It’s time for another entry for, First Chapter, First Paragraph Tuesday Intros. Thank you to Yvonne, from Socrates’ Book Reviews who hosts this meme. As a reminder this is your chance to post a bit from a book that you are reading or planning to read. My entry comes from a book I’ve recently started:
“Beginnings, it’s said, are apt to be shadowy. So it is with this story, which starts with the emergence of a new species maybe two hundred thousand years ago. The species does not yet have a name — nothing does — but it has the capacity to name things. As with any young species, this one’s position is precarious. Its numbers are small, and its range restricted to a slice of eastern Africa. Slowly its population grows, but quite possibly then it contracts again — some would claim nearly fatally – to just a few thousand pairs.”
The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction, the book’s premise is that the earth is the midst of a sixth extinction. There have been fix mass extinctions over the last half-billion years where life on earth has dramatically changed but this extinction, and this one is predicated to be the most devastating and is one that is man-made.
You are probably thinking we are in a pandemic why read this? Isn’t there enough gloom and doom? Well, at the beginning of the year my mom and I were watching a news report about a finding of 2,000 mammoth bones in Mexico City, which were unearth during the current construction of a new airport. The finding is the largest collection in one place.
I was fascinated by that story and the efforts they are making to ensure that they take precautions in case of further findings and what the plan is afterwards. I hope that one day I can go and visit the planned exhibit. I am sure I’ll be in awe.
In the meantime though that made me think of animals that are no more and just how the world has changed and how little time we are on it yet how much of an impact our actions have. So I remember hearing about this book especially around nonfiction November and I thought it’s time to read it.
Anyway let me know what you think and if it’s a book you’ve read or would read.
Excellent author. She was featured in a New York Times Book Review Q & A last weekend and has a new book coming out soon.
It is a book I should read. It is a topic that interests and frightens me .
Definitely a book I’d read. Mainly because I’m interested in the evolution of species, and why they disappear. I only ever heard of the dinosaur and the dodo bird (and woolly mammoths from Ice Age) — would be interesting to see where and how the author takes this. I didn’t know it got the Pulitzer.
Sounds good. I never heard of this book before. I’ll have to check it out.
I’ve been seeing books about the pandemic lately. I may end up reading this or another one, not sure yet.
I haven’t read this one, but it’s been on my radar ever since it was first published. Maybe I’ll pick it up for Nonfiction November. Keep me posted on how you like it!
I’m more and more curious about this and would read it, yes. Actually I added another book a few days ago to my TBR on this very topic: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35067137-the-ends-of-the-world
The author Peter Brannen wrote a fabulous article about this in The Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/03/extreme-climate-change-history/617793/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=atlantic-weekly-newsletter&utm_content=20210207&silverid-ref=MzEwMTkwMjc0MTU3S0
I hope you can read it. If not and you are interested, send me an email at emmacazabonne at gmail
My post is here: https://francebooktours.com/2021/02/09/lorigine-first-chapter-first-paragraph/
Iliana, this sounds fascinating; i’d definitely read more.
I have this on my list to read. I hope you will press on and then report back to us.
Catherine @ Book Club Librarian – Oh thank you for the heads up! I’ll have to look for the interview and of course keep her new book on my radar.
Jen – I know what you mean!
Lex @ Lexlingua – It’s a fascinating topic isn’t? I don’t know that much about it either but I love to hear news stories about this topic so this book has been a revelation!
Yvonne – I hope you get a chance to check it out one day!
Vicki – You’re right there are several books about the pandemic and/or other pandemics. Not sure I’m ready to read any of those to be honest but as this one encompasses millennia I figured it was a bit easier to read. Still scary stuff though!
Les in OR – I’m almost positive I heard about this around Nonfiction November as it’s made the rounds before. It’s so interesting but it is kind of dense so I’m taking my time.
Emma @ Words and Peace – Thank yo so much for the links and I will check them out as I’m sure I’ll probably want to read more! This book is definitely making me wonder about things.
Diane – I hope you get to check it out one day!
Deb Nance at Readerbuzz – Glad you’ve already got it on your radar! Will do but it may take me a while. It’s a bit of a chunkster and not an easy topic for sure!
I have heard of this book and the author. Such an interesting topic–fascinating and yet sad. I think it’s important though given the environment concerns of today though.