The Overstory

The Overstory interweaves the stories of nine main characters whose lives become connected to trees and forests. The narrative spans multiple generations and locations across the United States.

In the mid-1800s, Jørgen Hoel plants six chestnuts on his Iowa farm. Only one survives a blight, and subsequent generations of Hoels photograph this tree monthly. The tradition continues until Nicholas Hoel, an art student, finds his family dead from a gas leak.

Olivia Vandergriff, a college student, experiences a near-death experience that leads her to join environmental activists in California. On her journey west, she meets Nicholas, and they join forces to protect old-growth forests.

Adam Appich, a psychology student, becomes involved with the activists while researching group behavior. Mimi Ma, an engineer, and Douglas Pavlicek, a Vietnam War veteran, also join the movement to save the redwoods.

Patricia Westerford, a dendrologist, faces ridicule for her theories about tree communication but later gains recognition for her groundbreaking research. Neelay Mehta, a computer programmer, creates a virtual world inspired by the complexity of forest ecosystems.

As the activists' efforts intensify, they resort to more extreme measures. Olivia, Nicholas, Adam, Mimi, and Douglas form a group that engages in eco-terrorism, burning logging equipment. During their final mission, an explosion kills Olivia.

The group disbands. Twenty years later, Douglas turns himself in to protect Mimi and identifies Adam as an accomplice. Adam, now a successful psychology professor, is arrested and sentenced to a lengthy prison term. Nicholas becomes a drifter, creating environmental art. Mimi changes her identity and becomes a therapist.

Neelay leaves his company and creates artificial intelligences to learn about Earth's biomes. Patricia continues her research and establishes a seed bank to preserve plant species. She is invited to speak at a conference of influential people, where she delivers a powerful message about saving the world, before taking her own life onstage. Nick continues to make art, and the novel finishes with the completion of an enormous natural sculpture that spells out the word "STILL" big enough to be seen from space.

Throughout the novel, the characters' stories intersect and diverge, mirroring the interconnected nature of forest ecosystems. Powers uses these human narratives to explore themes of environmental activism, the relationship between humans and nature, and the long-term impact of human actions on the natural world.

The Overstory challenges traditional notions of storytelling by giving equal importance to the lives of trees and forests. Reviewing the novel, Claire Miye Stanford noticed how the winding structure of the narratives mirrored "the story of the trees and the forest ecologies they create" and "the perspective of nonhuman nature, describing its lived experience closely and at length."{{Cite web |date=May 10, 2018 |title=Speaking for the Trees: Richard Powers's "The Overstory" |url=https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/speaking-for-the-trees-richard-powerss-the-overstory/ |access-date=February 11, 2025 |website=Los Angeles Review of Books}} Other researches have noted that, despite having a clear stance of environmentalism, the author still leaves room for moral and intellectual ambiguity, to avoid being overly polemic or ideological.{{Cite journal |last=Nordberg |first=Donald |date=January 2, 2024 |title=Enacting and exploring ideas in fiction: The Overstory and The Portable Veblen |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/14790726.2023.2222098?needAccess=true |journal=New Writing |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=73–93 |doi=10.1080/14790726.2023.2222098 |issn=1479-0726|hdl=10871/133472 |hdl-access=free }}

The novel's primary themes arise from its weaving narratives. Garrett Stewart from the University of Iowa writes that this woven structure adheres to Powers's argument that "all walks of life may lay themselves open to" environmental activism.{{Cite journal |last=Stewart |first=Garrett |date=January 1, 2021 |title=Organic Reformations in Richard Powers's The Overstory |url=https://direct.mit.edu/daed/article/150/1/160/94885/Organic-Reformations-in-Richard-Powers-s-The |journal=Daedalus |volume=150 |issue=1 |pages=160–177 |doi=10.1162/daed_a_01840 |issn=0011-5266|doi-access=free }}

Banaz Wirya Ali noted the novel's extensive inspiration from environmental movements, including ecofeminism and ecojustice.{{Cite journal |last=Ali |first=Banaz Wirya |date=October 31, 2024 |title=An Eco-Critical Study of Richard Power's The Overstory |url=https://jls.tu.edu.iq/index.php/JLS/article/view/1248 |journal=Journal of Language Studies|volume=8 |issue=10 |pages=346–361 |doi=10.25130/Lang.8.10.19 |issn=2663-9033|doi-access=free }}

