Martin Heidegger (1889-1976) is one of the most influential – and controversial – philosophers of the twentieth century. He is mostly associated with existentialism (the study of human experience) and phenomenology (the study of consciousness), and his work was enormously influential.

In this story, Heidegger is exploring the relationship between 'beings' and their environments. How much does each – the rock, the lizard and the human – understand of the world around them?

By adapting famous animal parables, the Pocket Philosophy series seeks to introduce inquisitive readers of all ages – from 1 to 100! – to the biggest names in philosophy.

Alice Brière-Haquet was a cherry picker and a high school teacher before she turned to writing books. The cherries have blossomed, the students have grown up, and about a hundred of her books are now scattered throughout people's homes, even throughout the world thanks to numerous translations. She saw some of the world herself before returning to Normandy, France, with her cello and her family.