Der Pilz am Ende der Welt: Über das Leben in den Ruinen des Kapitalismus
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- Create Date：2021-04-17 04:52:14
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing
- ISBN：3957578094
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Summary
Matsutake is the most valuable mushroom in the world--and a weed that grows in human-disturbed forests across the northern hemisphere。 Through its ability to nurture trees， matsutake helps forests to grow in daunting places。 It is also an edible delicacy in Japan， where it sometimes commands astronomical prices。 In all its contradictions， matsutake offers insights into areas far beyond just mushrooms and addresses a crucial question: what manages to live in the ruins we have made？
A tale of diversity within our damaged landscapes， The Mushroom at the End of the World follows one of the strangest commodity chains of our times to explore the unexpected corners of capitalism。 Here， we witness the varied and peculiar worlds of matsutake commerce: the worlds of Japanese gourmets， capitalist traders， Hmong jungle fighters， industrial forests， Yi Chinese goat herders， Finnish nature guides， and more。 These companions also lead us into fungal ecologies and forest histories to better understand the promise of cohabitation in a time of massive human destruction。
By investigating one of the world's most sought-after fungi， The Mushroom at the End of the World presents an original examination into the relation between capitalist destruction and collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes， the prerequisite for continuing life on earth。
A tale of diversity within our damaged landscapes， The Mushroom at the End of the World follows one of the strangest commodity chains of our times to explore the unexpected corners of capitalism。 Here， we witness the varied and peculiar worlds of matsutake commerce: the worlds of Japanese gourmets， capitalist traders， Hmong jungle fighters， industrial forests， Yi Chinese goat herders， Finnish nature guides， and more。 These companions also lead us into fungal ecologies and forest histories to better understand the promise of cohabitation in a time of massive human destruction。
By investigating one of the world's most sought-after fungi， The Mushroom at the End of the World presents an original examination into the relation between capitalist destruction and collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes， the prerequisite for continuing life on earth。
Reviews
M
，
I honestly got about ten pages in before I knew I wouldn't finish this book。I absolutely hate the writing style。 I can't connect to it， it's way overworked。 With a topic like this， simplicity would've worked better。 Maybe I'll give this another try sometime when I have more patience - that time is certainly not now。 I honestly got about ten pages in before I knew I wouldn't finish this book。I absolutely hate the writing style。 I can't connect to it， it's way overworked。 With a topic like this， simplicity would've worked better。 Maybe I'll give this another try sometime when I have more patience - that time is certainly not now。 。。。more
Evelina Dimova
，
3。5 rounded up to 4
Marc Jackson
，
This was an interesting foray into the world of the matsutake mushroom and the relationships necessary between and among humans and the forest。 The writing was engaging though I had some difficulties grasping the concepts using the mushroom as allegory。 All in all an interesting anthropological read。
L L
，
Every year there's a book I get super excited about and want to tell everyone about。 This book might be it for me this year， though I'm not sure how wide its appeal will be。This book comes from an anthropology disciplinary angle， and explores matsutake commerce in the Pacific Northwest。 Matsutake commerce blossomed after logging destroyed much of the old growth forest in the Northwest。 In its place， forests of red pine grew， the common tree to grow after deforestation， and the only kind of envir Every year there's a book I get super excited about and want to tell everyone about。 This book might be it for me this year， though I'm not sure how wide its appeal will be。This book comes from an anthropology disciplinary angle， and explores matsutake commerce in the Pacific Northwest。 Matsutake commerce blossomed after logging destroyed much of the old growth forest in the Northwest。 In its place， forests of red pine grew， the common tree to grow after deforestation， and the only kind of environment that can support matsutake mushrooms， a prized mushroom in Japan。 Tsing combines sketches from her fieldwork and research on matsutake commerce with fascinating theoretical analysis-- about capitalist and non-capitalist values systems， salvage， freedom and human/non-human ecological interdependence and disturbance。 