Unrooted: Botany, Motherhood, and the Fight to Save an Old Science comes out April 16th, 2024!
“In the pages of Unrooted: Botany, Motherhood, and the Fight to Save an Old Science, Zimmerman takes us back to her childhood in rural Ontario where she became fascinated with plants. She tells us how that obsession led to a life in academia working to become a professional botanist. It was a challenging career path because natural history – the collection, description, and classification of species – is in many ways a “dying science.” But to Zimmerman, it is one worth fighting for.
In her memoir Zimmerman traces her career path and argues that natural history research needs to continue, not only because there may be as many as 100,000 plant species yet to be discovered, but because an understanding of this science is crucial in the fight against biodiversity loss. Despite her passion for studying plants, Zimmerman’s career choices narrowed in the face of failing institutions and subtle, but ubiquitous, sexism, and she began to doubt herself.
Unrooted is a scientist’s memoir, a glimpse into the ordinary life of someone in a fascinating field. It is about plants, looking at the world with wonder, and what it means to be a woman in academia—an environment that elbows out mothers and those with responsibilities outside the lab. Zimmerman delves into her experiences as a new parent, her decision to leave her position in post-graduate research, and how she found a new way to stay in the field she loves. She ends with a call to action for anyone wishing to help in the fight to save species.
This memoir is an exploration of science, motherhood, and academia, and a stirring account of a woman at a personal and professional crossroads. Zimmerman is also a botanical illustrator and there will be 12 original illustrations in the book.”
Purchase the book here (United States/International) or here (Canada).
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“Evolutionary botanist Zimmerman discusses her passion for plants and inveighs against sexism in the sciences in her marvelous debut memoir. … Throughout, Zimmerman’s enthusiasm and expertise make the science accessible even to those without a background in the subject.“
~Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review
“After departing from research, Zimmerman switched to science journalism, for which we should be grateful, for she writes beautifully.” “A moving memoir of botany and motherhood explores the historical pressures on female scientists.”
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Read an excerpt:
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