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The Golden Spruce

A True Story of Myth, Madness and Greed

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The Golden Spruce

Written by: John Vaillant
Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
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NATIONAL BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE GOVERNOR GENERAL'S LITERARY AWARD FOR NON-FICTION • WINNER OF THE WRITERS’ TRUST NON-FICTION PRIZE

The spellbinding true story of one man’s obsession and the destruction of a glorious natural wonder.

On a winter night in 1997, a British Columbia timber scout named Grant Hadwin committed an act of shocking violence in the mythic Queen Charlotte Islands. His victim was legendary: a unique 300-year-old Sitka spruce tree, fifty metres tall and covered with luminous golden needles.

In a bizarre environmental protest, Hadwin attacked the tree with a chainsaw. Two days later, it fell, horrifying an entire community. Not only was the golden spruce a scientific marvel and a tourist attraction, it was sacred to the Haida people and beloved by local loggers. Shortly after confessing to the crime, Hadwin disappeared under suspicious circumstances and is missing to this day.

As John Vaillant deftly braids together the strands of this thrilling mystery, he brings to life the ancient beauty of the coastal wilderness, the historical collision of Europeans and the Haida, and the harrowing world of logging—the most dangerous land-based job in North America. Environment Nature & Ecology Professionals & Academics Science Conservation Royalty
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Well written, well researched. Informative history that goes much deeper than I’d expected. One of the best audiobooks I’ve listened to.

Great story, great narrator

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Narrator doesn’t know how to pronounce husqvarna or other logging and Canadian terms and towns , otherwise it was fine. Book was mediocre

Was alright

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One of the best books I have read. Reads like prose. Should be taught and studied in school. Brilliant.

Fascinating, brilliant, heartbreaking

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This book has been recommended to me for years and it did not disappoint! It’s a wonderful and insightful history of BC told in such a way that makes it relatable.

A must listen

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Come for the story of the Golden Spruce and stay for the mesmerizing narration of multiple interwoven stories and history.

Riveting

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