fungus scientist) yourself, I guarantee you will learn a lot from this book. The book is written for a general audience. The author has an enjoyable style and is careful to define his terms, and explain in detail, but it is dense with scientific information. The book opens with a note about names , saying “Absorbing the names of organisms can be like trying to follow the characters in a Russian novel”, and as I tackled the first chapter I decided that Tolstoy was a cinch by comparison. The first chapter was, indeed, daunting, but after I worked my way through it and got comfortable with terms like “thalli” and “hyphae” and many more, the fascinating information about the kingdom of fungi (Yes, indeed, fungi have their own kingdom apart from both animals and plants.) was definitely worth the effort.
There is a wealth of serious science, but also plenty of fun stuff. For example, in reading about lichens, which are a fungus-plant symbiosis, I learned that the dye used in the famous Harris tweed cloth comes from a lichen and is extracted using human urine. So remember that if your Harris tweed jacket seems to have a distinctive smell. Usnic acid, another material extracted from lichen, is used in toothpaste, but without the intervention of urine, one hopes.
So this is probably not a book to take to the beach, although you can find fungi there just as you can at home, but it merits your time if you have a curiosity bump. Some of the information is gross; some of it is impressively beautiful; and you will certainly come away with a deeper insight and appreciation of the diversity of life. The next time you sip a glass of wine or hoist a glass of your favorite beer, thank a fungus.
I received an advance review copy of this book from Edelweiss and the publisher.

[gnat · Rating 3 out of 5]

heavier focus on microfungi, with information/case studies about fungi in the following fields: Food production, drug development, antibiotic resistance, bioenergy, pollution, and waste management.

like other reviews say, this is a more academic read that is focused on practical (medical and economic) applications of fungi, it's less poetic and accessible. fungi are everywhere! this really made me appreciate fungi even more, while understanding the implications and damage that fungi can cause, beyond colourful appearances. definitely continued to develop my knowledge and shape my perspective

took some notes and i'll summarise some of them here:
- fungal protein as meat alternatives!!!! quorn is currently used as a chicken alternative
- learnt more about fleming's discovery of penicillin, and other scientists (florey, chain, heatley) who developed it for medical use. + other fungal compounds used in medicine
- the largest living organism on Earth is a fungus - Armillaria ostoyae, honey fungus
- anthropocentricism and its implications in mycology
- aflatoxin in peanuts
- cyclosporin in preventing immune rejection of transplanted organs
- a Day In A Life of having fungi products surround us, and the many possibilities :)
- in general: learnt a lot more about mould and yeast; damage to agriculture, biodiversity, our bodies

[Nicolas Louw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best pop sci mycology I have read. Keith does a great job at balancing portraying the wonders of fungi, without over-selling some of the common controversies surrounding fungal-tree interactions. I highly encourage readers to supplement this content and others (hidden life of trees, entangled life etc.) with the recent NYT article by Ganriel Popkin exposing some of the most extreme and unsupported claims made in the field.

[Jolie Rice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book again recently because we were talking about fungi in my biology class and I wanted to seem smart. This is a pretty science-heavy book and definitely dense, but so worth the read.
Fungi are just so COOL.
They're everywhere, part of everything, and completely underutilized. They are the ultimate renewable source, can be grown from microscopic spores, and there's just such a variety. There are so many fungi it's got its own kingdom. Not just a class, a phylum, a KINGDOM.
They are neither plants nor animals, yet a bit of both. They connect forests and help our plants grow and can very easily kill us. Fungi have been here long before us and will readily decompose us when we're gone, which makes them so fascinating.
Overall this is a great scientific book if you're interested in learning more, it just needs your full attention. Which now that I think of it, is a good thing. Don't settle for less.

[Adam Furman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of information.

[Viola · Rating 4 out of 5]

fungi ftw <3

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5! informative

[Jessica Robichaud · Rating 1 out of 5]

WAR IS OVER!!!!

[Tess Desire'e · Rating 4 out of 5]

The farming chapter was really interesting. Learned some stuff about trees too. Generally felt a bit inconsistent throughout the book. Early chapters were meh.

[Robert Mulvihill · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion this is a six-star book! Truly, it astounds me how much the author knows, how well he relates it all in his writing, and how completely paradigm-shifting the information about fungi is! This is not a book about mushroom identification or even much about the macroscopic world of fungi--it focuses on the microscopic, the unseen, hidden world of influence of fungi on earth and in our human lives. Turns out that fungi may just be the "hi-tech" answer to some of our more challenging environmental problems!

[PTocco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Merlin Sheldrake's Entangled Life and thought it was the ultimate fun and interesting fungi book. Then I read Hidden Kingdom of the Fungi and changed my mind, as now this is my favorite shroom book. Merlin is fantastic but his worldly experience is nowhere near Keith's. Merlin is a scholar in an academic sense, with a playful curiosity. Seifert has decades of experience in the industry. Paid to know how fungus affects the human world, both medically and economically. Along the way Seifert takes an interest in piecing together how fungi operate. Not just the fruiting bodies but the molds that often plague the world with disease and death. His understanding and ability to convey in simple language is astounding. But I'm 70 years old. I can see how some younger people may find him nerdy and tedious. I just love the real world tales he tells. Not mystical or poetic, like Sheldrake and others who look at a weirder more spiritual side to mushrooms.

[Sherri · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re a fan of Merlin Sheldrake’s Entangled Life or Suzanne Simard’s Finding the Mother Tree, then Seifert’s latest work is a must-read that will undoubtedly shift your perspective on the fascinating world of fungi. This book serves as an essential guide to our intricate microfungal matrix—the vast, interconnected web of fungi that exists all around us. After discovering that The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi has been widely compared to the other two titles I'm eager to explore, I decided to dive into it, even though some concepts were challenging. Nevertheless, the depth of research and thoughtfulness infused in this book is truly commendable.

Fungi are often invisible, yet they are everywhere—in our forests, farms, food, medicine, homes, and even within our bodies. Their omnipresence shapes our lives in profound ways, often unnoticed.

This comprehensive guide to fungi is structured into three enlightening parts. The first part introduces the essence of fungi—what they are, where they thrive, and how they gather nutrients. The second part explores the remarkable roles fungi play in forests, agriculture, fermentation, human-made environments, and in the animal kingdom. The third part invites you into the groundbreaking realm of microtechnology, envisioning a sustainable future where fungi enhance our everyday life. It covers an impressive array of topics, including biocontrol, plant diseases, and the remarkable uses of fungi in making beer, koji, and brie cheese. You’ll also find insights into enzymes, building materials, zombie ants, allergies, mycoses, jock rot, AIDS, candidiasis, and mycoremediation.

The mission of this book is powerfully clear: it seeks to inspire you to recognize and value the fungi that surround us. By understanding their benefits and acknowledging their downsides, we can cultivate a deeper appreciation for these often-overlooked organisms. Don't miss the chance to transform your perspective on this vital yet hidden aspect of our world!

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Most people are unaware of fungi, although we pass them every day and inhale their spores with every breath."
•
🌿
Thoughts ~
A facinating exploration of Fungi!

Seifert packs a lot of information in these pages! I wondered if it would be too text book but I found it a good balance. This book will teach you so much about the unseen world of mycology! These complex and intelligent organisms are doing so much! I have always wanted to know more about them but this book was the first real deep dive I have experienced on the subject and I enjoyed it a lot! So in case you don't already know Fungi are freaking cool and if you have ever been interested in learning more about them I recommend checking this book out!

Thank You to @greystonebooks for sending me this book my way opinions are my own.

For more of my book content check out instagram.com/bookalong

[Iris Nabalo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading about fungi, those little things that we often overlook. And this book is a beautiful addition to my collection.

What I liked the most about this book is how Keith Seifert explains things. He makes it easy to understand even if you're not a science expert. He shares in a way where you can feel his excitement, which makes science way less boring. Fungi are crucial in our world. They're not just mushrooms; they're involved in medicine, farming, and helping the environment. Books like these make me appreciate fungi even more.

This book felt like an invitation to explore a hidden world. After reading it, you will start noticing fungi everywhere, and have newfound respect for their role in nature. If you're curious about the natural world, I recommend giving this book a read. It's an eye-opening journey into a hidden kingdom right under our noses.

