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The World Beneath Our Feet

The Hidden Life of Soil and Why It Matters to Us All

Hardcover
$30.00 US
6-1/8"W x 9-1/4"H (15.6 x 23.5 cm) | 18 oz (519 g) | 12 per carton
On sale Sep 29, 2026 | 256 Pages | 9780593978320
Grades 9-12 + AP/IB
Sales rights: US,OpnMkt(no EU/CAN)

A vivid tour into the subterranean that encourages us to look downwards, revealing how the earth's most biodiverse frontier sustains all life above the soil surface

The ground beneath us hums with a staggering abundance of winding roots, interconnecting fungal networks, wriggling creatures, and mind-blowing microbial life. This hidden ecosystem is the single most biodiverse habitat on the planet. Over half of all the Earth's species exist underfoot, where decaying matter is transformed into new life; just a handful of soil can contain an entire world. Without soil, there would be no life as we know it—and yet we rarely take the time to know the countless lives happening below.

In The World Beneath Our Feet, soil ecologist Frank Ashwood dives deep into this precious ecosystem, spanning the globe from the frozen landscape of Greenland to the black soil deposits of the Amazon and the Eurasian Steppe, while also examining the jaw-dropping evolutionary adaptations that make lives very alien from our own possible. Unearthing soil layers one at a time, Ashwood reveals every sublayer to be a distinct macrocosm, teeming with organisms essential to our planet's wellbeing. Supported by interviews with global soil biologists, as well as his own expert research, Ashwood shows us how life at a microscopic scale impacts us all.

Powerfully illuminating the dark depths of the earth, and accompanied by the author's own up-close photography, which magnifies and reveals creatures only millimeters long, The World Beneath Our Feet opens our eyes to the hidden and wondrous world of soil—perhaps the greatest unexplored frontier on our planet.
“This is a thrilling and delightful book. It opens a treasure chest of fascinating insights into our most neglected ecosystem.”—George Monbiot, author of Feral

“Vital, brilliant, wholly absorbing—this rich weave of soil science and stories that connect us with the tiny creatures we rarely see is as diverse and finely tuned as the life of the soil itself. It is a masterpiece of science writing, and a subject that is the most important of all to our own survival.”—Isabella Tree, co-author of The Book of Wilding

“This book has massive, understated charm. I used merely to like earthworms. Now I truly admire them. Ashwood has made soil science enchanting.”—Noreen Masud, author of A Flat Place

“If there’s one thing we’re going to need in the future, it’s healthy soil. Terrestrial life depends on it. We find ourselves at a critical juncture in our history, and what we do now will determine our survival. I sincerely hope we heed the message of this significant book. . . . Quite simply magnificent.”—George McGavin, Oxford University Museum of Natural History

“A fascinating journey into the hidden life of soil and its vital importance for people and the planet . . . Engaging and full of surprises, it will transform the way you see the ground beneath your feet and is a must read for anyone interested in the natural world.”—Richard Bardgett, CBE, Lancaster University
© Helen Rees
Frank Ashwood is a soil ecologist who studies biological diversity and forest soil sustainability, with a PhD in environmental management. Based in New Zealand, his macrophotography of microorganisms has been featured in The New York Times and The Guardian. This is his first book. View titles by Frank Ashwood
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About

A vivid tour into the subterranean that encourages us to look downwards, revealing how the earth's most biodiverse frontier sustains all life above the soil surface

The ground beneath us hums with a staggering abundance of winding roots, interconnecting fungal networks, wriggling creatures, and mind-blowing microbial life. This hidden ecosystem is the single most biodiverse habitat on the planet. Over half of all the Earth's species exist underfoot, where decaying matter is transformed into new life; just a handful of soil can contain an entire world. Without soil, there would be no life as we know it—and yet we rarely take the time to know the countless lives happening below.

In The World Beneath Our Feet, soil ecologist Frank Ashwood dives deep into this precious ecosystem, spanning the globe from the frozen landscape of Greenland to the black soil deposits of the Amazon and the Eurasian Steppe, while also examining the jaw-dropping evolutionary adaptations that make lives very alien from our own possible. Unearthing soil layers one at a time, Ashwood reveals every sublayer to be a distinct macrocosm, teeming with organisms essential to our planet's wellbeing. Supported by interviews with global soil biologists, as well as his own expert research, Ashwood shows us how life at a microscopic scale impacts us all.

Powerfully illuminating the dark depths of the earth, and accompanied by the author's own up-close photography, which magnifies and reveals creatures only millimeters long, The World Beneath Our Feet opens our eyes to the hidden and wondrous world of soil—perhaps the greatest unexplored frontier on our planet.

Praise

“This is a thrilling and delightful book. It opens a treasure chest of fascinating insights into our most neglected ecosystem.”—George Monbiot, author of Feral

“Vital, brilliant, wholly absorbing—this rich weave of soil science and stories that connect us with the tiny creatures we rarely see is as diverse and finely tuned as the life of the soil itself. It is a masterpiece of science writing, and a subject that is the most important of all to our own survival.”—Isabella Tree, co-author of The Book of Wilding

“This book has massive, understated charm. I used merely to like earthworms. Now I truly admire them. Ashwood has made soil science enchanting.”—Noreen Masud, author of A Flat Place

“If there’s one thing we’re going to need in the future, it’s healthy soil. Terrestrial life depends on it. We find ourselves at a critical juncture in our history, and what we do now will determine our survival. I sincerely hope we heed the message of this significant book. . . . Quite simply magnificent.”—George McGavin, Oxford University Museum of Natural History

“A fascinating journey into the hidden life of soil and its vital importance for people and the planet . . . Engaging and full of surprises, it will transform the way you see the ground beneath your feet and is a must read for anyone interested in the natural world.”—Richard Bardgett, CBE, Lancaster University

Author

© Helen Rees
Frank Ashwood is a soil ecologist who studies biological diversity and forest soil sustainability, with a PhD in environmental management. Based in New Zealand, his macrophotography of microorganisms has been featured in The New York Times and The Guardian. This is his first book. View titles by Frank Ashwood

Rights

Available for sale exclusive:
•     Guam
•     Minor Outl.Ins.
•     North Mariana
•     Philippines
•     Puerto Rico
•     Samoa,American
•     US Virgin Is.
•     USA

Available for sale non-exclusive:
•     Afghanistan
•     Aland Islands
•     Albania
•     Algeria
•     Andorra
•     Angola
•     Antarctica
•     Argentina
•     Armenia
•     Aruba
•     Azerbaijan
•     Bahrain
•     Belarus
•     Benin
•     Bhutan
•     Bolivia
•     Bonaire, Saba
•     Bosnia Herzeg.
•     Bouvet Island
•     Brazil
•     Burkina Faso
•     Burundi
•     Cambodia
•     Cape Verde
•     Centr.Afr.Rep.
•     Chad
•     Chile
•     China
•     Colombia
•     Comoro Is.
•     Congo
•     Cook Islands
•     Costa Rica
•     Cuba
•     Curacao
•     Dem. Rep. Congo
•     Djibouti
•     Dominican Rep.
•     Ecuador
•     Egypt
•     El Salvador
•     Equatorial Gui.
•     Eritrea
•     Ethiopia
•     Faroe Islands
•     Fren.Polynesia
•     French Guinea
•     Gabon
•     Georgia
•     Greenland
•     Guadeloupe
•     Guatemala
•     Guinea Republic
•     Guinea-Bissau
•     Haiti
•     Heard/McDon.Isl
•     Honduras
•     Hong Kong
•     Iceland
•     Indonesia
•     Iran
•     Israel
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•     Laos
•     Lebanon
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•     Liechtenstein
•     Macau
•     Macedonia
•     Madagascar
•     Maldives
•     Mali
•     Marshall island
•     Martinique
•     Mauritania
•     Mayotte
•     Mexico
•     Micronesia
•     Moldavia
•     Monaco
•     Mongolia
•     Montenegro
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•     Nepal
•     New Caledonia
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•     North Korea
•     Norway
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•     Panama
•     Paraguay
•     Peru
•     Qatar
•     Reunion Island
•     Russian Fed.
•     Saint Martin
•     San Marino
•     SaoTome Princip
•     Saudi Arabia
•     Senegal
•     Serbia
•     Sint Maarten
•     South Korea
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•     St Barthelemy
•     St.Pier,Miquel.
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•     Switzerland
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•     Tadschikistan
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•     Tokelau Islands
•     Tunisia
•     Turkey
•     Turkmenistan
•     Ukraine
•     Unit.Arab Emir.
•     Uruguay
•     Uzbekistan
•     Vatican City
•     Venezuela
•     Vietnam
•     Wallis,Futuna
•     West Saharan
•     Yemen

Not available for sale:
•     Anguilla
•     Antigua/Barbuda
•     Australia
•     Austria
•     Bahamas
•     Bangladesh
•     Barbados
•     Belgium
•     Belize
•     Bermuda
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•     Brit.Ind.Oc.Ter
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•     Malaysia
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•     Montserrat
•     Mozambique
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•     Pitcairn Islnds
•     Poland
•     Portugal
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•     Rwanda
•     S. Sandwich Ins
•     Seychelles
•     Sierra Leone
•     Singapore
•     Slovakia
•     Slovenia
•     Solomon Islands
•     Somalia
•     South Africa
•     Spain
•     Sri Lanka
•     St. Helena
•     St. Lucia
•     St. Vincent
•     St.Chr.,Nevis
•     Sudan
•     Swaziland
•     Sweden
•     Tanzania
•     Tonga
•     Trinidad,Tobago
•     Turks&Caicos Is
•     Tuvalu
•     Uganda
•     United Kingdom
•     Vanuatu
•     Western Samoa
•     Zambia
•     Zimbabwe

Biodiversity Titles for Higher Education

The International Day for Biological Diversity is a UN-sanctioned day celebrated on May 22nd that aims to raise awareness on the importance of biodiversity and the need to protect against species loss. “First coined by Walter G. Rosen in 1985, biological diversity—or biodiversity, as it is more commonly called—is defined as the “variety of life

Read more