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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
“Fatal shipwreck after shipwreck, bankruptcy after bankruptcy, the expeditions continued, strung out on the thinnest hopes, with the most sanguine expectations… Men of character continued to sail to their death for men of greed.”
This book is beautifully written. Lopez did such a great job with immersive imagery that reading this book truly feels like an escape. I found it thought-provoking and insightful, particularly in the sections that discuss differences in language and perspective between the western explorers and the native communities in the Arctic.
The book is definitely lengthy and, in some parts, exhaustingly detailed. The entire 500-page book is only comprised of 9 long chapters (chapters 3, 8, and 9 were my personal favorites), so it's definitely not a light beach read but certainly worth the time. Overall, I found this book surprisingly enjoyable. Lopez did an excellent job describing not only the natural landscape but how it shapes the people in it.
Never before have I highlighted and written down so many quotes in a book before, but here are some personal favorites;
“We name everything. Then we fold the charts and the catalogs, as if… we were done with a competent description. But the land is not a painting; the image cannot be completed this way.”
“A fundamental difference between our culture and Eskimo culture is that we have irrevocably separated ourselves from the world that animals occupy. We have turned all animals and elements of the natural world into objects. For Eskimos, to make this separation is analogous to cutting oneself off from light and water.”
“It is a convention of Western thought to believe all cultures are compelled to explore, that human beings seek new land because their economies drive them onward. Lost in this valid but nevertheless impersonal observation is the notion of a simpler longing, of a human desire for a less complicated life, for fresh intimacy and renewal. These, too, draw us into new landscapes.”
“We sometimes mistake a rude life for a rude mind; raw meat for barbarism; lack of conversation for lack of imagination.”
“The geographical knowledge we enjoy today cost some men dearly. It is presumptions to think they all died believing they’d given their lives for something greater.”
“The darker side of the human spirit is not refined away by civilization. It is not something we are done with.”
This book is beautifully written. Lopez did such a great job with immersive imagery that reading this book truly feels like an escape. I found it thought-provoking and insightful, particularly in the sections that discuss differences in language and perspective between the western explorers and the native communities in the Arctic.
The book is definitely lengthy and, in some parts, exhaustingly detailed. The entire 500-page book is only comprised of 9 long chapters (chapters 3, 8, and 9 were my personal favorites), so it's definitely not a light beach read but certainly worth the time. Overall, I found this book surprisingly enjoyable. Lopez did an excellent job describing not only the natural landscape but how it shapes the people in it.
Never before have I highlighted and written down so many quotes in a book before, but here are some personal favorites;
“We name everything. Then we fold the charts and the catalogs, as if… we were done with a competent description. But the land is not a painting; the image cannot be completed this way.”
“A fundamental difference between our culture and Eskimo culture is that we have irrevocably separated ourselves from the world that animals occupy. We have turned all animals and elements of the natural world into objects. For Eskimos, to make this separation is analogous to cutting oneself off from light and water.”
“It is a convention of Western thought to believe all cultures are compelled to explore, that human beings seek new land because their economies drive them onward. Lost in this valid but nevertheless impersonal observation is the notion of a simpler longing, of a human desire for a less complicated life, for fresh intimacy and renewal. These, too, draw us into new landscapes.”
“We sometimes mistake a rude life for a rude mind; raw meat for barbarism; lack of conversation for lack of imagination.”
“The geographical knowledge we enjoy today cost some men dearly. It is presumptions to think they all died believing they’d given their lives for something greater.”
“The darker side of the human spirit is not refined away by civilization. It is not something we are done with.”
I truly enjoyed this book about the Arctic, it’s beauty and it’s darkness. Lopez describes the landscape and the animals in exquisite detail that was never boring. He tells the stories of the people that are native to the area as well as those that came to explore it. I particularly liked his descriptions of the art of the arctic.
WOW. This book is so many different things, connected by the author's personal experiences in the Artic. The first several chapters I found difficult - they are in depth explorations of some of the Artic's animals, including narwhals, polar bears, many different birds - and, to my unscientific mind, seemed overly deep in biological minutia. But then the Lopez turns to the land, the eco-system, its native peoples, the various explorations by outsiders. His descriptive powers are absolutely magnificent poetry, his philosophical and metaphysical meanderings are breath-taking, his view of the Artic - and man's relationship to all of it, land, flora, fauna, light and darkness, native civilizations and intruders - a majestic metaphor of man's struggle for the meaning in and of his life. For those of you willing to stay with this one - and I almost gave up several times in the early chapters - this is a masterpiece.
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Extremely readable and beautifully written nonfiction covering almost every aspect of the arctic. This book contains elements of biology, zoology, botany, archeology, anthropology, ecology, ornithology, geography, oceanography, meteorology, geology, cartography, and more. It includes segments on muskoxen, polar bears, beluga and bowhead whales, narwhals, seals, walruses, migration patterns, where its people originated and how they live, hunting, ice and snow, the aurora borealis, history of its exploration, and scientific expeditions. It exudes a sense of place, and the author’s love for this land is almost palpable.
