It was great; then it wasn't. I have mixed feelings about On Writing Well by William Zinsser. I love the first 94 pages, but the rest far less so. That's a 28 percent good book, and that makes my final three-star ratings more than generous. What Zinsser writes in the first 94 pages caters to … Continue reading Book Reflection: On Writing Well by William Zinsser
One of BBC Earth's TV miniseries, Africa features the staples of intensive camera work and David Attenborough. The six-episode series released in 2013 travels between the Kalahari Desert, eastern savanna, Congo rainforest, southern Cape, Sahara, and a thematic episode focused on conservation and Africa's future. Africa is full of jungle and safari stereotypes, but this … Continue reading Film Reflection: Africa: Eye to Eye with the Unknown by BBC Earth
“How do they film that?” I always ask. “How do they coordinate? What are they not showing me?” That is how I watch natural history documentaries in between the “ah! That's so cool!” and “hmm, interesting. I should look that up.” Then one day on Netflix I saw BBC Earth's 2009 Life: On Location, where … Continue reading Film Reflection: Life on Location by BBC Earth
Your favorite civilian natural science book comes with prerequisites: vivid photos from altocumulus clouds to decomposition fungi, key hiding spots of small insects and charismatic critters, and nontechnical but curiosity-provoking descriptions of ecological concepts--all of which fill The Practical Naturalist. Edited by Chris Packham and written by a team of scientists, this book is detailed … Continue reading Book Reflection: The Practical Naturalist by Chris Packham
The American chestnut tree, Castanea dentata, was one of the first biological icons to be virtually vacated from an integral position in both the environment and American society. We knew little about accidental imports of exotic species, and the introduction of the fungus Cryphonectria parasitica spurred the discussion and action. I was fascinated with the topic when … Continue reading Book Reflection: American Chestnut: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of a Perfect Tree by Susan Freinkel
After reading What Went Wrong? The Clash Between Islam & Modernity in the Middle East by Bernard Lewis and watching Rory Stewart's The Great Game (incredible dual documentaries on imperialism and Afghan independence) on Netflix (the first is also on YouTube), I continued the theme and watched an installment on one of my favorite natural history … Continue reading Film Reflection: Wildest Middle East by Animal Planet
Patrons of my local library vie for this book. I waited several weeks before I got a chance, even though The Sixth Extinction was published over a year before this time. Then I couldn't renew it, because of course someone else was in line to read it. Several weeks later down the waiting list I … Continue reading Book Reflection: The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert
While I've shared how the Voyage of the Turtle: in the Pursuit of the World’s Last Dinosaur took a broad-focused, holistic sweep of the world between humans and leatherbacks, it also tackled specifics of sea turtle’s physiology. Diving physiology is intricate and poorly understood. Considering that humans dwell on land and most animals that we … Continue reading Book Reflection: Voyage of the Turtle by Carl Safina (Part II: Physiology)
In another time and if in the same place, Henry David Thoreau would have been a great family friend. So much of what he addresses in Walden resonates deeply with my dad and me. We frequently discuss the bizarre inconsistencies and illogical manners in much of our society (past and present), speculate the hows and whys as well … Continue reading Book Reflection: Walden or Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau
From Part I: Growing, processing, and marketing the food items all in a single region mitigate many of those secondary issues, organic or not. It’s also worth mentioning that labels require hefty fees for each individual product to the government for licensing—fees that your small-scale organic farmer cannot pay for. Part II Do you want to … Continue reading Book Reflection: Folks, This Ain’t Normal by Joel Salatin (Part II)
Chestnut Leaf Media 