Nature and Science April 2025
Recent Releases
Plant Energy Medicine: The Guiding Voice and Healing Vibration of 58 Plants
by Rhonda M. PallasDowney
 
A guide to connecting with plant energies

• Presents in-depth teachings on 58 flowers, trees, and plants

• Each write-up features a full-color close-up photo along with the plant’s medicinal and flower essence traits, the voice of its flower, energetic impact on the chakras, and an affirmation

• Also explores plant biofield energetics, how to use flower essences, and the sensory experience of connecting with a plant

By learning to listen quietly to flowers and plants, we can tune in to the inner teachings they have to offer us. Plants can not only heal us, but they can also teach us how to live a more joyful, healthy, and balanced life.

Sharing the teachings they’ve received through years of attentive listening to flowers, trees, and plants, Rhonda PallasDowney and Sandi O’Connor explore how to deepen your personal experience with the world of plants and connect with their energies. They look at the life force energy of plants, their sensory systems, biofields and electromagnetic energy fields, and their growth from seed to root to stem to leaf to blossom. They offer insights into how to deepen your sensory experience of plants—including their taste, texture, and sounds—and they also teach you how to work with flower essences.

Presenting in-depth teachings on 58 flowers, trees, and plants, the authors explore each plant’s medicinal and flower essence traits, the voice of its flower, its insight, its energetic impact on the chakras, and an affirmation to help you embody the teachings of the plant. Each plant discussion also features full-color close-up photos by Rhonda PallasDowney that capture the energetic imprint and personality of the plant.
The Genetic Book of the Dead: A Darwinian Reverie
by Richard Dawkins

An exquisitely camouflaged lizard has a desiccated landscape of sand and stones “painted” on its back. Its skin can be read as a description of an ancient desert, a world in which its ancestors survived. Such descriptions are more than skin deep, however. They penetrate the very warp and woof of the entire animal.
 
In this groundbreaking exploration of the power of Darwinian evolution and what it can reveal about the past, Richard Dawkins shows how the body, behavior, and genes of every living creature can be read as a book—an archive of the worlds of its ancestors. In the future, a zoologist presented with a hitherto unknown animal will be able to decode its ancestral history, to read its unique “book of the dead.” Such readings are already uncovering the remarkable ways animals overcome obstacles, adapt to their environments, and, again and again, develop remarkably similar ways of solving life’s problems.
 
From the author of
The Selfish Gene comes a revolutionary, richly illustrated book that unlocks the door to a past more vivid, nuanced, and fascinating than anything we have seen.
No More Tears: The Dark Story of Johnson & Johnson
by Gardiner Harris

One day in 2004, Gardiner Harris, a pharmaceutical reporter for The New York Times, was early for a flight and sat down at an airport bar. He struck up a conversation with the woman on the barstool next to him, who happened to be a drug sales rep for Johnson & Johnson. Her horrific story about unethical sales practices and the devastating impact they’d had on her family fundamentally changed the nature of how Harris would cover the company—and the entire pharmaceutical industry—for the Times. His subsequent investigations and ongoing research since that very first conversation led to this book—a blistering exposé of a trusted American institution and the largest healthcare conglomerate in the world.

Harris takes us light-years away from the company’s image as the child-friendly “baby company” as he uncovers reams of evidence showing decades of deceitful and dangerous corporate practices that have threatened the lives of millions. He covers multiple disasters: lies and cover-ups regarding the link of Johnson’s Baby Powder to cancer, the surprising dangers of Tylenol, a criminal campaign to sell antipsychotics that have cost countless lives, a popular drug used to support cancer patients that actually increases the risk that cancer tumors will grow, and deceptive marketing that accelerated opioid addictions through their product Duragesic (fentanyl) that rival even those of the Sacklers and Purdue Pharma.

