Book Review: Brilliant Green: The Surprising History and Science of Plant Intelligence by Stefano Mancuso and Alessandra Viola

You'd be forgiven if you thought that the authors don't like humans within the first few pages of this book! Actually, what they don't like is how plants, throughout history, have been placed at the bottom of the pile. How it has been thought ridiculous for plants to have senses, intelligence, communication skills, or even sleep – or perhaps even worse; the times when plants haven’t been thought of at all.

This book goes some way into providing a corrective education in what plants can do, pushing the content to the edge of what is currently known and making us aware of what we still don’t know – and importantly what is being studied.

I enjoyed the writing style of the authors. It is clear and passionate. Excellent illustrations are used, some of which display the fascinating nature of the plants discussed much better than words can.

If you liked, What a Plant Knows: A Field Guide to the Senses by Daniel Chamovitz, then I’m sure you’ll like this book too.