Some of the ideas she explores includes how all private wealth is ultimately sourced from the commons; human/non-human entanglement and emergence especially after places that are considered "ruins"; how objects become commodities and then become gifts again。She explores open markets the distinct cultures of mushroom foragers （Japanese families， Hmong and Lao pickers， white veterans）， the open markets for buying matsutake mushrooms in Oregon， to sellers， importers and buyers in Canada and Japan， and the gift culture surrounding matsutake to the ecology， economics and management of different pine forests around the world （Finland， Yunnan， Japan's woodlands）。 The book gets repetitive at times， and sometimes I wish Tsing would dive deeper into the dynamics of the Oregon foragers， buyers， and sellers。 Though Tsing makes it clear from the beginning that she is not presenting a tidy argument or a deep ethnographic study。 The book is impressive for its breadth of ideas and scope。 。。。more
Ted Eliason
，
Intelligence narrowly applied can be individually remunerative and lucrative。 But within these same fear-mongering incentives towards narrowness （or professional focus） the world is defined by intelligent-sounding stupidity， hubris， and tragedies of the commons。 When we all become Hikikomori we lose the wealth of the world。
Jaakko
，
Vaikea kirja antaa tähtiä。 Ensimmäinen puolikas herätti paljon ajatuksia mm。 kapitalismista ja markkinoista hyvin erilaisilta kulmilta kuin olen itse aiemmin ajatellut， ja sitä luki innolla ehkäpä 4 tai jopa 5 tähden arvoisesti。Sen sijaan jälkimmäinen puolikas keskittyi liikaa sieniin， metsätalouteen ja esimerkiksi genomiikkaan ollakseen kovin kiinnostava - tai ongelma oli se， ettei se keskittynyt mihinkään vaan poukkoili eri tasoilla ja paikoissa。 Tämä oli toki kirjoittajan eksplisiittinen vali Vaikea kirja antaa tähtiä。 Ensimmäinen puolikas herätti paljon ajatuksia mm。 kapitalismista ja markkinoista hyvin erilaisilta kulmilta kuin olen itse aiemmin ajatellut， ja sitä luki innolla ehkäpä 4 tai jopa 5 tähden arvoisesti。Sen sijaan jälkimmäinen puolikas keskittyi liikaa sieniin， metsätalouteen ja esimerkiksi genomiikkaan ollakseen kovin kiinnostava - tai ongelma oli se， ettei se keskittynyt mihinkään vaan poukkoili eri tasoilla ja paikoissa。 Tämä oli toki kirjoittajan eksplisiittinen valintakin， mutta ei valitettavasti kantanut loppuun asti。 Ehkä tästä jäi kuitenkin ajatuksia kytemään， jotka - sienten lailla - putkahtavat pintaan jossain toisessa yhteydessä。 。。。more
Jamie
，
This book wasn't at all what I expected， but in a good way！ Of course I expected to read about mushrooms。 But what I got was a sociological look at how mushrooms affect culture。 I got a deep lesson in capitalism and international trade both corporate and non corporate。 Further， I got a look into the hidden world of Asian Americans both integrated into American culture， and holding fast to their traditional cultures。 This is a fascinating read！ This book wasn't at all what I expected， but in a good way！ Of course I expected to read about mushrooms。 But what I got was a sociological look at how mushrooms affect culture。 I got a deep lesson in capitalism and international trade both corporate and non corporate。 Further， I got a look into the hidden world of Asian Americans both integrated into American culture， and holding fast to their traditional cultures。 This is a fascinating read！ 。。。more
Justin
，
really fascinating - I think Tsing's argument about the ways modernist capitalism tries to systematically generalize/rationalize/standardize things rather than pay attention to differences in specific in each instance is fascinating， and I will def try to apply her mode of analysis in other situations in my lifewish she had argued more forcefully for a world beyond capitalism - a socialist world - but ultimately I'm glad there's a book making ecosocialist observations in the bestseller list really fascinating - I think Tsing's argument about the ways modernist capitalism tries to systematically generalize/rationalize/standardize things rather than pay attention to differences in specific in each instance is fascinating， and I will def try to apply her mode of analysis in other situations in my lifewish she had argued more forcefully for a world beyond capitalism - a socialist world - but ultimately I'm glad there's a book making ecosocialist observations in the bestseller list 。。。more
Nicole Sweeney