Filled with shocking and infuriating but utterly necessary revelations,
No More Tears is a landmark work of investigative journalism that lays bare the deeply rooted corruption behind the image of babies bathing with a smile.
The Gut-Brain Paradox: Improve Your Mood, Clear Brain Fog, and Reverse Disease by Healing Your Microbiome
by Steven R. Gundry
 
In his previous bestselling books, Steven R. Gundry taught readers how to reverse disease and improve health and well-being by preventing and repairing leaky gut. In The Gut-Brain Paradox, he delves even more deeply into the mysterious and long misunderstood world of the human microbiome.
 
Here Dr. Gundry uncovers the complex and multifaceted ways in which our microbes are controlling the health and functioning of our brains, and how the gut-brain connection is made long before we are even born.
 
The Gut-Brain Paradox shines a fascinating light on how the one-two punch of leaky gut and gut dysbiosis, together driven by western diets, overuse of antibiotics and other medications, and environmental toxins allow pathogenic bacteria to take over. These “bad bugs” cause inflammation and hijack the intricate messaging systems that run from the gut to the brain, setting the stage for neurological changes, brain fog, neurodegeneration, mental health issues, personality alterations, and even addiction.
 
However, these changes are reversible. Featuring the latest science, easy-to-follow recipes, and supplement guides, The Gut-Brain Paradox shows us how to eat to restore not only our inner balance, but our mental energy and well-being, too.
The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth
by Zoèe Schlanger
 
It takes tremendous biological creativity to be a plant. To survive and thrive while rooted in a single spot, plants have adapted ingenious methods of survival. In recent years, scientists have learned about their ability to communicate, recognize their kin and behave socially, hear sounds, morph their bodies to blend into their surroundings, store useful memories that inform their life cycle, and trick animals into behaving to their benefit, to name just a few remarkable talents.
 
The Light Eaters is a deep immersion into the drama of green life and the complexity of this wild and awe-inspiring world that challenges our very understanding of agency, consciousness, and intelligence. In looking closely, we see that plants, rather than imitate human intelligence, have perhaps formed a parallel system. What is intelligent life if not a vine that grows leaves to blend into the shrub on which it climbs, a flower that shapes its bloom to fit exactly the beak of its pollinator, a pea seedling that can hear water flowing and make its way toward it? Zoë Schlanger takes us across the globe, digging into her own memories and into the soil with the scientists who have spent their waking days studying these amazing entities up close.
 
What can we learn about life on Earth from the living things that thrive, adapt, consume, and accommodate simultaneously? More important, what do we owe these life forms once we come to understand their rich and varied abilities? Examining the latest epiphanies in botanical research, Schlanger spotlights the intellectual struggles among the researchers conceiving a wholly new view of their subject, offering a glimpse of a field in turmoil as plant scientists debate the tenets of ongoing discoveries and how they influence our understanding of what a plant is.
We need plants to survive. But what do they need us for—if at all? An eye-opening and informative look at the ecosystem we live in, this book challenges us to rethink the role of plants—and our own place—in the natural world.
The Way Out: A Revolutionary, Scientifically Proven Approach to Healing Chronic Pain
by Alan Gordon
 
A groundbreaking mind-body protocol to heal chronic pain, backed by new research.

Chronic pain is an epidemic. Fifty million Americans struggle with back pain, headaches, or some other pain that resists all treatment. Desperate pain sufferers are told again and again that there is no cure for chronic pain.

Alan Gordon, a psychotherapist and the founder of the Pain Psychology Center in Los Angeles, was in grad school when he started experiencing chronic pain and it completely derailed his life. He saw multiple doctors and received many diagnoses, but none of the medical treatments helped. Frustrated with conventional pain management, he developed Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT), a mind-body protocol that eliminated his own chronic pain and has transformed the lives of thousands of his patients.

PRT is rooted in neuroscience, which has shown that while chronic pain feels like it's coming from the body, in most cases it's generated by misfiring pain circuits in the brain. PRT is a system of psychological techniques that rewires the brain to break out of the cycle of chronic pain.

