T. R. Shankar Raman likes to imagine he’s a writer turned wildlife scientist turned writer. His writing, emerging from close observations over the years and field experiences across India, evokes new and immersive perceptions of nature. His earlier books include a collection of his essays, The Wild Heart of India: Nature and Conservation in the City, the Country, and the Wild and Pillars of Life: Magnificent Trees of the Western Ghats, co-authored with his partner Divya Mudappa. Together, as scientists of the Nature Conservation Foundation, they now lead a program to restore tropical rainforests based out of a field research station in the Anamalai Hills of the Western Ghats. They live with Sootypoo, their cat, in their home in the mountains, visited by mongooses and macaques. He blogs at ‘View from Elephant Hills’, available at https://shankarraman.in.