If you have followed this site for very long you probably know I like science. Since it is Nonfiction November, I picked up a couple of science books that have been in my TBR pile for a while and one book that is outside of my usual science reading. If you are a science enthusiast like me you should definitely consider adding these to your reading list.
Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.
The Miraculous from the Material by Alan Lightman
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| November 2024; Pantheon; 978-0593701485 ebook, print (208 pages); physical science |
While I love life science - biology, ecology, entomology, etc. - I'm not that big on the physical sciences - chemistry, physics, geology, etc. But I like to learn new things so I decided to branch out a little. I love observing the natural world and this book promised to be "gorgeously illustrated" I thought it might bridge the gap for me to jump into the physical sciences.
I was expecting more of a coffee table-type book that would have a lot of pictures with short text. Perhaps the print version looks like that, but the digital book doesn't.
The essays are short and there are illustrations at the start of each new essay with an occasional figure or image in the essay. I don't recommend reading it on a black-and-white screen like a Kindle Paperwhite if you want to enjoy the photos. It wasn't much better on my phone with the Kindle App either. The images were in color but they were pretty small.
While Lightman and I have different beliefs in the origin of the miraculous, it didn't matter. For me, there are no accidents in the created world, whereas he often saw things as occurring by accident. Whatever you believe won't interfere with the explanation of natural phenomena he provides.
I was hoping that learning the science behind the beautiful and curious things I see in the world would increase my appreciation of the natural world. I found some of the explanations interesting, a couple I struggled to follow, and a few I found kind of boring. I did learn some new things but I'm not sure it really increased my awe.
The essays are short so they don't get too technical. There is a lot of referencing other essays so that Lightman doesn't have to repeat himself too often, which I appreciated. I would have preferred that essays that dealt with similar things had been grouped closer together. I think it would have reinforced the information more and I might have made more connections.
If you are a science fan or just interested in understanding the world around you, then this is a good book to pick up.
Buy The Miraculous from the Material at Amazon
The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
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| April 2024; Knopf; 978-0593536131 audio, ebook, print (320 pages); naturalism |
Amy Tan has written numerous novels (none that I've read) but this one is nonfiction. Backyard Bird Chronicles is reminiscent of Also Leopold's A Sand County Almanac.
Orthinology was not a course I got to take in college and for the last few years, I have been attempting to get better at identifying birds. Since I read A Sand County Almanac, I've wanted to be a naturalist. One of the things a naturalist does is journal their observations. I have great intentions of starting a journal and when I started this book I thought maybe I should just start today (instead of waiting until the first of the month or the first of the year).
But then I saw a copy of her journal page with great sketches. My drawing skills are nil. I struggle with stick figures, there is no way I'm drawing realistic-looking anything. So I was a little discouraged.
The book is laid out by journal entry so we get a progression of observations. She has some of the same birds as I do but as she is on the west coast and I'm on the east coast she also had birds that I don't get, such as the scrub jay. She is also a lot more attentive to attracting birds to her backyard than I am.
If you are trying to get more birds to come to your house, she does provide tips that should help. I paid close attention to the sections talking about rats. I had to move my feeders off the porch and further into the yard because they were attracting rats. Unfortunately, Tan didn't find any better solutions than I did. Like Tan, I refuse to poison and think glue traps are inhumane. I tried the live traps - one got its tail cut off my the trap door and that was too disturbing for me (the rat lived for a like a year maybe longer. She couldn't eat from the feeders anymore since she didn't have a tail to hang from). Also with rats you have to release them very far from your home otherwise they just come back (I took one to a wooded area in my neighborhood about 4 houses down and it was back at my house before me).
I have other experiences similar to Tan's such a bird with an injured leg. So if you are an avid bird watcher you too will likely have shared experiences to relate to.
It was an interesting book and I recommend it to anyone who watches birds. If you are interested in the journal pages and bird drawings that are included then I recommend getting a print version or using a color tablet. I opened it on my Chromebook tablet using the Kindle app and the pages are really nice.
This book has been nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award if you want to vote for it.
Buy The Backyard Bird Chronicles at Amazon
The ABCs of Global Warming by Charles Siegel
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| January 2021; Omo Press; 978-1941667194 ebook, print (104 pages); environmental |
This book is a few years old but the information is still relevant. If you have ever wondered about the science behind global warming (like why if the planet is warming is the winter still so cold), the problems with global warming, and possible solutions, then this would be a good book to read.
The information is presented in easy-to-read bite-size pieces. There are often bullet point lists. Global warming (or climate change as others call it) was a big topic when I was in graduate school in the early 2000s but I haven't kept up with developments or the discussions since. So I found this book updating some of the things we talked about back then (like cap and trade emissions).
While I don't think any of the hardcore deniers (or maybe even the semi-deniers) will change their mind, there is a nice section where Siegel outlines the main objections to global warming and rebuts these claims with facts and evidence. But if you or someone you know is just confused by all the information out there and is open to scientific explanations, then this is a good book to start with.
Buy The ABCs of Global Warming at Amazon
Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.
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