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The Heat Is On: The Climate Crisis, The Cover-up, The Prescription
Argues that the oil and coal industries are downplaying the effect of global warming and offers a look at the possible consequences on the planet if current scientific findings are ignored
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 10, 2022
As other reviewers have noted, this book is long out-of-date. It was written in the mid-1990s and revised in 1998 and has not been updated since that time. So it's not up to the minute, but the overall message remains more or less as relevant now even if some the numbers are not accurate with the latest IPCC reports.
This book had a moment of publicity when it was new because then-President Clinton was seen reading it. To the extent it is remembered, that's largely the reason.
It is a stronger book than I expected going in. Gelbspan has a strong grasp on the scale of the problem, the huge institutional challenges, and most surprisingly the interconnection between climate change and the enormous wealth inequalities between the developed and developing worlds. For a book aimed at a general audience in the 1990s, this is well ahead of the curve.
The discussion of fossil-fuel funded studies and "scientists" who publish exclusively in fossil fuel funded journals or in-house think tank publications was well done. The obfuscation of scientific consensus would unfortunately continue for years to come, even though Gelbspan was optimistic that schisms in the business community might force the worst actors out.
The book was written with great urgency and clarity, which sadly went unheeded by policymakers for decades, despite the continued accumulation of data, studies, and other popular books demonstrating the increasingly dire stakes of confronting global climate change quickly. But this book is a nice time capsule of the view back when this whole thing still seemed more solvable and there was greater hope for a livable planet for our children and grandchildren.
This book had a moment of publicity when it was new because then-President Clinton was seen reading it. To the extent it is remembered, that's largely the reason.
It is a stronger book than I expected going in. Gelbspan has a strong grasp on the scale of the problem, the huge institutional challenges, and most surprisingly the interconnection between climate change and the enormous wealth inequalities between the developed and developing worlds. For a book aimed at a general audience in the 1990s, this is well ahead of the curve.
The discussion of fossil-fuel funded studies and "scientists" who publish exclusively in fossil fuel funded journals or in-house think tank publications was well done. The obfuscation of scientific consensus would unfortunately continue for years to come, even though Gelbspan was optimistic that schisms in the business community might force the worst actors out.
The book was written with great urgency and clarity, which sadly went unheeded by policymakers for decades, despite the continued accumulation of data, studies, and other popular books demonstrating the increasingly dire stakes of confronting global climate change quickly. But this book is a nice time capsule of the view back when this whole thing still seemed more solvable and there was greater hope for a livable planet for our children and grandchildren.
March 24, 2026
now nearly 30 years old. The author got it - the scandal of the fossil fuel lobbies, the scientists whose pathetic lies served the purpose of their fossil masters and the inability of the US to exercise any leadership. Even then other industries were pulling away from the fossil sector and even some oil companies too didn't want to be associated with the lies and began to seek the transition. The problems have only become bigger and more intractable since. The totalitarian trend in the US is showing (ICE, Project 25, the war on climate). Societal collapse is not here yet but still foreseeable on the same timescale. Worth a read
February 4, 2026
The Heat Is On, Ross Gelbspan, 1997, 278 pages, ISBN 0201132958
"Recently I've seen rocks poke through the surface of the ice that had been buried under 600 meters of ice for 20,000 years." p. 2.
The planet is warming at a faster rate than at any time in the last 10,000 years. p. 8.
"Recently I've seen rocks poke through the surface of the ice that had been buried under 600 meters of ice for 20,000 years." p. 2.
The planet is warming at a faster rate than at any time in the last 10,000 years. p. 8.
February 16, 2024
This book has some relevant themes surrounding climate change, causes, and potential solutions. However in 2024 the climate data is severely outdated and many important things have occurred in the last 20+ years which are not captured
September 7, 2012
My complaint about this book, purchased in August 2012, is that it’s so out-of-date. The cover says it is an ‘updated edition’ but that turned out to be circa 1998. Here is the best case I can think of for eBooks. A printed book should be up-to-date or timeless. Anything else should be published in eBook format and truly be updated if left on the market.
As the subtitle indicates this is an important book. The author gives a dizzying account of the war against the science underpinning the climate crisis and the political and economic forces involved. A dozen years after the book was written it seems way too detailed and redundant. The main points are made over and over.
An unintended consequence of reading a book written in the late 1990s is to realize how many historic changes we’ve lived through. The theme of the book is still life and death important, but a lot has happened in the world!
Enron has collapsed, George W. Bush has served two terms, 911 occurred leading to two wars, Hurricane Katrina seriously impacted New Orleans, a housing crisis destroyed the American economy and a financial crisis threatens the world economy. As all those significant things happened, the climate crisis continued. Many of the dire consequences predicted in the book have come true, only ahead of schedule.
If you’d like a more up-to-date version the same author has a 2004 book called ‘Boiling Point’ which might be better.
As the subtitle indicates this is an important book. The author gives a dizzying account of the war against the science underpinning the climate crisis and the political and economic forces involved. A dozen years after the book was written it seems way too detailed and redundant. The main points are made over and over.
An unintended consequence of reading a book written in the late 1990s is to realize how many historic changes we’ve lived through. The theme of the book is still life and death important, but a lot has happened in the world!
Enron has collapsed, George W. Bush has served two terms, 911 occurred leading to two wars, Hurricane Katrina seriously impacted New Orleans, a housing crisis destroyed the American economy and a financial crisis threatens the world economy. As all those significant things happened, the climate crisis continued. Many of the dire consequences predicted in the book have come true, only ahead of schedule.
If you’d like a more up-to-date version the same author has a 2004 book called ‘Boiling Point’ which might be better.
October 30, 2008
Even though the science reporting is no longer up to date, this book did a fair and impartial job of exposing the errors and weaknesses of global warming skeptics, back when the issue was still a little bit controversial. Ten years later the environmentalists have been vindicated, and the book stands as a stark "I told you so" to the many deniers and nay-sayers of the day.
September 25, 2016
This was a good intro for me to the subject --- now I need to find more up to date info. Well written -- I like how he switches back and forth between the main prose and flashes to extreme weather events from around the world.
January 11, 2010
The jury is in- Global Warming is a FACT!
July 10, 2013
A great journalistic dive into the climate crisis with an investigative look into the fossil fuel industry's misinformation campaign during the 90's. Read it, I dare you.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews