Not always one of the most praised or mythologised of our trees, Ash is nevertheless one of the most abundant, useful and also sadly most threatened of our native species. This beautiful little book, crammed with illustrations, explains the 'history' of the Ash, its biology, lifecycle, place in our culture and folklore, and its many uses. Rackham's big focus though is the threats which Ash faces to its survival, most notably Ash Disease (or Dieback) and the Emerald Ash Borer beetle. Rackham squarly puts the blame for the spread of these threats not on nature, but on us humans and the way we treat trees as commodities to be traded around the world. I loved this fascinating book, and though it's obviously specifically about the Ash, it is also very informative about trees in general and should appeal to anyone interested in nature.