Erin's review
The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
I heard about this book on Jon Stewart's The Daily Show. The author was on for an interview and "sold" it to me. The questions posed in this book are definitely interesting ones... what would the world be like without us? Would it miss us? How long would it take for our homes, offices, infrastructure and impacts to disappear? What was the world like before us? It highlights the fact that human existence is but a mere blip in geologic time and that the world functioned just fine before us and will probably do the same once we are gone again. It entertains the idea that change is not so bad after all; instead, change is merely the way of the world and humans are in no way exempt from the natural course of things.
The first chapter is captivating. New York City is the subject and the author's detailed description of how the city would turn to rubble (quite quickly actually) was vivid and left me slightly awe struck. For something so huge and seemingly sturdy to disin...more
The first chapter is captivating. New York City is the subject and the author's detailed description of how the city would turn to rubble (quite quickly actually) was vivid and left me slightly awe struck. For something so huge and seemingly sturdy to disin...more
