Mason's Book Reviews

So, I read a lot down here and have been keeping a log of what I've read. I thought I'd share with you in case you are looking for a good read. Enjoy:

The Mapmaker’s Wife, Robert Whittaker

So, I read this book right when I got here (Sept.) and I am writing this now in the middle of January so forgive my lack of detail and possible errors… This book is about the scientific voyage of a team of Frenchmen to Ecuador (formerly Peru and a French colony) to measure a line of longitude (or is it latitude?) at the equator in the 1600’s. This was huge scientifically as there was still debate as to the shape of the Earth. Some thought that this young Newton fellow was crazy with his suggestions of gravity and a resultant spheroid Earth with a slight bulge at the equator. Some argued that if gravity worked the way Newton suggested, then the earth was actually indented at the equator, which may sound crazy now, but this is the way Science works. These Frenchmen set out to settle the debate once and for all, and to achieve long-lasting glory.

This expedition was a massive undertaking and was really the first scientific work ever done (at least by us educated white folks) in the Americas. The list of discoveries and scientific firsts that were accomplished by this team could fill the page and honestly I don’t remember them all. Nevertheless the amount of the things these men accomplished is breathtaking. I do remember that this team “discovered” both cinnamon and rubber and introduced them to Europe (and therefore civilization).

Their work took them something like 6 years, many more than they were planning, and when they were finished they all went their separate ways. One of the scientists fell in love with a local Peruvian woman (hence the title of the book) and lived with her for a few years, but always dreamed of taking his family back to his homeland and living out his life there. He decided that he would head down the Amazon, from Peru/Ecuador – a voyage that had only been attempted by 4 or 5 people in all of history – just to see if it was do-able and then return for his wife and head back down the Amazon. He planned on being away for a year and a half. He miraculously made it to the Amazon delta and sought out refuge in French Guyana (I think) where he had to wait for some trans-Atlantic paperwork from his homeland in order to pass back through Portuguese and Spanish land. After something like 9 years (and 20 years after leaving France) he was still waiting (they had government bureaucracy / ineffiency back then too) and had started a new life in some sort of business that I can’t recall right now.

His wife, on the other side of the continent decided that she would make the unprecedented trek to her husband, and so she went for it. Along the way she encountered outrageous obstacles and the death or abandonment of everyone in her party. After losing her boat, she was forced to walk through the wild Amazonian jungle where she was exposed to all sorts of flora, fauna and insects that crawled and chewed on her constantly for weeks and even months on end. At one point she laid down to die, but then somehow found the strength to get back up and continue for another six weeks! Her journey was amazing.

The scientific and cultural history in this book fascinated me. It is very well written and you will learn a lot from it and at the same time become captivated by the hardships endured by everyone in the book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book both as a scientist and an adventurer. Read it.

RATING: 8.5/10

The Jungle, Upton Sinclair

The classic novel about the horrible injustices on all levels of the Chicago meatpacking scene in the early part of the 20^th century. Many people read this in High School or University history classes, but for some reason I never did. This book is the predecessor of books like Fast Food Nation and that one about the pride of Arkansas, Wal-Mart (I can’t remember the name). Although it is a work of fiction, it is based on the actual working conditions of the meatyards and the lives of the immigrants who made them run.

Based around one family of Polish immigrants, this book exposed the impossibly hard lives these people lead (and many still lead today) because of the system into which they tried to make their lives. Reminds me at times of the current situation in Nicaragua or for those who try to make a new life in the U.S.…

The innerworkings of the entire industry are uncovered, from the stockyards and the killing floors to the canning rooms and political corruption. This work of fiction provoked political change almost immediately upon its release, although after also reading the aforementioned Fast Food Nation, I'm not sure how much we have really progressed.

If you haven’t already, you should read this.

