Review: The Anthropocene Reviewed
Available at Bookshop.org
6/5
“I was thinking about the people I used to be, and how they fought and scrapped and survived for moments like this one.”
Synopsis: The Anthropocene is the current geological age, in which human activity has profoundly shaped the planet and its biodiversity. In this remarkable symphony of essays adapted and expanded from his ground-breaking, critically acclaimed podcast, John Green reviews different facets of the human-centered planet - from the QWERTY keyboard and Halley's Comet to Penguins of Madagascar - on a five-star scale.
Complex and rich with detail, the Anthropocene's reviews have been praised as 'observations that double as exercises in memoiristic empathy', with over 10 million lifetime downloads. John Green's gift for storytelling shines throughout this artfully curated collection about the shared human experience; it includes beloved essays along with six all-new pieces exclusive to the book.
“We all know how loving ends. But I want to fall in love with the world anyway, to let it crack me open. I want to feel what there is to feel while I am here.”
Review: Growing up in the evangelical church, I was told over and over again, “Do not love this world.” And I have never truly understood why because how can you not? I look around and I marvel at the beauty and awe and wonder that is the world. And people! Yes, even people. In all of our quirks, eccentricities, horrors, and joys, we are a marvel. Our ability to affect the planet is both god-like in the present and laughably impotent on the geological scale. John Green’s latest book, his first nonfiction book, left me in wonder. His discussions on the mundane and the profound make you feel connected to every single person on this planet even if the essays can be ridiculously niche. This will be a book I will read again with a highlighter in hand. I am not one for nonfiction, but this book, this is the one that will be given as gifts with the hope that it brings joy, empathy, and wonder to its readers.