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grahamlibrarian's review
4.0
Should be required reading for all high school science students. Love Bill Nye and love his approach and optimism of the ingenuity of the human race. In the world we live in today it's nice that there are still champions of science and engineering. Too bad we hear so little from them and so much from other less educated less optimistic people.
hotlizard's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
3.75
Love me some Nye. This read was focused on the multitude of ways we can improve our climate in both small individual and large corporate governmental ways. A little dated but still wonderful audio.
completecollectedkate's review
4.0
This was fantastic as an audiobook. Bill Nye at his most Bill Nye-ish, which means I had to keep rewinding either because I was laughing or because I had to stop and tell someone else the mind boggling fact I'd just heard. Some of the earlier chapters detailing the ways energy is produced were a little confusing to follow on audio, but that's probably user error on my part. (I'm very under-educated in most of the sciences, especially in physics, so I should've had google on standby.)
Covers the hows and whys of ways to combat climate change, with solutions from public works projects to diy home improvements, and the myriad ways climate change is detrimental to all of us.
I can't help but wonder what would be different about this book if it'd been released now. Just a year later so much has changed, and while his optimistic tone and ambitious ideas were honestly refreshing to hear, I'd be curious to read a new preface or introduction written in this new political climate.
Covers the hows and whys of ways to combat climate change, with solutions from public works projects to diy home improvements, and the myriad ways climate change is detrimental to all of us.
I can't help but wonder what would be different about this book if it'd been released now. Just a year later so much has changed, and while his optimistic tone and ambitious ideas were honestly refreshing to hear, I'd be curious to read a new preface or introduction written in this new political climate.
lasdald's review
4.0
In general, I quite liked this book. And I certainly learned a lot from it! A few minor criticisms: I felt like Nye tried to pack too much in. While he did a good job of going into reasonable "intro" detail on each topic, it could be a bit overwhelming. Additionally, the humour he employed is better suited to his TV appearances; it felt a bit forced in the book and I found myself rolling my eyes at some of the jokes, especially the frequent puns, which he seemed to feel the need to point out. But the book got me thinking and has given me some ideas of things I can do now to start reducing my own environmental footprint. I liked how it was broken down into manageable sections, giving the reader an idea of something to start with and then maybe they could come back to the book later to discover the next thing they could be involved in. I would highly recommend this book to people who were fans of the "Bill Nye the Science Guy" show as kids and are now looking for the "next level of Nye," if you will.
amrabad's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Definitely do the audiobook instead of physical book. If you don’t want personal opinions, this is not for you. Lots of science, but also his opinions.
kmfeeney's review
3.0
DNF. The writing is fantastic. It's totally understandable even though some of the ideas are complex but I was not enjoying the subject matter. I'm actually really sad but hopefully one day I'll be able to go back and read it.
tamaralgage1's review
4.0
This is my 2nd book on environmental solution in the past few months. But my problem is the same with both books, the science seems to go zipping over my head. In my heart, I know there is good information here as to what I should do and have this overpowering desire to make a spreadsheet of options. But I listened to the book and was intrigued with the various ideas. In the end, I need the Cliff Notes version that summarizes what do I need to do.
I have given this book 4 stars as a compromise to the alternatives. For example, I would give it a 3 for lack of being user friendly and other comments which would just be embarrassing showing my poor brain capacity. The subject gets a 5 because I believe it's important and the authors repeated attempts to dumb the subject down to the average Joe or Jane. But alas, this book just proves there is not a easy solution. It small things in combination which must be sustained over time.
I have given this book 4 stars as a compromise to the alternatives. For example, I would give it a 3 for lack of being user friendly and other comments which would just be embarrassing showing my poor brain capacity. The subject gets a 5 because I believe it's important and the authors repeated attempts to dumb the subject down to the average Joe or Jane. But alas, this book just proves there is not a easy solution. It small things in combination which must be sustained over time.
servemethesky's review
2.0
Oooof. Bill Nye the Science Guy, I had no idea you could be so painfully boring. I thought I should learn more about climate change and that Bill Nye would make it easy to understand and interesting to read about. Nope. I was woefully wrong. I started this book in November 2016 and finished in January 2018, so I think that gives you a sense of how not-fun this was to read.
Bill gets into a lot of technical detail- a surprising amount, really- and gets very preachy about it while he's at it. He basically seems to hate anyone who doesn't think like he does about the problems and potential solutions for climate change. His attitude is very holier-than-thou, and it was not appreciated.
Also, sadly, his jokes just weren't funny. Many of them were cringe-worthy.
I'm not trying to say I loathed this book- it just wasn't my favorite and I don't plan to read more of Bill Nye's books. I guess my lesson learned is that I shouldn't bother trying to read and enjoy nonfiction books about science.
Bill gets into a lot of technical detail- a surprising amount, really- and gets very preachy about it while he's at it. He basically seems to hate anyone who doesn't think like he does about the problems and potential solutions for climate change. His attitude is very holier-than-thou, and it was not appreciated.
Also, sadly, his jokes just weren't funny. Many of them were cringe-worthy.
I'm not trying to say I loathed this book- it just wasn't my favorite and I don't plan to read more of Bill Nye's books. I guess my lesson learned is that I shouldn't bother trying to read and enjoy nonfiction books about science.