Reviews for Bedrock: Writers on the Wonders of Geology

The average rating for Bedrock: Writers on the Wonders of Geology based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2009-12-14 00:00:00 Russel Wong I loved this book in a subtle way - the way that you can only love a compilation. Not every piece of writing contained strikes a cord with me, but most do, and most give me something deeper to think about. Even if it was the way they employed a new metaphor about earth, or a new way of looking at wind, something I had never considered, yet found, on a literary level, beautiful. Basically this book is a collection of excerpts from ~60 different authors, each describing, in one way or the other, geology. It ranges from pieces of poetry, to excerpts from scientific papers, with fiction and non-fiction prose thrown in between. It was rather nice to read in context where such quotations as, "no vestige of a beginning - no prospect of an end" came from, without having to drag through more than a few pages of Hutton's writing. I loved this book as a step back from geology, and a look at the geo-poetics that draw us to the land in the first place. I, much more than most, have a deep sense of place, and for me, this book, hit the nail on the head of conveying the sense of place which so richly throughout all time, seeps into our literature. I recommend this book, not only to geologists, but to geologist and others alike that love the land for it's beauty and can visualize the land from the written word. After reading many of these excepts I was left longing to go to the mountains, the desert, any place uninhabited where the land hangs out exposed. "To a naturalist nothing is indifferent; the humble moss that creeps upon the stone is equally interesting as the lofty pine which so beautifully adorns the valley or the mountain: but to a naturalist who is reading in the face of the rocks the annals of a former world, the mossy covering which obstructs his view, and renders indistinguishable the different species of stone, is no less than a serious subject of regret." -Hutton On another note I was introduced to a bunch of new authors that I likely would never have picked up on my own. 4.5 starts overall. I only dock it half a star based on the fact that it's a complication, and you can't love all the writing selections the same.

Review # 2 was written on 2021-01-28 00:00:00 Mickey Glover I think I saw a review that called this Geology lite and while, yeah, I'd agree that in terms of learning actual geology it's not the book... BUT in terms of renewing a love and fascination of the Earth and its processes, it absolutely is. I'm a big fan of short stories, so compilations are also a love of mine. I found the selections excellent and found myself near tears and also adding books to my to read list. I really appreciate the constant inclusion of indigenous voices in something that would be fraudulent without them.