The novel also makes extensive references to linguistic phenomena, both in humans and in trees. One character, Patricia Westerford, jeopardizes her career when she publishes research arguing that trees can communicate with each other through chemical signals. This is reflected in other instances where the etymology for certain words like "book" or "truth" came about through humanity's relationship with trees.{{Cite journal |last=Masiero |first=Pia |date=2020 |title="The tree is saying things in words before words": form as theme in Richard Powers' The Overstory |url=https://www.unive.it/pag/fileadmin/user_upload/dipartimenti/DSLCC/documenti/DEP/numeri/n41-42/13_Masiero.pdf |journal=Deportate, esuli, profughe }}

The novel features a diverse cast of characters, each with their own unique connection to trees and the environment:

• Douglas Pavlicek – a Vietnam War veteran who survives a crash landing by falling into a tree. He becomes an environmental activist but later works for the forest service. Douglas betrays the cause by turning in Adam, leading to the latter's conviction.
• Olivia Vandergriff – after a near-death experience, Olivia becomes deeply involved in radical environmentalism, particularly focused on saving redwoods. She dies in an act of arson committed by her group.
• Patricia Westerford – a hearing-impaired botanist who develops unconventional theories about plant consciousness and tree communication. She faces challenges in gaining acceptance from the scientific community for her groundbreaking work. The character was heavily inspired by the life and work of UBC forest ecologist Suzanne Simard.{{Cite web |last=Jabr |first=Ferris |date=December 2, 2020 |title=The Social Life of Forests |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/12/02/magazine/tree-communication-mycorrhiza.html |access-date=February 1, 2021 |website=The New York Times}}{{Cite web |last=Fabiani |first=Louise |date=2018 |title=It's Not the Trees That Need Saving: The Overstory (Review) |url=https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/magazine/entry/its_not_the_trees_that_need_saving/ |access-date=February 1, 2021 |website=Earth Island Journal}}{{cite web |last=Emily |first=Chan |date=May 1, 2021 |title=Do Trees Hold the Answer to Real Happiness? |url=https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/mother-trees |accessdate=June 21, 2021 |work=Vogue}} In the story, Westerford pens a popular science book, The Secret Forest, whose title alludes to real-world books such as The Hidden Life of Trees by German forester Peter Wohlleben and The Secret Life of Trees by British science writer Colin Tudge.{{Cite web |date=February 26, 2019 |title=Animism, Tree-consciousness, and the Religion of Life: Reflections on Richard Powers' The Overstory |url=https://www.humansandnature.org/animism-tree-consciousness-and-the-religion-of-life-reflections-on-richard-powers-the-overstory |access-date=December 1, 2021 |website=Center for Humans & Nature}}
• Adam Appich – an academic who joins the group of environmental activists. His father planted a tree before the birth of each of his children; as a child, Adam conflated the characteristics of each tree with his siblings. He is eventually arrested and sentenced to a lengthy prison term.
• Mimi Ma – an engineer who becomes an environmental activist alongside Douglas. They form a romantic relationship.
• Nicholas Hoel – an artist who comes from a long line of farmers and whose great-great-great grandfather planted a chestnut tree that survived blight for decades and enthralled the Hoel family for generations.
• Ray Brinkman and Dorothy Cazaly – a married couple. Dorothy contemplates leaving Ray but ultimately stays with him after he suffers a brain aneurysm, finding new meaning in their relationship and connection to nature.
• Neelay Mehta – the child of Indian immigrants to California who becomes paralyzed after falling from a tree. He becomes a computer programming marvel, eventually creating a series of video games called Mastery.

The Overstory received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. According to Book Marks, the novel received a "positive" consensus based on seventeen critics: nine "rave", five "positive", two "mixed", and one "pan".{{Cite web |title=The Overstory |url=https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/the-overstory/|access-date=January 16, 2024 |website=Book Marks}} On Books in the Media, the book attained a 4.27 out of 5 rating based on six critic reviews.{{Cite web |title=The Overstory Reviews |url=https://booksinthemedia.thebookseller.com/reviews/the-overstory |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211127181917/https://booksinthemedia.thebookseller.com/reviews/the-overstory |archive-date=November 27, 2021 |access-date=July 11, 2024 |website=Books in the Media}}

