false <![CDATA[A Natural History of the Senses]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1222897676m/76611.jpg 76611 12 "One of the real tests of writers," notes Ackerman in this liveliest of nature books, "is how well they write about smells. If they can't describe the scent of sanctity in a church, can you trust them to describe the suburbs of the heart?" Ackerman passes the test, writing with ease and fluency about the five senses. Did you know that bat guano smells like stale Wheat Thins? That Bach's music can quell anger around the world? That the leaves that shimmer so beautifully in fall have "no adaptive purpose"? Ackerman does, and she guides us through questions of sensation with an eye for the amusingly arcane reference and just the right phrase. 1224437 1990 A Natural History of the Senses total:1607|5:674|4:572|3:281|2:68|1:12| 1607 6649 2363 241 5 5 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1994 Mon Jul 23 05:37:09 -0700 2007 Mon Jul 23 05:39:31 -0700 2007 more...]]> 2 4 false false Sat Apr 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 19 12:51:59 -0700 2008 Fri Apr 11 22:35:14 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 4 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 09 18:02:32 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 09 18:15:04 -0700 2007 more...]]> 1 4 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 11 00:23:29 -0800 2009 Fri Sep 11 10:17:00 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 2 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1995 Fri Jul 27 00:41:48 -0700 2007 Fri Jul 27 13:47:42 -0700 2007 more...]]> 1 1 false false Tue Oct 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 08 10:14:54 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 21 10:08:25 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Feb 25 23:02:56 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 25 23:07:57 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue May 29 00:29:54 -0700 2007 Sat Aug 04 13:57:35 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 1 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Sep 18 10:06:07 -0700 2007 Tue Sep 18 10:26:38 -0700 2007
I've read other Ackerman boo...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 1996 Mon Jun 22 22:38:20 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 23 05:53:40 -0700 2009
The first two books I reported on by poet turned naturalist Diane Ackerman chronicled her adventures in pursuit of rare and wonderful wildli...more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Nov 01 00:00:00 -0800 1991 Sun Sep 13 14:10:13 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 13 14:48:46 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Jan 04 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Dec 29 11:16:47 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 04 22:12:54 -0800 2009 A piece of fugu (puffer fish) toxin, small enough to fit under a fingernail, is enough to kill someone mid-meal. The real fugu expert chef can leave just enough toxin in a soup for your lips to tingle but not to kill.

I found some of the scientific explanations rather boo...more...]]> 0 1 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1992 Tue Dec 11 11:34:22 -0800 2007 Tue Dec 11 11:41:36 -0800 2007 more...]]> 3 1 false false Wed Sep 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 28 18:08:36 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 15:49:33 -0700 2009
My indifference to my loss says something. Ackerman's systematic attack of the senses is interesting and fact-filled, but ultimately not cohesive or exciting enough to keep me engaged.

She does a wonderful jo...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Sep 15 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Wed Nov 04 17:41:09 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 04 17:42:21 -0800 2009
She has a poet’s ear for sentences, and she writes like a t...more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Apr 18 20:03:57 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 18 20:07:07 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Dec 27 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 10:54:06 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 11:02:14 -0800 2008 2 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 20 15:10:40 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 13 14:04:47 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Mon Feb 04 16:33:18 -0800 2008 Mon Feb 04 16:39:05 -0800 2008
Diane Ackerman writes:
“We need to send into space a flurry of artists and naturalists, photographers and painters, who will turn the mirror upon ourselves and show us Earth as a single planet, a single organ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 08 02:47:00 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 08 03:35:37 -0700 2007 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=76611