The Weather Detective

Rediscovering Nature's Secret Signs

By: Peter Wohlleben

Narrated by: Nicholas Guy Smith

Length: 6 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's Summary

The internationally best-selling author of The Hidden Life of Trees shows how we can decipher nature's secret signs by studying the weather.

In this first-ever English translation of The Weather Detective, Peter Wohlleben uses his long experience and deep love of nature to help decipher the weather and our local environments in a completely new and compelling way. Analyzing the explanations for everyday questions and mysteries surrounding weather and natural phenomena, he delves into a new and intriguing world of scientific investigation.

At what temperature do bees stay home? Why do southerly winds in winter often bring storms? How can birdsong or flower scents help you tell the time? These are among the many questions Wohlleben poses in his newly translated book. Full of the very latest discoveries, combined with ancient now-forgotten lore, The Weather Detective helps you read nature's secret signs and discover a rich new layer of meaning in the world around you.

©2018 Peter Wohlleben (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

“A guidebook on how everything we need to know about the weather can be learned by paying close attention to our natural surroundings in general and our gardens in particular…You'll never look at your garden the same way again.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“Wohlleben’s insightful observations of nature, combined with his signature blend of science and imagination, invite us into deeper relationship with the ecology of our homes.” (David George Haskell, Pulitzer finalist and author of The Forest Unseen and The Songs of Trees) 

“For a society increasingly distanced from nature, Wohlleben renews our appreciation of the wonderful and varied ties between the living and nonliving worlds, including those that bind our favorite plants and animals with that most familiar of all physical entities, the weather.” (Bill Streever, nationally best-selling author of Cold)  

i enjoyed his book about trees. I wanted to know

I wanted to know about the weather. This wasn't really much to do about weather besides the beginning. interesting, but not what I was promised by the title.

Where’s the weather?

I enjoyed the general information and the narration was great, but I bought the book for weather information which was limited to the first few chapters. Feel like the name of the book is false-leading.

Don't bother unless you live in the UK

It would have been good to know that this book is directed to those who live in the UK. If you garden in the USA, forget it.

Very little about the weather.

The first chapters are exactly what i was hoping the whole book would be, unfortunately most of the book is not. Having said that, it is full of valuable information and inspirations about nature.

Title was misleading

The setting is in Great Britain and it's a gardening book. Overall it was ok. The narration was good though.

A wonderful blend of nature and human society.

Peter Wohlleben, teaches us a way of beautifully blending a way to continue to love our homes and gardens, but to maintain a healthy and sustainable coexistence with nature. Peter discuses topics which, show ways to sharpen our natural born senses, allowing us to be more sharply attuned to the natural world, and to use wise practices at home that consider and sustain the natural environment.
I highly recommend this book. It is easy to listen to not only because of the gentle tones of Nicholas Guy Smith’s voice, but, the writing is very accessible.

Almost exclusively focused on the UK

I did learn a few nuggets of knowledge on animal and plant behavior. I did not learn anything g tangible on weather. More importantly, I would not have purchased if I knew the target audience was the European Gardener (gardening in Germany referenced multiple times throughout the book).

Absolute an amazing about natures life.

I recommend this book any body who really wants to learn about it's nature an it's simple truth , scientific ,spiritual discipline ,how it education us. So far one of my favorites of his .

For gardeners

I was interested in this book because I am a pilot and I and extremely intrigued by the weather and I thought I might learn some interesting weather signs and phenomenons to look out for but it was mostly about plants and soil so ya still well read but not really about weather.

More a gardening book than a weather book

If you're looking for a book on how to read weather signs to predict weather, this isn't quite that. This is a nature book and is more for gardeners than would-be meteorologists. But it does have a lot of information on how weather, insect, plant, and animal life interact.