Cool. I read her Midnight Never Come, which I enjoyed, but I lost track of her after that for some reason. She’s a good writer as I recall. I’m going to have to check out this list.
Currently on holiday and reading Lucy Cooke’s Bitch. She debunks a whole heap of gender stereotypes and uses examples from all around the animal kingdom. A fun read.
I loved that.
I give all my women friends a copy of Paddling North by Audrey Sutherland on their 50th birthday. It’s Audrey’s memoirs of her paddle of the Alaskan Inside Passage that she undertook for the first time at the age of 60, a trip she would recreate for the next 20 years.
What book is your favorite?
I will start first: my favorite book is The Hidden Life Of Trees by
Peter Wohlleben. I like it because it is thought-provoking, and I feel like the world would be a better place if more people read books like it.
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. (Beat you to it, didn’t I? ;D)
In French:
and the extraordinary documentary linked to it, which contributed to my fascination with plants more than 40 years ago:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL85QFEnf3cy-7wkL1JvYQjZr7oCcBUIOb
Please also see this thread, with 144 replies, that is actually still open:
(moved the above four posts to this existing topic)
Yes, you did!
The Curious World of Bugs by Daniel Marlos, for people into entomology
And while it’s not a nature-focused book, Cosmos by Carl Sagan has a great chapter on the evolution of life (it’s chapter 2, One Voice in the Cosmic Fugue). I haven’t read Cosmos in a year or two but I remember that chapter being very good for anyone interested in nature. Sagan is one of my favorite authors (and people) ever.
Well others already discussed above some favourite works of mine from authors: Carl Sagan, Oliver Franklin-Wallis, Jared Diamond, Michael Pollan, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Peter Wohlleben, Robert Macfarlane, Ed Yong, Robert M. Sapolsky, David Attenborough, David Quammen
I would recommend these in addition for others who liked those authors:
- The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman
Avian intelligence from contemporary research - Transformer: The Deep Chemistry of Life and Death by Nick Lane and his other books
Krebs cycle in all its glory - The Systems View of Life by Fritjof Capra, Pier Luigi Luisi
Complexity science and non-linear dynamics of life
Oh hey there!
have you heard of the book ‘Aranyak - of the forest‘ by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay?
I really really loved it, even though it didnt exactly contain yk expert advice, ID tips or anything of that sort but it was pure feeling of awe and love towards nature
The one thing I learned from reading Carl Sagan in my youth was to always maintain a skeptical outlook. Eventually, I realised this applies to his books at least as much as to many others, and that it’s rarely a good idea to trust any history written by a scientist. This is especially true for historical subjects that intersect with religion in any way (and I speak as a lifelong atheist). Another science populariser who falls into this category (although one far less saintly than Sagan), is Richard Dawkins - and there many others of this ilk.
If you have a genuine interest in the history of science and/or religion, always look for popular treatments by professional historians who have specialised in the relevant area of scholarship. These authors do a great job of debunking all the hoary myths perpetuated by celebrity scientists, and they aren’t afraid of presenting history in ways that often contrast strongly with how the mainstream media might like it to be.
(Just in case anyone suspects I’m being unfair to Sagan, there are many well-researched critiques available online - for example, this one).
Absolutely correct, I actually just read that article a few months ago! I’m curious, have you watched the original Cosmos series? It’s available for free on internet archive! It’s what made me a Sagan fan in the first place.
Yes - I watched it when it originally appeared back in the early 80’s. I also read several of his books during the same period. I was certainly inspired by the way he presented science, and it led me down many interesting pathways that I might not have otherwise found.
However, it was only much later when I developed a deeper interest in the history of science and religion, that I realised just how distorted the mainstream presentation of these subjects sometimes can be. Of course, in recent times, this has been amplified even further by the boom in social media. If Carl Sagan was alive today, I imagine he would be utterly appalled by the almost total abandoment of critical thinking in many areas of contemporary culture.
Very well said.
Honeybee Democracy, Thomas D. Seeley, Princeton University Press, 2010.
It’s a scholarly work, but engagingly written.
(No, it’s not a political treatise for our times…)
For Love of Insects by Thomas Eisner is a really awesome book! It contains captivating tales about the author’s life journey, including with bombardier beetles. (One of my faves!!!) I love how he draws you into his story, and how the ideas discussed and photos provided are often based off of his own observations and camera! Here is an example of three pics that he took consecutively. The Hyla versicolor (Or gray treefrog) attempted to swallow a bombardier beetle. It did not succeed.
