Summer’s almost upon us, and fiction and nonfiction writers alike have a wide selection of new books that embrace the environment. We’ve picked 10 new books — all of which were published in the first half of this year — that address everything from public action to personal experiences and from science to sci-fi. The list includes historical accounts, science-based mysteries, futuristic visions, and everything in the middle.

Whether you plan to relax on the beach, lounge by the pool, or recline in the woods, these terrific books will help energize you in the months ahead.

We’ve excerpted the books’ official descriptions below. As always, the links go to the publishers’ sites, but you can also find these books at your local bookstore or library.

Natural History of Silence by Jérôme Sueur, translated by Helen Morrison

In our busy, noisy world, we may find ourselves longing for silence. But what is silence exactly? Is it the total absence of sound? Or is it the absence of the sound created by humans – the kind of deep stillness you might experience in a remote mountain landscape covered in snow, far away from the bustle of human life?

When we listen closely, silence reveals a neglected reality. Neither empty nor singular, silence is instead plentiful and multiple. In this book, eco-acoustic historian Jérôme Sueur allows us to discover a vast landscape of silences which trigger the full gamut of our emotions: anxiety, awe and peace.

Wildfire Days: A Woman, a Hotshot Crew, and the Burning American West by Kelly Ramsey

An adventure-filled memoir of one woman’s struggle to succeed as a wildland firefighter on a male-dominated crew as they battle some of the fiercest Western wildfires. As she drives over a California mountain pass to join an elite firefighting crew, she’s terrified that she won’t be able to keep up with the intense demands of the job. Not only will she be the only woman on this hotshot crew and their first in 10 years, she’ll also be among the oldest. As she trains relentlessly to overcome the crew’s skepticism and gain their respect, megafires erupt across the West, posing an increasing danger both on the job and back home. In vivid prose that evokes the majesty of Northern California’s forests, Kelly takes us on the ground to see how major wildfires are fought and to lay bare the psychological toll, the bone-deep weariness, and the unbreakable camaraderie that emerge in the face of nature’s fury. In this vivid, visceral, and intimate memoir, Kelly wrestles with the immense power of fire for both destruction and renewal, confronted with the questions: Which fires do you fight, and which do you let burn you clean? (Available June 17, 2025)

Forest Euphoria: The Abounding Queerness of Nature by Patricia Ononiwu Kaishian

A thrilling book about the queerness of the natural world, challenging our expectations of what is normal, beautiful, and possible.

Growing up, Patricia Kaishian felt most at home in the swamps and culverts near her house in the Hudson Valley. In snakes, snails, and fungi, she saw her own developing identities as a queer, neurodivergent person reflected at her — and in them, too, she found a personal path to a life of science. Kaishian shows us the making of a scientist and the queerness of life around us. Fungi, we learn, commonly have more than two biological sexes — and some as many as twenty-three thousand. Some intersex slugs mutually fire calcium carbonate “love darts” at each other during courtship. Glass eels are sexually undetermined until their last year of life, which stumped scientists once dubbed “the eel question.” Nature, Kaishian shows us, is filled with the unusual, the overlooked, and the marginalized — and they have lessons for us all.

The Crazies: Cattleman, the Wind Prospector, and a War Out West by Amy Gamerman

A dazzling piece of narrative nonfiction about land lust and the American West, The Crazies is the story of a wind farm that triggers a 21st century range war between a struggling fifth-generation rancher and the billionaires next door.

Most locals in Big Timber, Montana learn to live with the wind. Rick Jarrett sought his fortune in it. Like his pioneer ancestors who staked their claims in the Treasure State, he believed in his right to make a living off the land — and its newest precious resource, million-dollar wind. Trouble was, Jarrett’s neighbors were some of the wealthiest and most influential men in America, trophy ranchers who’d come West to enjoy magnificent mountain views, not stare at 500-foot wind turbines. Cue an epic showdown that would pull in an ever-widening cast of larger-than-life characters, including a Texas oil tycoon, a roguish wind prospector, a Crow activist fighting for his tribe’s rights to the mountains they hold sacred, and an Olympic athlete-turned-attorney whose path to redemption would lead to Jarrett’s wind farm. A wildly entertaining yarn, the brawl over Crazy Mountain Wind would become a fight over the values that define us as Americans — and a window into how this country actually works.