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I’ve read entangled life, which had more on how fungi help trees communicate and also their use in mind altering, but this covered some aspects that entangled didn’t.
Basically, it was focusing on the entire kingdom, not just the more familiar mushroom producing ones. It alerts the reader to dangers like chytrid infecting amphibians, white nose in bats and the fact that humans could be indirectly affected by fungi affecting plants ( think potato famine and Salem witch trials,) insects , ( fungus plays a part in honey bee losses during colony collapse disorder outbreaks) or directly with diseases (like histoplasmosis .)
It’s not all gloom and doom, though, the author also mentions building dwellings on Mars out of fungus.
All in all a very interesting read

[Cammie Honey · Rating 3 out of 5]

The introduction and first chapter were a bit painful for me to get through. I felt that the author underexplained some topics, and vastly overexplained others; several of the author’s attempts at humor felt awkward and a bit painful; it took a while to come to a coherent point. I continued reading, however, and I am glad that I did! Once the book hits its stride, it was full of interesting information and was a very easy and enjoyable read. Overall, I feel that it lacks some nuance, but it also references and directs the reader to additional sources where you can learn more about the topics discussed in the book. I learned a lot, and would absolutely recommend as an introduction to non-mushroom fungi!

[Logan Spader · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you asked me what I enjoyed most about this book... I couldn't tell you. I learned Irish tenant farmers (family of 6) could survive a winter on one acre of tubers but phytophthora infestans caused mass starvation after killing the majority of crops... Aflatoxin is a toxin in imported peanut butter that I need to watch out for... I can help indoor allergies by purchasing new pillows, getting rid of carpet, and keeping high moisture levels under control.

This book entertained me and I appreciate learning the smaller side of mycology (as opposed to edible mushrooms!) but I enjoyed "Entangled Life" more. Either way, thanks Dr. Seifert for sharing your knowledge!

[Rikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look into local and farflung fungi; it goes for a broad overview of different types, different behaviours and the benefits/problems they bring to their respective ecosystems. I learnt some interesting new facts about the drama of fungal endophytes. Definitely be prepared to to clean before you start the household chapter.

My complaint, smallish, is that several times the book brings up what seems like a very interesting fungi-related thing for a sentence (the Belgian baker starter dough library, for example), then briskly moves on to a new mycotoxin while you’re going “wait, the what?” Which can be unsatisfying.

[Patrick Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a joy to read this book. It isn’t easy to write a book based on a science that excels in giving its subject the most exotic names. I am not a scientist and could easily get bogged down in the technicalities of names and interactions, cause and effect. Seifert never lets that happen. He keeps to his theme of the amazing world around us. The world we often can’t see (I’m not sure I like to think that opening the refrigerator door lets in spores that effect my food!). There are two sentences that wonderfully encapsulate this book. From the beginning, “In this book, fungi are both the heroes and the villains-humans are just the supporting cast.” And from the end, “The future is fungal.”

[Cammie (HeadInTheBooks) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,75 stars

Ahhhh this hurts my heart sooooo much! I really wanted to love this book so much! I am a big fan when it comes to everything about fungi.. but this was toooo much information in such a short time. The first part of the book was fine! The only thing is that it is like you are getting thrown information every sentence - too much. XD

The Audiobook def helped me finish the book! It is a fine book if you are fine with too much information that your brain can't think for a couple of hours after reading. I liked that Seifert made the book this, textbook like and more "fun". It wasn't just grey and boring, but it is like talking to someone who just reeeeallly love fungi! xD

[Zach Irvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book presents a vast and varied wealth of knowledge about the fungi that shape our world. Seifert’s ability to talk about the teeming, microscopic world of fungi is approachable and informative. One thing I’ve noticed about fungi books is that they usually have fun art in them. Like so many mycologists just have to show us what they see, because it is so vastly different from how we usually see the world.

Seifert ends the book on a hopeful note with discussions of current and potential technology utilizing fungi, and listing associations that participate in conservation and identification of rare fungi.

[Harlan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very many interesting points, but on the one hand I felt like I did not have enough basic knowledge to understand it all, so at times it seemed geared to the professional reader, but at other times to the amateur. It also seemed like this was an 800 page book, edited down to 220 pages. The author knows so much about the subject, it seems hard to make it a concise 220 pages. But there is a lot to learn about how fungi impacts us in every possible way. He covers the scientific as well as some political and technological issues that are of concern today.

[Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started off pretty dry, and really did not hook me until about 100 pages in. The first part, dealing largely with big scale ideas of fungus in forests and large-scale agriculture just didn't connect with me.

But then we got into fungus in our food, fungus in our houses, and fungus in our BODIES.

I was all in on this, and honestly really dug it. Seifert is a good writer and I enjoyed learning about his fungal friends.