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3。5 stars？ I'm not sure， because I have a lot of problems with the writing of this book but I think the overall project of this book is incredibly compelling。 The ideas are strong enough that I am inclined to overlook my issues with the execution。This was our March Nonfiction Book Club pick。 Full discussion on YouTube: https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=p2Lbtk4_RvE 3。5 stars？ I'm not sure， because I have a lot of problems with the writing of this book but I think the overall project of this book is incredibly compelling。 The ideas are strong enough that I am inclined to overlook my issues with the execution。This was our March Nonfiction Book Club pick。 Full discussion on YouTube: https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=p2Lbtk4_RvE 。。。more
Tara
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Discussion of so many issues I'm interested in - but just couldn't get into this book。 3。5 Discussion of so many issues I'm interested in - but just couldn't get into this book。 3。5 。。。more
Yong Feng
，
Tsing traces the journey of matsutake around the world: from how the history of logging and misguided forestry practices created conditions for its growth in Oregon’s ruined industrial forests， to the independent Southeast Asia pickers who forage for it， the markets that translate it into a commodity that is traded， and its final destination as gifts in Japan， as well as a few other diversions。 Each of these stages is entangled in the spaces between capitalism and the commons， human and nonhuman Tsing traces the journey of matsutake around the world: from how the history of logging and misguided forestry practices created conditions for its growth in Oregon’s ruined industrial forests， to the independent Southeast Asia pickers who forage for it， the markets that translate it into a commodity that is traded， and its final destination as gifts in Japan， as well as a few other diversions。 Each of these stages is entangled in the spaces between capitalism and the commons， human and nonhuman， and local and global。 Tsing’s background is in anthropology and she draws many insightful comparisons between matsutake ecology and our world， but her decision to structure the book as a loose collection of topics in the spirit of her subject matter also means that there is no clear conclusion on what “life in capitalist ruins” actually means for us （as the title promises）。 。。。more
Steve Bowbrick
，
What a thrill。 A really bracing， surprising， encouraging read。Damaged ecologies， environments fucked up by industrial extraction and farming， turn out to be ideal for the Matsutake mushrooms that have become a global delicacy。 The fungi love the traumatised landscapes left by commercial forestry - and they contribute to healing them。These mushrooms can't be farmed and the communities that have grown up around the forests where they grow have learnt how to work with the trees and the fungi to pro What a thrill。 A really bracing， surprising， encouraging read。Damaged ecologies， environments fucked up by industrial extraction and farming， turn out to be ideal for the Matsutake mushrooms that have become a global delicacy。 The fungi love the traumatised landscapes left by commercial forestry - and they contribute to healing them。These mushrooms can't be farmed and the communities that have grown up around the forests where they grow have learnt how to work with the trees and the fungi to promote growth and what the author calls 'world making'。 They're misunderstood， harassed and marginalised， sometimes kicked off the land and prevented from making a living。 It's an anthropologist's view， full of new language - language that finds a way to represent capital， trade， work， community， ecology， love and nutrition。 Really wonderful。 。。。more
Layla
，
What a skillful display of interconnectedness。 I’ll be thinking about this as well as trying to think ~like~ this for a long time to come。 “Practice the art of noticing。”
Susan
，
About 50% of this book is really too difficult for me to understand！ I enjoyed the parts about the Matusake mushrooms， the gatherers， the ecosystems， but the economics is beyond me。 Still， I plowed through it and gleaned some new understandings and stretched my consciousness。
Sab Cornelius
，
I'd usually write a whole review about this on my book blog， but this book just kinda left me brain-stunned and will take awhile to process。 Don't get me wrong， the book was overall fascinating。 I love fungi and I like the sort of secretive yet popular concept of the buy/selling around them - but I'm not at all an economist and I don't understand the heavy， more complicated parts of capitalism。 Some parts of the book about capitalism would either make my eyes glaze over， have to go back and re-r I'd usually write a whole review about this on my book blog， but this book just kinda left me brain-stunned and will take awhile to process。 Don't get me wrong， the book was overall fascinating。 