Lopez goes beyond technical explanations, offering insight on the human responses to this stark and stunning environment. He covers topics not typically found in a science-based book, such as art, culture, emotion, imagination, spirituality, philosophy, and the capacity for astonishment. He cautions that the extremes of this terrain make it exceedingly susceptible to man-induced catastrophes, and that long-term thinking is needed to ensure we do not destroy it, as it recovers from harm more slowly than a temperate ecosystem. Lopez makes a cogent argument that deep-rooted ideas about seasons, time, space, distance, and light are not applicable to the arctic, and that different ways of thinking about these concepts are needed.
I have read numerous scientific books and I am fascinated by the ability to survive in extreme conditions. This book stands out for its ability to communicate the science involved in understanding the arctic, while simultaneously clarifying the limits of scientific thinking in gaining a true sense of the region. It marries science and sentiment extremely well, though it occasionally drifts into rather esoteric realms. Recommended to those interested in the arctic, environmentalism, nature, science, or the relationship of humans to the natural world.
Memorable passage:
“But the ethereal and timeless power of the land, that union of what is beautiful with what is terrifying, is insistent. It penetrates all cultures, archaic and modern. The land gets inside us; and we must decide one way or another what this means, what we will do about it.”
Lopez goes beyond technical explanations, offering insight on the human responses to this stark and stunning environment. He covers topics not typically found in a science-based book, such as art, culture, emotion, imagination, spirituality, philosophy, and the capacity for astonishment. He cautions that the extremes of this terrain make it exceedingly susceptible to man-induced catastrophes, and that long-term thinking is needed to ensure we do not destroy it, as it recovers from harm more slowly than a temperate ecosystem. Lopez makes a cogent argument that deep-rooted ideas about seasons, time, space, distance, and light are not applicable to the arctic, and that different ways of thinking about these concepts are needed.
I have read numerous scientific books and I am fascinated by the ability to survive in extreme conditions. This book stands out for its ability to communicate the science involved in understanding the arctic, while simultaneously clarifying the limits of scientific thinking in gaining a true sense of the region. It marries science and sentiment extremely well, though it occasionally drifts into rather esoteric realms. Recommended to those interested in the arctic, environmentalism, nature, science, or the relationship of humans to the natural world.
Memorable passage:
“But the ethereal and timeless power of the land, that union of what is beautiful with what is terrifying, is insistent. It penetrates all cultures, archaic and modern. The land gets inside us; and we must decide one way or another what this means, what we will do about it.”
A masterpiece
To say that this is perhaps the greatest book about land ever written would not be an overstatement. Barry Lopez is a thoughtful, caring, wise author who never overstates. He feels and thinks from a large heart.
To say that this is perhaps the greatest book about land ever written would not be an overstatement. Barry Lopez is a thoughtful, caring, wise author who never overstates. He feels and thinks from a large heart.
A very-well written book about the author's time in the Arctic. Each chapter covers an different topic.
adventurous
informative
reflective
slow-paced
° ARCTIC DREAMS °
by Barry Lopez, 1986.
This National Book Award winning title follows Lopez's field work in the Far North of Alaska, Nunavut, and Greenland. Other Far North locations (Siberia, Svalbard) are frequently mentioned, but Lopez's own observations were in North America.
Lopez writes alongside wildlife biologists (individual chapters are dedicated to Arctic mammals like narwhal, musk oxen, and the polar bear with frequent mentions of lemmings, Arctic foxes, and various bird species), and linguistic, archaeological, and ethnological studies on the Inuit. Written in 1986, Lopez uses the outdated and now derogatory 'Eskimo' term throughout the book, for descriptions of the people, language, and culture. He includes a lengthy note as to his decision to do so... Again, 1986.
Scene setting / painting is a Lopez specialty, and in this book he relies on visuals for his descriptions of light, textures, and structure. He regularly likens scenes to visual artists and architecture in European and American art history.
The first 3/4 of the book have this natural progression of landscape, animals, and people; while the last quarter focuses on Arctic exploration, settler colonization, and resource extractions of the Far North. The historical notes were interesting, but I felt that the last chapter was a departure from the earlier sensory lyrical descriptions; while it was thematically related, the tone shift made it feel like a different book.
A classic of 20th-century nature books, and on my TBR for 20+ years (my goodness...)
by Barry Lopez, 1986.
This National Book Award winning title follows Lopez's field work in the Far North of Alaska, Nunavut, and Greenland. Other Far North locations (Siberia, Svalbard) are frequently mentioned, but Lopez's own observations were in North America.
Lopez writes alongside wildlife biologists (individual chapters are dedicated to Arctic mammals like narwhal, musk oxen, and the polar bear with frequent mentions of lemmings, Arctic foxes, and various bird species), and linguistic, archaeological, and ethnological studies on the Inuit. Written in 1986, Lopez uses the outdated and now derogatory 'Eskimo' term throughout the book, for descriptions of the people, language, and culture. He includes a lengthy note as to his decision to do so... Again, 1986.
Scene setting / painting is a Lopez specialty, and in this book he relies on visuals for his descriptions of light, textures, and structure. He regularly likens scenes to visual artists and architecture in European and American art history.
The first 3/4 of the book have this natural progression of landscape, animals, and people; while the last quarter focuses on Arctic exploration, settler colonization, and resource extractions of the Far North. The historical notes were interesting, but I felt that the last chapter was a departure from the earlier sensory lyrical descriptions; while it was thematically related, the tone shift made it feel like a different book.
A classic of 20th-century nature books, and on my TBR for 20+ years (my goodness...)
reflective
slow-paced