The Flight of the Iguana: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature
by David Quammen
published
1998
by Scribner
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binding
Paperback, 320 pages
isbn
0684836262
(isbn13: 9780684836263)
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 193)
Read in August, 2008
As I think I've mentioned in other reviews, I love the interesting parts of science. I don't have the discipline to grind through the boring parts and become an expert, but man do I enjoy dabbling. Quammen strikes me as a bit of a dabbler in science as well, while being a born writer, and that of course puts him solidly in my camp. This collection of essays actually belongs to my wife and she recommended it to me because, hey, she knows me pretty well. She suspected I would enjoy it, and she...more
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Read in June, 2006
A collection of Quammen's articles that formerly appeared in Outside magazine, the topics cover an impressive range of topics, including ruminations on things that are totally unlike us (spiders, worms, piranhas); elegies for things that have become extinct or may soon be (such as the birds on Guam); reflections on the wonders of migrations; and most affectingly, a chapter on survival in the desert -- including a rather telling moral tale of illegal immigrants crossing the desert at night...more
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It's not really about iguanas per se. Then again, it's not really about anything in particular, except the wacky, zany, nutty landscape of life. If you've never looked at a spider -- really looked at one -- you'll be amazed at what you're missing.
Quammen succeeds in entertaining and does a nice job of threading a few connections throughout the book. "Flight of the Iguana" is not a linear book, but a compilation of essays originally written for Outdoor Magazine. His occasionally of...more
Quammen succeeds in entertaining and does a nice job of threading a few connections throughout the book. "Flight of the Iguana" is not a linear book, but a compilation of essays originally written for Outdoor Magazine. His occasionally of...more
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Read in April, 2008
This book was published in the mid-1980s. You have to keep that in mind when you read it or you might get upset. Some of the articles are based on science which is now wrong, or outdated, but they're still interesting to read. And the best one of them all, a treatise about Darwin and earthworms, is perhaps even more applicable today than it was when it was published. I highly recommended it for anyone who finds themselves vaguely uncomfortable in the blogosphere.
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Read in September, 2007
This is a collection of Quammen's essays from Outdoor magazine. There's a general focus on bizarre biology, but it covers a range of scientific topics. Being in short essay format, it's wonderful for reading in snippets - waiting for the bus, on a lunch break, or right before falling asleep. His writing is particularly genuine and witty, making the information easily accessible. Subsequently one of my favorite authors in this genre.
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Read in January, 2008
Well-written and compelling, especially as far as the first section goes. However, as another review I read said, the sudden shift to politics feels odd and if you picked up this book hoping to learn about nature, you might feel a little shortchanged in the middle. I couldn't really find a tenuous connection between the gila monster and Salvadoran refugees, if that was the idea, even.
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Read in March, 2000
recommends it for:
Everyone
Thought-provoking essays that draw from nature and the environment. I initially read this book as part of my work in the Reading Lab at Ricks College. Mat helped me find the book again, and bought it for $3 on Amazon. I enjoyed re-reading as much as the first time.
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Read in June, 2008
recommended to Kimbolimbo by:
Those who like long non-fiction books
This is a great book, but I recommend reading it in spurts. It is not one continuous story, but a collection of biological articles. I like his humorous observations on nature and natural processes and then how he relates that to his observations of human experiences.
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One of three books that completely changed my outlook on life and the world around me. I am past due to read this one again. Quamman's essays are illuminating, funny and intelligent. Non-fiction is never as good without his voice attached to it.
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Read in January, 2000
Another book read in college for a class. We never read the whole thing in class, but I did alone. Most of the book is complex or somewhat complex issues regarding environment, morals, values and many other such subjects. I love analyzing them.
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This author writes short nature essays for Outside Magazine and this is a collection of them. The essays are short and interesting and fun to read. It's a good one if you don't have time to get engrossed in a deeper book.
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Read in January, 2007
David Quammen is primarily an essayist. This is one of the collections if I'm not mistaken. It's a little hard to tell essay collections apart in retrospect, but I have yet to read a bad one by this writer.
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Read in January, 1989
I discovered David Quammen through his monthly essays in Outside magazine. He writes engagingly and well of the natural world, and is always surprising.
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Read in November, 2007
This is my go to book when I want to read something right before I go to bed and feel the need to satisfy my inner geek.
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The science is sometimes outdated, but the perspective is erudite and often makes me laugh out loud.
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Read in June, 2006
I relish David Quammen. Read this a laugh your #*! off about bed bugs.
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