TRUCKEE, Calif. — In her newest book, Snow Fleas and Chickadees, longtime Truckee resident and writer Eve Quesnel invites readers to discover the wonder of nature just beyond their doorsteps. The book, a collection of 21 essays drawn from her “Nature’s Corner” column in Moonshine Ink, chronicles Quesnel’s walks through the forests of her Sierra Nevada neighborhood near Lake Tahoe.

“When we want different experiences, we tend to travel outside our homes, which is all great — absolutely, go travel,” Quesnel said. “But don’t ignore what’s around you. Notice and pay attention — look up, look down, get on the ground and look closely.”

Through her essays Quesnel shares insights gathered from biologists, ornithologists and foresters, weaving scientific knowledge with personal observations from her nearly 40 years living in Truckee. Each essay opens with a black-and-white illustration by artist Anne Chadwick, setting the tone for Quesnel’s blend of reflection, curiosity and natural history.

She urges readers to look more closely at the everyday wonders often overlooked — spiders spinning webs, solitary boulders resting deep in the woods and the quiet persistence of local flora.

“It is this ‘un-peeling’ of layers in nature that opens up our world,” she writes in the book.

That same curiosity has guided much of Quesnel’s writing. Once, she followed a line of ants marching across her patio and disappearing into the forest below her home.

“It was definitely the march of ants, and they all were carrying something,” she said. “I could have said, well, that’s really cool, and gone inside — but I followed them.”

Her research later led her to a research team of University of California, Berkeley, who study ants and their complex behaviors, including one species that steals the eggs of another colony.

“I just thought that was fascinating,” Quesnel said. “Now if I ever see that again, I know exactly what’s going on.”

Quesnel’s patient observation extends to all corners of her environment. She delights in the seasonal rhythms of her surroundings — from the emergence of shaggy mane mushrooms after the first fall rains to their transformation into a black, inky compost that nourishes the soil.

“They’re great recyclers,” she said. “They go back into the ground and nourish the earth again. It’s the cycle of life — and that’s just on my street. I don’t have to go anywhere.”

While Snow Fleas and Chickadees is not a political book, Quesnel hopes her writing inspires a deeper appreciation for the natural world at a time when public lands face increasing threats.

“My approach to protecting the environment is to first get to know it,” she said. “It’s a simple idea — know your environment, love it, and you’ll want to help protect it.”

With Snow Fleas and Chickadees, Quesnel reminds readers that awe, discovery and care for the planet begin close to home. For those willing to slow down and look closely, wonder is waiting right at their doorstep.