I love fungi and I like the sort of secretive yet popular concept of the buy/selling around them - but I'm not at all an economist and I don't understand the heavy， more complicated parts of capitalism。 Some parts of the book about capitalism would either make my eyes glaze over， have to go back and re-read/research what I didn't understand， or just kinda left me wondering overall。 I'd love for an actual economist to ELI5 some of those parts to me， or get their take on the book and what it means to them。 Otherwise， it's fascinating， especially since previously I had known about Matsutake mushrooms， but never in this depth of just how sought after they are and how essential they are to environments， or how they can tell us about an environment。 The book definitely is a breakdown of 'the relation between capitalist destruction and collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes' - and how mushrooms existed well before us， will exist well after us， and how they may be able to save us and nature。I do also appreciate the author diving into the culture and history around mushroom harvesting， the cultures that started it/brought their abilities around the world， and even the racism that comes with capitalism， including niche subjects like specific species of mushroom。 。。。more
Lisa
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A compelling exploration of matsutake mushroom chains。 I like the framework of tracing the mushroom globally， I think Tsing is yearning for an intervention into the form of ethnography and I wanted more creativity there。
Yang Shanshan
，
This ethnographic research depicts a picture of matsutake business between Oregan and Japan。 First of all， it’s interesting to approach an ‘assemblage’ way。 In this project， humans are connected with nonhumans which form the scope of the production and consumption of matsutake。 It looks into a broad history of the mushroom industry through micro-level experiences illustrating the salvage accumulation of how non-capitalist is turned into capitalism。 In addition， matsutake as gifts and commodities This ethnographic research depicts a picture of matsutake business between Oregan and Japan。 First of all， it’s interesting to approach an ‘assemblage’ way。 In this project， humans are connected with nonhumans which form the scope of the production and consumption of matsutake。 It looks into a broad history of the mushroom industry through micro-level experiences illustrating the salvage accumulation of how non-capitalist is turned into capitalism。 In addition， matsutake as gifts and commodities is also a case confronting regular alienation。 Capitalist alienation refers to the condition that commodities are produced with little connection to where they were produced。 But matsutake is a more complex example in two parts。 For the supply chain， in patches of livelihoods， the mushroom hunters survive war trauma and negotiate working relationships with U。S。 citizenship。 They view matsutake as trophies and part of themselves to fulfill their personal value of freedom。 It shows not only the diversity of an industry but also a supplement of ‘assembly line’。 In other words， capital doesn’t always successfully alienate workers instead workers can accomplish their own goals which have nothing to do with capitalism。 For consumption， since matsutake has been a traditional gift in Japan for a long time， the product of matsutake not only possesses the property of exchange value or use-value。 More importantly， it makes relations and reputations。 It’s interesting to assert that ‘matsutake become extension of the person （pp。 123）。’ From my point of view， it shows， on the one hand， one’s taste of the precarious pieces of stuff; on the other hand， the giver’s veneration to someone。 However， the discussion of gifts may raise another question that How can we distinguish matsutake as gift from conspicuous consumption that illustrates social status？ Can high-quality matsutake be a symbol for the upper class with wealth， reputation， and good taste？ 。。。more
♡ Fen ♡
，
I don't really have the energy to write a full review for this book honestly。It wasn't great。It wasn't terrible。It was precisely what it needed to be but it certainly wasn't riveting or shocking。 Not my type。 I don't really have the energy to write a full review for this book honestly。It wasn't great。It wasn't terrible。It was precisely what it needed to be but it certainly wasn't riveting or shocking。 Not my type。 。。。more
Grace Kwan
，