Wild Horse Effect: Awe, Well-Being, and the Transformative Power of Nature by Chad Hanson

Combining stunning imagery with insights from the new science of awe and contemplative practices, this book reminds us that stepping away from our modern lives and reconnecting with the natural world is essential to our sense of peace, purpose, and well-being. This book invites you to delve into current research of the myriad mind-body benefits of spending time in natural spaces. “Try this” sidebars throughout offer simple ways to get outside, practice mindfulness, and discover more wonder in your every day, no matter where you live. This book will appeal to animal and nature lovers, photography enthusiasts, and anyone interested in improving their well-being through time spent outdoors. Step into nature, bathe in the forest and learn to experience a sense of mental and physical health.

Arrival of the Fittest: Biology’s Imaginary Futures, 1900–1935 by Jim Endersby

In the early twentieth century, varied audiences took biology out of the hands of specialists and transformed it into mass culture, transforming our understanding of heredity in the process. Creative communities took those new theories of heredity, envisioning futuristic ideas like the largely forgotten mutation theory of Hugo de Vries. Science fiction writers, socialists, feminists, and utopians are among those who seized on the amazing possibilities of rapid and potentially controllable evolution. Writers from H.G. Wells, Edith Wharton, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, J.B.S. Haldane, and Aldous Huxley created a new kind of imaginary future, which Jim Endersby calls the biotopia, taking the ambiguous possibilities of biology — utopian and dystopian — to reimagine them in ways that still influence the public’s understanding of the life sciences. This book recovers the fascinating, long-forgotten origins of ideas that have informed works of fiction from Brave New World to the X-Men movies, all while reflecting on the lessons — positive and negative — that this period might offer us.

Holler: A Graphic Memoir of Rural Resistance by Denali Sai Nalamalapu

An illustrated look at six inspiring changemakers. Denali Nalamalapu introduces readers to the ordinary people who became resisters of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a project that spans approximately 300 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia.

These people show the difference we can make when we stand up for what we love, and stand together in community. Holler is an invitation to readers everywhere searching for their own path to activism: sending the message that no matter how small your action is, it’s impactful. The story of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is one we can all relate to, as our communities face climate crisis, and the corporations that benefit from the destruction of our natural resources. Holler is a moving and deeply accessible — and beautifully visual — story about change, hope, and humanity.

Tree Trek: A Daughter’s Walk Through Grief by Stephanie Mirocha

These intimate portraits of trees are a balm that heals grief. In this memoir, Stephanie Mirocha weaves a blend of botany, philosophy, personal reflections, and healing through nature from grief after the loss of her father. Trees provide the backdrop of friendly support she clings to as she revives her father’s educational Tree Trek. She “speaks for the trees,” bringing enthusiasm to the treks she leads. Each chapter focuses on the science of a different tree, connecting the reader with the beauty of nature, and the vitality that comes from listening to the guiding wisdom of one’s inner voice.

The Vanishing Kind: A Novel of Suspense by Alice Henderson

The eagerly anticipated and electrifying fourth book in the Alex Carter series, in which the wildlife biologist encounters anti-immigrant vigilantes, rugged terrain, and threatening intruders in search of a sleek, powerful, and furtive animal — the jaguar. As tensions mount, Alex finds herself in a fight for her life against those who would prevent her from restoring jaguars to their historical habitat.

When We’re in Charge: The Next Generation’s Guide to Leadership by Amanda Litman

Most leadership books treat millennials and Gen Z like nuisances, focusing on older leadership constructs. Not this one. When We’re in Charge is a no-bullshit guide for the next generation of leaders on how to show up differently, break the cycle of the existing workplace. This book is a vital resource for new leaders trying to figure out how to get stuff done without drama. Offering solutions for today’s challenges, Litman offers arguments for the four-day workweek, why transparency is a powerful tool, and why it matters for you to both provide and take family leave. A necessary read for all who occupy or aspire to leadership roles, this book is a vision for a future where leaders at work are compassionate, genuine, and effective.

For hundreds of additional environmental books — including several on staying calm in challenging times — visit the Revelator Reads archives.

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