Book Review: “The Secret Life of Fungi: Discoveries from a Hidden World” by Aliya Whiteley

Jan 1

Håfa adai! Welcome to my review of The Secret Life of Fungi: Discoveries from a Hidden World, by Aliya Whiteley.

This book review consists of two parts: a brief summary of content followed by my personal takeaways. I may go into detail about some parts of the book, but I will leave out the greater nuance. I want to share my opinions of the book and encourage you to purchase a copy of your own.

Click on the tags at the bottom of this post to see all reviews with the same tags in the Biological & Physical Sciences bookshelf.

Summary of The Secret Life of Fungi

From the hottest desert to the coldest tundra, from the most delicious ingredients to the deadliest poisons, and from microscopic spaces under your toenails to massive mycelium networks forming the largest single living organism on Earth, fungi are among the most mesmerizing and mysterious organisms on our planet. Neither plant nor animal, members of the kingdom Fungi can thrive in symbiosis with or parasitically on many species from the kingdoms Plantae and Animalia in manners that mycologists are still endeavoring to understand.

In The Secret Life of Fungi, Aliya Whiteley shares her deep love and endless curiosity for the more than 144,000 known species of this biological kingdom. It all started when she was a child in England taking fuzzy photos of bizarre growths she would observe outdoors. From there, her fascination with fungi would grow into a writing career colored by their strange beauty. In this book, Whiteley presents an enchanting introduction to the lifecycle, uses, and possible applications of many fungi species. She even shares a recipe for slow mushroom stew with cheese dumplings! In spite of all that is known about fungi, it is clear throughout The Secret Life of Fungi that there is still so much more to uncover.

My Thoughts on The Secret Life of Fungi: 4.5 stars

I have always been captivated with fungi. As a food lover, mushrooms are one of my favorite ingredients work with. As a lifelong fan of horror and suspense, I have frequently seen species of fungi featured as a formidable antagonistic force. And as someone obsessed with fantasy worldbuilding, the Circle of Spores Druid is one of the coolest class builds for those of us who like to play as Drow in Baldur’s Gate 3 and Dungeons & Dragons 5E. So I was looking for a quick and fun introduction to mycology (the study of fungi) when I came across The Secret Life of Fungi.

Aliya Whiteley organizes the chapters of The Secret Life of Fungi into three sections: Erupt, Spread, and Decay. In Erupt, Whiteley introduces the reader to the kingdom Fungi and the broad categories of its many species including mushrooms, molds, yeasts, and more. She also gives archaeological examples of the earliest known intentional uses of fungi by human beings, from food sources (Agaricus bisporus) to medicine (Penicillium notatum) and possible kindling (Fomes fomentarius). In Spread, she outlines the incredible variety of sizes fungi are observed in—from single-celled yeasts to Armillaria ostoyae with mycelium networks larger than blue whales—as well as the different contexts they can be found in. Finally, in Decay, Whiteley goes into detail about the relationship between fungi and the dead. While many species of mushroom are culinary delicacies, some—like Aminita citrina or Claviceps purpurea—are deadly killers. And the bodies of dead animals and plants make wonderful incubation areas for fungal spores, thus continuing the cycle.

I give The Secret Life of Fungi 4.5 out of 5 stars. Aliya Whiteley’s prose strikes a pleasant balance between presenting recent research and observations, outlining the history of mycology as a scientific discipline, and sharing anecdotes from her own life. Her lifelong devotion to this diverse and alien-like kingdom of life is palpable through the text. Being an anthropologist, I greatly appreciated how frequently she associated various fungi with human use and activity, both archaeologically and contemporarily. As a side note from the perspective of someone who likes to annotate her physical copies of non-fiction, I appreciate how much space there is to highlight and leave notes. If one of the goals of this book was to foster an interest in the kingdom Fungi, it absolutely succeeded! I want to learn so much more about mycology.

Dångkulo' na' saina ma'åse'! Thank you so much for reading my revised review of The Secret Life of Fungi: Discoveries from a Hidden World by Aliya Whiteley.

Rating Cheat Sheet

4.75 - 5.00 stars: Everyone should read this book! (If you’re into that sort of thing.)
4.00 - 4.50 stars: I appreciated many aspects of this book. I recommend it!
3.00 - 3.75 stars: I liked some aspects of this book. I won’t revisit it, but someone else might really like it.
2.00 - 2.75 stars: There were some things I appreciated about this book, but I do not recommend it.
0.25 - 1.75 stars: I do not recommend this book. I did not enjoy or appreciate the experience of it.

Post Date: 9 September 2024

Revised: 8 November 2024