（i don't normally post reviews but I wrote about this book for a class so here！ tldr this is just me being the "thank you for changing my life" meme to tsing）My PDF copies of the chapters from The Mushroom at the End of the World are riddled with long highlighted passages and near-indecipherable notes I typed in the margins in the throes of ethnography-induced enthusiasm， excited about potential applications toward my own research， methodology， and writing。 But the thing that strikes me most abo （i don't normally post reviews but I wrote about this book for a class so here！ tldr this is just me being the "thank you for changing my life" meme to tsing）My PDF copies of the chapters from The Mushroom at the End of the World are riddled with long highlighted passages and near-indecipherable notes I typed in the margins in the throes of ethnography-induced enthusiasm， excited about potential applications toward my own research， methodology， and writing。 But the thing that strikes me most about the book is not the theory， nor the ethnography。 It’s the story。 Besides this book， I have read few pieces of anthropological writing that could make me feel the way a piece of non-scholarly literature does — could fill me with emotions， send my mind reeling with a well-placed metaphor， draw shapes around lives that changed not only the way I thought about the world （because， naturally， this is a common experience reading social scientific literature） but also the way I thought about myself and my craft。 Because this book did transform the landscapes of science and ethnography and writing in my mind。Sociological and anthropological literature often tells stories， but they are usually stories about subjects moving through cultures placed under a magnifying glass — the story of matsutake in this book is a different kind of story， one that inserts the reader into a crossroads of ideas， locations， and people and allows us to muddle through the mess along with the ethnographer unfolding global histories from a forest in the US Pacific Northwest， making the insights that we extract from these entanglements feel all the more earned， as if we were the foragers in the story。 When I started reading The Mushroom at the End of the World， I was also making my way through readings for a directed reading course with my supervisor， where I’d have to write an essay synthesizing the readings at the end of the semester。 The Mushroom at the End of the World inspired me to think about my research and writing in ways I never considered before。 I was fascinated with the way the book weaves a story out of research — instead of treating quotes and tales and people as data points to be picked apart and coagulated into a social scientist’s account of a certain phenomenon， the story functions as the ethnography and the research。 The stories that people told， such as those about the ghosts haunting Open Ticket， were not brushed off as superstition but accounted for as a part of the world we inhabit， and in the process， became a crucial medium through which we could witness the material and transnational consequences of US imperial warfare。 These stories weren’t used as cultural objects or illustrations of sociological concepts or texts for analysis — they embodied the ethnography。As I embark on the task of thinking through and writing toward my own research， this text has already begun to change and guide the directions I take。 The funny thing is that I entered my program in September with one research question and a nebulous idea of how I was going to go about answering the question。 Now， the questions have only multiplied and the array of methodologies available to me vastly expanded。 Like the “flushes of mushrooms that come up after a rain，" I’ve come to see the possibilities afforded by entanglements and coexistences of ideas， but rather than finding them intimidating， I’m filled with a sense of unknowing that garners more excitement than fear （granted， the only difference between fear and excitement is our interpretation of the stimulus — what we attribute to the source）。 。。。more
Angbeen
，
this was ok - as many people have said， the idea of this being a description of a sort of 'post-capitalist' way of life is wrong and misleading。 you can't argue that this book details a form of accumulation outside of capitalism when it very much feeds into global commodity chains， and the conditions for much of this accumulation are directly a result of capitalism。 that said， as an anthropological account， this book was pretty fascinating。 a little hard to read at times because it doesn't feel this was ok - as many people have said， the idea of this being a description of a sort of 'post-capitalist' way of life is wrong and misleading。 you can't argue that this book details a form of accumulation outside of capitalism when it very much feeds into global commodity chains， and the conditions for much of this accumulation are directly a result of capitalism。 that said， as an anthropological account， this book was pretty fascinating。 a little hard to read at times because it doesn't feel like there's a very clear direction or thesis， but not too bad all around。 。。。more
