Bott's Book of the Week: The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History

Ahh humans...We're pretty awesome, right? We make cool stuff, we drive cool cars and, most of all, we kill things. Elizabeth Kolbert's book The Sixth Extinction is an incredible read that sets the stage for our ultimate downfall at our very own hands. 

There have been five mass extinctions throughout the history of life on earth. These extinctions are considered "mass" as they wipe out nearly all life on the planet. The first may have been caused by rapid temperature changes that led to glaciation. Others also had to do with climate change as well, as rising temperature changed the chemistry of ocean waters, thus leading to what we now call "the great dying." The extinction we're most familiar with happened at the end of the Cretaceous period roughly 65 million years ago. This killed three quarters of all life on earth including our friends, the dinosaurs.

Today, we're in a bit of pickle. It's not an asteroid coming at us (yet), but the enemy is within the walls; us. Kolbert's book details the drivers for climate change and the effect of having and sustaining our massive global population. It's scary.

And then there's the ocean. Our wondrous water that covers 70% of the earth...and is turning into ACID! Ok well, not really. But the rate at which it's going downhill for our oceans is alarming. Our oceans are 30% more acidic now than in 1800 and expected to be 150% more by the end of the century. Great news isn't it? Oceans are teeming with life and slight changes in water temperature or variations in chemistry have terrifying consequences for our ocean life. This might not sound significant, but Kolbert's book has a greater underlying thesis: We are all connected.

 That said, we are the masters of our own demise and we kind of don't care- I suppose that's the sad and hilarious part about it and Kolbert handles it with mastery. She's very funny, sarcastic, sardonic, and writes with some wonderful irony. 

She writes that she's not "anti-human," but there's a edge to her writing that makes me feel guilty. Don't get me wrong, I love that. I love that a book, especially a non-fiction book, can elicit such emotion. It makes me want to learn more, read more about ocean acidification, global warming, pollution, disease. Any book that can accomplish that is well worth the read. In a nutshell, be worried- Maybe not today, but your children and grandchildren are going to an uphill battle. Might as well face it with a sense of humor. 

Bott's Book of the Week: Her: A Memoir

Woah....Ok so the last memoir I read was a graphic novel and I really missed some of the more detailed imagery that a well written "book" provides. Not that graphic novels don't take the writing seriously (See Maus), but the images are provided for you and that leaves a little less to the imagination. I can conjure up some incredible images in my own mind from a really well written novel or, in this case, memoir. Her does not disappoint. 

I stumbled upon this story while listening to the radio on a drive to Pennsylvania and immediately grabbed a copy when I returned. The interview was with the author Christa Parravani, a Guilderland High alum if I'm correct, and it was heart wrenching. The book evokes every emotion imaginable. It tells a tragic story of identical twins who, despite obstacles and borderline poverty growing up, emerge as budding writers and artists until the unthinkable happens. Cara, Christa's twin is raped. As you can understand, there isn't a ton of good things that follow. Cara cannot come back from this traumatic event and ultimately turns to drugs. When Cara dies, Christa is sitting in traffic in NYC and learns from their estranged mother over the phone. Despite the fact that since the rape they've grown apart, Parravani paints the picture that twins, no matter how distant, are never really that far apart. 

Christa becomes increasingly depressed. She starves herself and becomes addicted to pills. She writes that she's nearly schizophrenic, seeing her sister when she looks in the mirror instead of herself. Before pushing herself to the brink (through a divorce as well), Christa re-emerges as a confident writer and pushes herself through words to tell this powerful story. I love memoirs, especially about people...real people and I am a sucker for tragedy. I'm not sure what that says about me as a person, but books like this make me think I'm onto something nonetheless. Read this book.

  

Bott's Book of the Week - Lying by Sam Harris

I'm reviewing a non-fiction book this week...WAIT, don't hit the little red X in the corner yet...It's about a very person topic. Lying. We all do it. Some do it everyday. But is it all that bad? I mean, what if you tell your significant other they look great with that new haircut when they really look hideous/terrifying? Sam Harris argues that even these little white lies have an affect and erode our moral fiber.

Harris is a brilliant writer. The book is only 108 pages which make it a quick and thought provoking read. My favorite part is that  I went into this book feeling like a semi-honest person and came out feeling a little betrayed by my own sense of morality. That alone made it a great book for me. Harris kindly offers "advice" as to how to become a more honest person as well. He helps to define the fuzzy area of what constitutes a lie or just simply avoiding the truth (a type of lie he argues). 

I'm trying really hard to think of a lie I told that wouldn't be too embarrassing, but for some reason my mind is only going to places would compromise what most of you think of me. Anyway, I strongly suggest going to YouTube and watching a Sam Harris debate as he is a phenomenal off-the-cuff speaker and one of my idols when it comes to debates. He makes a great case in this book for never lying again and although I can't say that's going to happen, I'm certainly going to think twice before I say, "You look great in that dress." or "I love your hair, get it cut like that forever!" After all, when you lie, you have to remember that lie which makes a false memory within the framework of your own mind...Who has time for that?