Major publications offered predominantly positive perspectives on the novel. In The New York Times, author Barbara Kingsolver praised its ambitious scope and intricate narrative structure, which she compared to the rings of a tree. Kingsolver particularly commended Powers's ability to weave together the lives of nine diverse characters through their connections to trees and the natural world, ultimately describing the work as a monumental achievement that challenges readers' relationship with nature.{{cite web |last1=Kingsolver |first1=Barbara |title=The Heroes of This Novel Are Centuries Old and 300 Feet Tall |website=The New York Times |date=April 9, 2018 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/books/review/overstory-richard-powers.html |access-date=February 11, 2025}} Similarly, author Ron Charles, in The Washington Post, provided an enthusiastic endorsement, declaring that the "ambitious novel soars up through the canopy of American literature and remakes the landscape of environmental fiction".{{cite web |last=Charles |first=Ron |author-link=Ron Charles (critic) |date=April 3, 2018 |title=The most exciting novel about trees you'll ever read |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/the-most-exciting-novel-about-trees-youll-ever-read/2018/04/03/bb388a4e-3686-11e8-8fd2-49fe3c675a89_story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230213101431/https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/the-most-exciting-novel-about-trees-youll-ever-read/2018/04/03/bb388a4e-3686-11e8-8fd2-49fe3c675a89_story.html |archive-date=February 13, 2023 |website=The Washington Post}}

Reviews in The Guardian reflected the novel's impact on critics. Writer Benjamin Markovits lauded the book as an "astonishing performance", praising Powers's ambitious narrative structure and profound exploration of humanity's relationship with trees. While noting the novel's vast scope, Markovits emphasized how Powers successfully maintained a compelling and cohesive storyline, weaving together multiple characters' lives to underscore the interconnectedness of all life. He particularly praised Powers's ability to generate "narrative momentum out of thin air, again and again".{{cite web |last1=Markovits |first1=Benjamin |date=March 23, 2018 |title=The Overstory by Richard Powers review – the wisdom of trees |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/mar/23/the-overstory-by-richard-powers-review |website=TheGuardian.com}} However, another Guardian reviewer criticized the work as an "increasingly absurd melodrama".{{Cite news |last=Jordison |first=Sam |date=December 18, 2018 |title=How could The Overstory be considered a book of the year? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/dec/18/how-could-the-overstory-be-considered-a-book-of-the-year-richard-powers |access-date=August 17, 2020 |work=The Guardian}}

The Atlantic characterized the work as "darkly optimistic" in its perspective that while humanity might be doomed, trees would endure.{{cite web |last1=Nathaniel |first1=Rich |date=May 11, 2018 |title=The Novel That Asks, 'What Went Wrong with Mankind?' |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/06/richard-powers-the-overstory/559106/ |access-date=August 9, 2018 |website=The Atlantic}}

In Bookmarks magazine, which synthesizes professional reviews, the novel received a {{rating|4|5}} rating. The publication's critical consensus noted that, with the exception of the Scotsman{{'}}s criticism of the book's length and verbosity, reviewers praised Powers's expansive vision and his profound message about humanity's relationship with and ongoing damage to the natural world.{{Cite web |title=The Overstory |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+Overstory.-a0556468787 |access-date=January 14, 2023 |website=Bookmarks}} Library Journal described the work as "a deep meditation on the irreparable psychic damage that manifests in our unmitigated separation from nature".Finnell, Joshua. "The Overstory [review]". Library Journal 143, no. 2 (February 2018): 96. Education Research Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed August 21, 2018).

The Los Angeles Review of Books observed that "the human lives are only the novel's 'understory'", arguing that Powers successfully makes "a story of the considerably extended timeline of the trees, not the humans".{{Cite web |date=May 10, 2018 |title=Speaking for the Trees: Richard Powers's "The Overstory" |url=https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/speaking-for-the-trees-richard-powerss-the-overstory/ |access-date=February 11, 2025 |website=Los Angeles Review of Books}} Critics noted the work's formal innovation, with the Kenyon Review stating it "demonstrates that a novel doesn't have to come down to human emotion" and represents "an argument that Wood's obsession with character... is actually a limitation".{{Cite web |last=Rashid |first=Aatif |date=May 14, 2019 |title=On Richard Powers's The Overstory « Kenyon Review Blog |url=https://kenyonreview.org/2019/05/on-richard-powerss-the-overstory/ |access-date=February 11, 2025 |website=The Kenyon Review}}