Erika
，
Others have made the same point I would make about this book more eloquently than I can at the moment。 It has an interesting premise and some really poignant vignettes （although Tsing seems oddly bewitched by these far right mushroom collectors）。 However， the book leaves me highly unclear what the exact argument about 'pericapitalism' or 'salvage capitalism' or 'the ruins' might really mean。 I guess this is part of the point - that theory in the aftermath （？） of capitalism has to avoid modernity Others have made the same point I would make about this book more eloquently than I can at the moment。 It has an interesting premise and some really poignant vignettes （although Tsing seems oddly bewitched by these far right mushroom collectors）。 However， the book leaves me highly unclear what the exact argument about 'pericapitalism' or 'salvage capitalism' or 'the ruins' might really mean。 I guess this is part of the point - that theory in the aftermath （？） of capitalism has to avoid modernity's penchant for "scaling" - but I really didn't understand most of the points being made here and I'm not entirely certain the author did either。 。。。more
Molly
，
I。。。really did not know what I was getting myself into with this book。 When I first saw it on the shelf， it looked like the type of thing I would never get around to actually reading。 When I read the introduction， I was pleased to learn that it might be less academic than I expected， more interdisciplinary ethnography than heavy theoretical musings on capitalism。 In practice， it was both and then some。 Parts of the book were absolutely fascinating--my favorites were the sections detailing the li I。。。really did not know what I was getting myself into with this book。 When I first saw it on the shelf， it looked like the type of thing I would never get around to actually reading。 When I read the introduction， I was pleased to learn that it might be less academic than I expected， more interdisciplinary ethnography than heavy theoretical musings on capitalism。 In practice， it was both and then some。 Parts of the book were absolutely fascinating--my favorites were the sections detailing the lives of mushroom pickers in Oregon， through which Tsing made some very interesting points about how groups of people and non-people navigate precarity through their shifting "assemblages"。 Other parts were probably fascinating but I don't understand them well enough to say for sure--for example， if the chapters on Japanese political economy had come at the beginning rather than the middle， I probably would not have kept reading。 But the overarching points about how capitalism requires non-capitalism to function， and what this means for a future where capitalism as we know it is itself precarious， were overall interesting and well made。Tsing does a really good job of connecting ideas while acknowledging divisions， and of seeking hope in a damaged and precarious future while acknowledging that losing the ideas of progress and stability is hard and sad and scary。 This book is interesting in conversation with Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom， Scientific Knowledge， and the Teachings of Plants。 Tsing takes a very different， in many ways bleaker， angle， examining how humans and non-humans can live together neither fully inside or outside of capitalist systems。 It's another， complementary take on the bigger-picture question of how we can look to the natural world for guidance on how to live in the ruins capitalism creates。 。。。more
Johnk
，
Great book！ An entangled （in a good way） look at life at one edge of 21st century capitalism; ethnography， biology， sociology， and economics。 data dense， but very readable。
Ann Samford
，
Matsutake mushroom。 The book wandered around and was a bit disjointed。 i’d consider giving it a much lower rating， however， it changed my thinking about pine forests and disturbance in forest lands and what our （people’s） role should be in maintaining the forest。 Should we let it go wild or should we manage it？ If we’ve eliminated （or are trying to eliminate fire from our forest should we do the work that fire did in the past to keep the pine forest open。 Coincidentally I am reading Longleaf far Matsutake mushroom。 The book wandered around and was a bit disjointed。 i’d consider giving it a much lower rating， however， it changed my thinking about pine forests and disturbance in forest lands and what our （people’s） role should be in maintaining the forest。 Should we let it go wild or should we manage it？ If we’ve eliminated （or are trying to eliminate fire from our forest should we do the work that fire did in the past to keep the pine forest open。 Coincidentally I am reading Longleaf far as the eye can see at the same time。。。 。。。more
