Between the Earth and the Sky: The Penguin Book of Forest Writings

In the forest, the earth and sky do not meet; the notion of ‘horizon’ doesn’t exist. Forests have been cleared to open new horizons but this has often been responsible for the destruction of the living world within. Between the Earth and the Sky brings together forest writings that cover history, anthropology, wildlife, ecological and environmental studies, literature and travel, throwing light on different aspects of the forest. While Jim Corbett sees the forest as a hunter and Prakash Moorthy weaves a tale about poaching in Kerala, Visvajit Pandya writes about the Ongees of Little Andaman. Guru Nanak celebrates the seasons in his Bara Maha and Sri Aurobindo celebrates the forest as the ‘Infinite Mother’ in Savitri, while Verrier Elwin and Ruskin Bond celebrate the intimacy man shares with nature. The Yaksha Prashna from the Mahabharata and Ramchandra Gandhi’s Sita’s Kitchen explore the forest as a space for discourse even as Gilgamesh, one of the earliest conquerors of the forest, stands in sharp contrast with its caretakers like Kotgudin and Billy Biswas. Rich and varied in both thought and style, the pieces in this collection mirror the wealth and wisdom of the forest universe. Between the Earth and the Sky is for all who have ever ventured into a forest and all who have dreamt of going there.