Matsutake is the most valuable mushroom in the world--and a weed that grows in human-disturbed forests across the northern hemisphere Through its ability to nurture trees matsutake helps forests to grow in daunting places It is also an edible delicacy in Japan where it sometimes commands astronomical prices In all its contradictions matsutake offers insights into areas far beyond just mushrooms & addresses a crucial question what manages to live in the ruins we have made? A tale of diversity within our damaged landscapes The Mushroom at the End of the World follows one of the strangest commodity chains of our times to explore the unexpected corners of capitalism Here we witness the varied & peculiar worlds of matsutake commerce the worlds of Japanese gourmets capitalist traders Hmong jungle fighters industrial forests Yi Chinese goat herders Finnish nature guides & more These companions also lead us into fungal ecologies & forest histories to better understand the promise of cohabitation in a time of massive human destruction By investigating one of the world's most sought-after fungi The Mushroom at the End of the World presents an original examination into the relation between capitalist destruction & collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes the prerequisite for continuing life on earth