Courtney Ayling
，
The rich knowledge surrounding the Matsutake mushroom （both social and scientific） in this book was humbling to read; especially in learning that the commercialisation of it is almost impossible。 The comparisons made between the history of Japanese mushroom picking and western capitalism really highlighted the lack of understanding that capitalist societies hold regarding natural resources - the referrals to indigenous knowledge sustaining woodlands for thousands of years further supports these The rich knowledge surrounding the Matsutake mushroom （both social and scientific） in this book was humbling to read; especially in learning that the commercialisation of it is almost impossible。 The comparisons made between the history of Japanese mushroom picking and western capitalism really highlighted the lack of understanding that capitalist societies hold regarding natural resources - the referrals to indigenous knowledge sustaining woodlands for thousands of years further supports these points。 My favourite features of this book however were the pockets of mycological knowledge distributed throughout; concisely explained physiological features of fungi， the ecology between pine forest and mycorrhizae， and how/when to forage mushrooms （in Japan）。If you want to geek out about mushrooms whilst learning more about the pitfalls of capitalism， this might be the book for you！ 🍄 。。。more
Bridget Bonaparte
，
I really like this book but I have pretty conflicting thoughts （this is long。。gonna start a blog and stop doing this）。 It was so interesting the way she weaves different forms of knowledge together here。 I learned a lot about ecology， forests， industrial history， and of course mushrooms。 All of that was great—better than great— but I did take issue with her economic analysis; it’s kind of a shame that she places this earlier in the book because it made it hard to get back into a receptive headsp I really like this book but I have pretty conflicting thoughts （this is long。。gonna start a blog and stop doing this）。 It was so interesting the way she weaves different forms of knowledge together here。 I learned a lot about ecology， forests， industrial history， and of course mushrooms。 All of that was great—better than great— but I did take issue with her economic analysis; it’s kind of a shame that she places this earlier in the book because it made it hard to get back into a receptive headspace。 。。。more
Jasun Chelat
，
brb tattooing a mushroom on my face
Katie Chua
，
incredibly fascinating premise of a book， but i have no idea， for the life of me， a reason for why she organized it the way she did。 is it to represent the patches or assemblages she talked about so much？ either way， i did find it a bit hard to REALLY get into it， whereas if she did a standard in-depth monograph， it might have been easier to connect and follow。 however， the ideas and theories she raises are super interesting。 i have learned an astounding amount of information on mushrooms。 enjoy incredibly fascinating premise of a book， but i have no idea， for the life of me， a reason for why she organized it the way she did。 is it to represent the patches or assemblages she talked about so much？ either way， i did find it a bit hard to REALLY get into it， whereas if she did a standard in-depth monograph， it might have been easier to connect and follow。 however， the ideas and theories she raises are super interesting。 i have learned an astounding amount of information on mushrooms。 enjoyable。 。。。more
Garrett Peace
，
Great book though I think how long it took me to finish it speaks to how boring it can get。 Fascinating when Tsing writes about actual people， especially the Open Ticket community of mushroom pickers in Oregon， not so fascinating when she turns to economic theory。 In fact， I’d be interested in reading some critical responses to Tsing’s arguments there， as I rarely understood exactly what she was trying to say and some of her observations re: markets struck me as pretty basic。 That said， I do lik Great book though I think how long it took me to finish it speaks to how boring it can get。 Fascinating when Tsing writes about actual people， especially the Open Ticket community of mushroom pickers in Oregon， not so fascinating when she turns to economic theory。 In fact， I’d be interested in reading some critical responses to Tsing’s arguments there， as I rarely understood exactly what she was trying to say and some of her observations re: markets struck me as pretty basic。 That said， I do like where she takes the work done by Haraway， who is clearly a massive influence on both the form and content of this book。 Not sure how engaging this book would be to those who aren’t already familiar with Haraway and similar thinkers though。 。。。more
Brian
，