RATING: 8/10

Mountains Beyond Mountains, Tracy Kidder

The story of Dr. Paul Farmer and his quest to rid the world’s poor of unjust suffering because of a lack of access to health care. Farmer started his quest as a medical student at Harvard where he spent most of his time in Haiti working with Tuberculosis. He only returned to campus to take exams and ended up setting up a clinic in Haiti. Throughout the years, he has transformed the area surrounding his clinic and has gone on to shake up the world of public health policy, especially in the area of TB treatment. This book chronicles his success in Haiti, Peru, Soviet prisons and other areas of the world.

He is a truly humble and massively intelligent person who is fighting the good fight seemingly with no regard for his own life and well-being. He travels constantly, is always working, doesn’t sleep or rest enough and has no personal time. But at the same time, he gets results. He started the non-profit Partners in Health and is causing the public health community to rethink its strategies and methods.

Farmer is very driven and should be admired for his hard work and dedication. I think the author did a good job of showing that and also a good job of showing that maybe Farmer is a little too dedicated. This is a great read and is very inspiring. It’s a great thing to read during Peace Corps service, although the sustainability of his work (one of our primary goals) is questionable. Reading this will show you just how much difference one person can make in the world.

QUOTES: “We should all be criticizing the excesses of the powerful, if we can so readily demonstrate that these excesses hurt the poor and vulnerable.”

RATING: 7.5/10

The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan

Pollan, a professor of writing and avid gardener, looks at how plants have used humans as an evolutionary tool, playing to our desires in order to be more successful species or to increase their “fitness.” Specifically, Pollan examines four human desires: sweetness (apple), beauty (tulip), intoxication (marijuana) and control (potato). The intro is really good, but the excitement it generated didn’t really pan out. There is a lot of history in this book, including a lot about Johnny Appleseed, and the tulip’s role in the economy of the Netherlands. I often found myself getting bored in those first two chapters although they were quite interesting overall. The following sections on intoxication and control (through genetic engineering) I found fascinating.

Even though this book wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped it would be, it was still good. I think I just got my hopes up and thought it would be something it wasn’t. It is a very interesting plants-eye view of our world, showing that plants have manipulated us just as much as we’ve manipulated them. Plants that have satisfied our desires have greatly increased their numbers and their habitats. And after all, increasing numbers and habitats seems to be the evolutionary goal of all life.

After reading this, I am really excited to start gardening.

RATING: 7/10 (although the marijuana and potato chapters get a 9)

The Creation, E.O. Wilson

Written by one of the most respected and accomplished biologists of our time (one of Time magazine’s most important people of the 20^th century), The Creation is written as a letter from Wilson to a fictional member of the clergy, Pastor. It is an appeal for science and religion to put aside differences and work together to save The Creation (Earth, life, the biosphere…). There are lots of facts relating to biodiversity and the rapid loss of it since the agricultural revolution. His main argument / talking point is that humanity should be ascending toward nature instead of away from it as the majority of humanity has been doing.

Wilson, raised as a southern Baptist in Alabama, hopes to take advantage of the common goals of religion and science (stewardship, humanity) to reverse damages to the Earth. He clearly outlines what he thinks needs to be done and how it can be accomplished. His writing is easily understood and he has a gift for simplifying scientific ideas for the comprehension of those not familiar with them.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. Anyone interested in the ‘teaching of evolution vs. intelligent design’ debate should particularly read the last chapter (165-168). I wish I were smart enough to share my thoughts on the topic that clearly. I also love that he always capitalizes the word Nature. My only complaint, which is both personal and petty, is that for me, someone who has studied and taught these topics, I wished he would have gone deeper, although I realize that would be self-defeating in this book. Great read that left me feeling very positive and excited to get back all of our childhood roots of finding endless joy and wonder in Nature.

QUOTES: “Do you agree, Pastor, that the depth and complexity of living Nature still exceed human imagination? If god seems unknowable, so too does the rest of the biosphere.”

“It is not the nature of human beings to be cattle in glorified feed lots. Every person deserves the option to travel easily in and out of the complex and primal world that gave us birth.”

“…While most people around the world care about the natural environment, they don’t know why they care, or why they should feel responsible for it. By and large they have been unable to articulate what the stewardship of Nature means to them personally.”

RATING: 8/10