We have a wide range of interviews recommending books on the earth, its geology and its history. Andrew Scott, Emeritus Professor of Geology at Royal Holloway in London, chooses his best books on the evolution of the earth. Gaia Vince, a journalist and an author, chooses her best books on the Anthropocene, explaining what precisely the ‘Anthropocene’ is and why as an outlook (and a selection of books) it’s pretty bleak. Caspar Henderson chooses his best books for growing up in the Anthropocene; meanwhile, Adam Maloof looks at Earth history and Simon Winchester explores volcanoes.
Tullis Onstott, professor of geosciences at Princeton, chooses his best books on life below the surface of the Earth. He explores what subsurface life forms tell us about the evolution of our planet and life on the surface, and whether there might be life on Mars. Marine biologist Helen Scales chooses her best books on ocean life and discusses how ocean life is being threatened by man’s predations. Isabel Hilton chooses her best books on China’s environmental crisis, and talks about how the country has been getting more and more polluted since she arrived in the 1970s. But she also explains how environmental degradation in China, already thought to be well under way in the period of Mao, had indeed started over 2,000 years ago.
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1
The Planet in a Pebble: A journey into Earth's deep history
by Jan Zalasiewicz -
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Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth
by Andrew H Knoll -
3
The Emerald Planet
by D J Beerling -
4
Gaining Ground
by Jennifer Clack -
5
The Cradle of Humanity: How the changing landscape of Africa made us so smart
by Mark Maslin
The best books on Evolution of the Earth, recommended by Andrew Scott
The best books on Life Below the Surface of the Earth, recommended by Tullis Onstott
The ‘subterranaut’ describes how the discovery of ancient bacteria miles beneath the Earth’s surface opens the possibility of finding life on Mars. He picks five books that show how our knowledge of life deep in this planet could lead us to discover it elsewhere.
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Field Notes From a Catastrophe: Man, nature and climate change
by Elizabeth Kolbert -
2
When The Rivers Run Dry: Journeys into the heart of the world's water crisis
by Fred Pearce -
3
Last Chance to See
by Douglas Adams & Mark Carwardine -
4
The End of Nature
by Bill McKibben -
5
Our Dying Planet: An ecologist's view of the crisis we face
by Peter Sale
The best books on The Anthropocene, recommended by Gaia Vince
The best books on The Anthropocene, recommended by Gaia Vince
In 2015 Gaia Vince became the first woman to win the Royal Society’s science book of the year prize for her book Adventures in the Anthropocene. She spent two years on the road investigating how communities across the world are coping with climate change. Here, she shares the five best books on climate change and the Anthropocene – the geological epoch of man.
The Best Books for Growing up in the Anthropocene, recommended by Caspar Henderson
Welcome to life in the Anthropocene, a new epoch in the history of life where the impact of humanity on the Earth system is so great, we need a new term for it. Author and journalist Caspar Henderson offers a rich reading list to help ourselves and our children grow up in the Anthropocene.
The best books on Earth History, recommended by Adam Maloof
Just as no one can study political science without a basic understanding of human history, or study a modern animal without a basic understanding of evolution, so no one can understand climate change without understanding the Earth’s history, argues the Princeton geology professor.
