Song of the Cedars (Hardcover)

Co-created by No 1 Sunday Times bestselling writer Robert Macfarlane, this book isn't just about a forest. It was also created in the forest, with the forest . . . and by the forest.

This book is more than a book: it is a small means of changing the world. By reading it, you are playing a part in recognising the rights of nature - and protecting one of the most miraculous places on this fragile, beautiful planet of ours.

The fascinating flora, fauna and fungi of Los Cedros Cloud Forest fill the pages of this grand panoramic scene, which can be folded out and displayed, or read like a traditional book.

On the cover are six names: five of those are the names of the human people who have been to Los Cedros Cloud Forest, been enchanted by it - and vowed to do all they can to help protect this magical place. The sixth name, though, is a surprise: it is the forest's own.

That's because this book isn't just about Los Cedros Cloud Forest-it was also created in the forest, with the forest . . . and by the forest. In making this book, we are recognising the forest's moral rights as the co-creator of a literary work. This sets a striking precedent for asserting the rights of nature, and all the royalties from sales of the book will be used to support the protection of Los Cedros in the future.

Published to coincide with the anniversary of the groundbreaking court decision to recognize Los Cedros's right to exist and to flourish in the future, this book celebrates the rights of nature everywhere.

"Communicating a moving sense of astonishment, this expansive collective effort pays abundant tribute" - Publisher's Weekly

"A gift for budding naturalists" - Foreword Reviews

Robert Macfarlane is internationally known for his writing on nature, people and place. His bestselling books include Underland, Landmarks, The Old Ways, The Wild Places, Mountains of the Mind, and, most recently, Is A River Alive?. His work has been translated into more than 30 languages, won many prizes around the world and been widely adapted for film, music, theatre, radio and dance. He has also written operas, plays and films, including River and Mountain, both narrated by Willem Dafoe, and collaborated with artists including Olafur Eliasson and Stanley Donwood. In 2017, the American Academy of Arts and Letters awarded him the E.M. Forster Prize for Literature. He is a Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge and a leading voice in the "More-Than-Human" (MOTH) Rights movement.

Cosmo Sheldrake is a UK-based multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer and live improviser. Sheldrake's first full length album, The Much Much How How and I, captivated listeners across the globe and his eagerly awaited follow up, Eye to the Ear, was released in 2024. Sheldrake is committed to engaging musically with the living world, and he regularly travels on expeditions as a field recordist. He has pioneered an approach to sharing the publishing royalties of his new releases, attempting to directly return funds to the animals and places that have inspired - and, in many cases, coauthored - the music. Sheldrake is a core member of the More-Than-Human Life (MOTH) Program, an interdisciplinary group working to deepen and expand legal frameworks to find new ways to protect the living world.

César Rodríguez-Garavito is an Earth rights and human rights scholar and a field lawyer whose work focuses on international environmental law, Indigenous peoples' rights and more-than-human rights. He is Professor of Law and Chair of the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at NYU School of Law, and the founding director of the Earth Rights Research & Action (TERRA) Clinic and the More-Than-Human Life (MOTH) Program.

Giuliana Furci is the founder and Executive Director of the Fungi Foundation, the first NGO in the world dedicated to fungal conservation. A Harvard University Associate and National Geographic Explorer, she serves as Co-Chair of the IUCN Fungal Conservation Committee and is a Fellow of the International Mycological Association. and a Dame of the Order of the Star of Italy. Her extensive bibliography includes a series of field guides to Chilean fungi and co-authorship of the first State of the World's Fungi (Kew, 2018). She is a leading voice behind the "3F Proposal," advocating for the global adoption of the term "funga" alongside flora and fauna, and a member of the More-Than-Human Life (MOTH) Program.

Paula Terán Ospina was born in Quito, Ecuador. She is a biologist, educator, author and illustrator. Her work focuses on children and young readers literature, scientific/naturalistic illustration, and conservation. She has written and published three children's novels and illustrated 29 books. Ospina has also worked in conservation projects, scientific diffusion, and social conscience campaigns.