Some reviewers questioned the balance between didacticism and narrative. While acknowledging its environmental urgency, The Spinoff noted uncertainty about whether the novel ultimately functioned as "a work of exultation or of mourning", reflecting broader debates about climate fiction's tonal challenges.{{Cite web |last=Wardell |first=Susan |date=April 9, 2020 |title=A review of The Overstory, a knockout novel that speaks for the trees |url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/books/09-04-2020/a-review-of-the-overstory-a-knockout-novel-that-speaks-for-the-trees |access-date=February 11, 2025 |website=The Spinoff}}

The novel sparked significant public discussion about humanity's environmental responsibilities, with readers frequently describing it as life-changing in its ecological perspective. Its 2019 Pulitzer Prize win brought mainstream attention to ecological fiction, though some general readers found its complex structure challenging. The work became a touchstone in climate activism circles, with environmental organizations using excerpts for advocacy campaigns.

The Overstory has been credited with revitalizing the ecofiction genre and environmentally focused narratives. One article referred to it as an "interdisciplinary" novel, influenced by Donna Harraway's idea of "speculative fabulation". Rather than focusing on a single catastrophic event, The Overstory emphasizes the distributed, multi-scaled processes that contribute to ecocide.{{Cite journal |last=Meinen |first=Lisanne |last2=Yao |first2=Kaixuan |last3=Herforth |first3=Karlijn |date=October 1, 2019 |title=Reading Richard Powers' The Overstory: 'treeing' the issue of interdisciplinary knowledge |url=https://junctionsjournal.org/articles/10.33391/jgjh.59 |journal=Junctions: Graduate Journal of the Humanities |volume=4 |issue=2 |doi=10.33391/jgjh.59 |issn=2468-8282|doi-access=free }}

Awards

• 2018 Man Booker Prize shortlist{{Cite web |date=April 5, 2018 |title=The Overstory {{!}} The Booker Prizes |url=https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/books/the-overstory |access-date=February 11, 2025 |website=thebookerprizes.com}}
• 2018 Grand Prix de Littérature Américaine winner{{cite web |url=https://www.livreshebdo.fr/article/richard-powers-laureat-du-grand-prix-de-litterature-americaine-2018 |title=Richard Powers lauréat du Grand prix de littérature américaine 2018 |work=Libres Hebdo |language=fr |author=Nicolas Turcev |date=November 12, 2018 |access-date=November 12, 2018}}
• 2019 2019 PEN/Jean Stein Book Award finalist{{Cite web|url=https://pen.org/2019finalists/|title=Announcing the 2019 PEN America Literary Awards Finalists|date=January 15, 2019|website=PEN America|access-date=March 13, 2019}}
• 2019 2019 PEN/Faulkner Award finalist{{Cite web|url=https://www.penfaulkner.org/2019/04/29/announcing-the-2019-pen-faulkner-award-winner/|title=Announcing the 2019 PEN/Faulkner Award Winner {{!}} The PEN/Faulkner Foundation|last=penfaulkner|language=en-US|access-date=August 14, 2019}}
• 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
• 2020 William Dean Howells Medal

Honors

• The novel is #24 on The New York Times' 100 Best Books of the 21st Century list.{{cite web |date=July 8, 2024 |title=The 100 Best Books of the 21st Century |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/books/best-books-21st-century.html |access-date=July 16, 2024 |website=The New York Times}}

In February 2021, it was reported that Netflix was developing a television adaptation of the novel with David Benioff, D.B. Weiss, and Hugh Jackman executive-producing.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2021/02/the-overstory-series-adaptation-netflix-david-benioff-db-weiss-hugh-jackman-1234691992/|title='The Overstory' Series Adaptation in Works at Netflix from David Benioff, D.B. Weiss & Hugh Jackman|work=Deadline Hollywood|first=Nellie|last=Andreeva|date=February 11, 2021|accessdate=February 11, 2021}}

• [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08p1szt Richard Powers and nature writing] Open Book, Alex Clark interviews Richard Powers, 0:00-12 min, BBC Radio 4 podcast, August 28, 2018, accessed September 2, 2018.

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Category:English-language novels

Category:Novels by Richard Powers

Category:2018 American novels

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Category:Environmental fiction books

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Category:Novels about talking trees

Category:Anthropomorphic trees

Category:Climate change novels

Category:Pulitzer Prize for Fiction–winning works