The University of Colorado-Boulder recently conducted a large randomized controlled study on PRT, and the results are remarkable. By the end of the study, the majority of patients were pain-free or nearly pain-free. What's more, these dramatic changes held up over time.


The Way Out brings PRT to readers. It combines accessible science with a concrete, step-by-step plan to teach sufferers how to heal their own chronic pain.
Gender Explained: A New Understanding of Identity in a Gender Creative World
by Diane Ehrensaft
 
Gender is everywhere. Politicians argue over it, educational systems struggle to define it, and our friends, neighbors, and children explore it. More than ever before, young people are questioning their gender identities and redefining the role of gender in their lives. How should our society―and we as individuals (parents, teachers, friends)―respond?
 
In Gender Explained, Diane Ehrensaft, PhD, and Michelle Jurkiewicz, PsyD, separate medical fact from fear-mongering falsehoods and answer these questions: What should parents do when their child starts experiencing gender dysphoria? Which sports teams should transgender youth play on? How should schools teach young people about gender? And most important: What is gender-affirming care, and when should an individual have access to it?
 
With clear, expert guidance, this book is a safeguard against political vitriol, and it offers urgent protection for those among us who are transgender and/or nonbinary. Far more than an introduction to gender creativity, it is an invitation to develop compassion for everyone along the gender continuum.
The Ozempic Revolution: A Doctor's Proven Plan for Success to Help You Reverse Obesity, End Yo-Yo Dieting, and Protect Yourself from Disease
by Alexandra Sowa
 
The first comprehensive user guide to GLP-1s (such as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound) with an overview of how they work and possible side effects. Also including companion recipes, exercise guidance, and new habits to maintain lifelong health and keep weight off for good.
 
The newest class of weight loss drugs (GLP-1s) are complete game-changers in their potential to reverse obesity and its related diseases, with nearly 50% of Americans qualifying for the use of these drugs. Already 1 in 8 Americans say they’ve tried a GLP-1 medication—but with many acquiring their prescription from online pharmacies, med spas, and general practitioners, they face a huge gap between trying the drug and achieving their health goals with it long-term.
 
That’s where The Ozempic Revolution comes in. Alexandra Sowa, MD, a leading obesity medicine specialist, shares her expertise on this much-discussed but largely misunderstood class of medica­tions, including information like:
 
  • What the GLP-1 experience really feels like
  • How to know if you’re a candidate for these medications
  • How to get a prescription and get it covered by insurance
  • How to manage and reduce unwanted side effects
  • Unique food plans and strategies for managing the mental challenges of losing weight
  • Simple, easy recipes for when you don’t feel like eating
Traditional and social media has been flooded with junk information and stigmatizing headlines about GLP-1s, and in this book, Dr. Sowa digs into all of it—the good, the bad, and the ugly—bringing the science to light.
 
If you’re curious about how GLP-1s might fit into your life, or want to optimize your experience while taking them, then Dr. Sowa’s clear-eyed, fully informed approach is a must-read. The Ozempic revolution changes everything: these drugs finally provide a viable, healthy, and sane way to lose weight, avoid disease, and maintain your health gains for life.
Wildflowers
by Chris Thorogood
 
Discover the fascinating stories behind around 300 species of wildflowers, and marvel at a botanical beauty and diversity you never knew existed.

Did you know that orchids existed alongside dinosaurs? And that 30,000 plant species are used as medicine worldwide? In this stunning book, leading botanist Chris Thorogood brings you closer to 300 species of wildflowers through fascinating facts, plant profiles, and detailed illustrations. More than just meadows, discover wildflowers that are pollinated by birds, that look like stones, and that feed on the creatures around them.

Humans have had a close relationship with wildflowers throughout history, from growing dahlias as crops and comfrey as medicine, to carrying posies to ward off the plague and roses down the aisle. Bringing together natural history, culture, food, medicine, and technology, this fascinating book will open your eyes to the botanical wonders all around us.

With a guide to the wildflowers growing in every habitat, identification notes, a grow-your-own guide, and more, this is the ultimate flower lover's companion.
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