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veronicaellis1's review
3.0
I loved: McPhee's breakdowns of geology, time, backstories of outcrops, fault and plate placements, theories of continental drift, Protopangea, pangea, and mountain ranges from California to the Apenines to the Andes to the Himalayas and LITERALLY everything in-between. I loved the descriptions of California mining camps, their sites and situations, and the characters passing through. I loved the flurried and panicked descriptions of earthquakes in 1906 and 1989, the people and places and things strewn about, fault lines themselves.
But I didn't love this book. I really wanted to. I debated giving 4 stars, because it's John, and he does some great stuff here, but I didn't feel drawn to any aspect of it — which is weird to me, considering I've lived in California my whole life, have been a devotée of the New Yorker for just about that long, and spend a considerable amount of time by the side of a Berkeley-bred geologist.
Maybe I read too quickly, and another go-round will lend itself to a more fulfilling, in-depth understanding of everything he presents. Maybe I need to go to the rocks myself, and really think about them with this book in hand. I find I have so many more questions than I did before starting the book (I'll ask Owen later), but I guess it's like the central point of this book, a concept that my twelfth-grade math teacher once said to us: "the more you learn about something, the more you realize you know nothing about it." Which now that I think of it is kind of an exciting thing. So I'll think more about it like that, and consult my introductory manual and dog-eared pages, and while I felt more like a passerby of this book than someone involved in it, all of this is fleeting anyhow. But I did learn a lot from this book — at least I know what questions to ask.
But I didn't love this book. I really wanted to. I debated giving 4 stars, because it's John, and he does some great stuff here, but I didn't feel drawn to any aspect of it — which is weird to me, considering I've lived in California my whole life, have been a devotée of the New Yorker for just about that long, and spend a considerable amount of time by the side of a Berkeley-bred geologist.
Maybe I read too quickly, and another go-round will lend itself to a more fulfilling, in-depth understanding of everything he presents. Maybe I need to go to the rocks myself, and really think about them with this book in hand. I find I have so many more questions than I did before starting the book (I'll ask Owen later), but I guess it's like the central point of this book, a concept that my twelfth-grade math teacher once said to us: "the more you learn about something, the more you realize you know nothing about it." Which now that I think of it is kind of an exciting thing. So I'll think more about it like that, and consult my introductory manual and dog-eared pages, and while I felt more like a passerby of this book than someone involved in it, all of this is fleeting anyhow. But I did learn a lot from this book — at least I know what questions to ask.
summermsmith's review
4.0
At first, I thought this book might be a snooze fest, and I didn't know hardly anything about geology prior to reading this. However, it was recommended to me and in the end I'm very glad I read it. I felt very adrift the first couple of chapters but soon got the lingo of a geologist and think I learned quite a bit. It was fascinating and I learned that ophiolites are a big and cool thing in geology. They are basically are the force behind our current land masses.
It also helped that a majority of the book dealt with areas of California I have lived in, so picturing the land masses he was talking about were very clear in my head. I listened to this but I wouldn't recommend doing that for someone who has not lived in California for several years. You wouldn't take as much away from it, because I imagine the physical book would have more images to help you out.
I loved all the side stories and really appreciated that the author had a dry as dirt sense of humor. I will be checking out the rest of the books in his series.
It also helped that a majority of the book dealt with areas of California I have lived in, so picturing the land masses he was talking about were very clear in my head. I listened to this but I wouldn't recommend doing that for someone who has not lived in California for several years. You wouldn't take as much away from it, because I imagine the physical book would have more images to help you out.
I loved all the side stories and really appreciated that the author had a dry as dirt sense of humor. I will be checking out the rest of the books in his series.
ursulamonarch's review against another edition
I'm not sure why, but I absorbed almost nothing from this book!
bashbashbashbash's review against another edition
5.0
I became a McPhee fan fourteen years ago when I first read "Basin and Range", and I'm so pleased that at long last I decided to return to another of his geology books, because "Assembling California" is stellar. Geology is really a kind of magic – at least, insofar as it is difficult, sometimes impossible, for people to fully comprehend. McPhee's book crystallizes that magic using wonderfully specific prose and often-beautiful sometimes-funny turns of phrase (McPheeisms, as I think of them) while introducing a cast of characters metamorphic and human both. McPhee expects the reader to be able to follow him, employing geological terms without definition, and while reading I often consulted a dictionary. I've come away with a richer understanding of the movements of the continental plates, the creation of California (island arcs, friends – it's mostly island arcs), an awe of ophiolites, and a vindication of my conviction that the state of California is geologically and geographically unique (and thus uniquely beautiful). The final essay about the Loma Prieta earthquake gave me goosebumps. Maybe that's because I experienced the earthquake firsthand, but I put most of it down to McPhee's excellent writing.
There's a style here that I rarely see any more in writing. McPhee is deliberate, often slow, but it burns steady and strong and builds into these quiet and beautiful endings. It's pretty wonderful.
It's not often that I find myself wanting to re-read non-fiction again – even if the topic is stellar, the prose usually isn't, but "Assembling California" left me wishing the book wasn't over, earmarking specific chapters to revisit, and planning a trip to the science museum so I can look at some rocks.
There's a style here that I rarely see any more in writing. McPhee is deliberate, often slow, but it burns steady and strong and builds into these quiet and beautiful endings. It's pretty wonderful.
It's not often that I find myself wanting to re-read non-fiction again – even if the topic is stellar, the prose usually isn't, but "Assembling California" left me wishing the book wasn't over, earmarking specific chapters to revisit, and planning a trip to the science museum so I can look at some rocks.
emibach's review against another edition
4.0
This book backs up all I was taught as a child about California geology — it’s neat, but incredibly frightening. John McPhee breaks down California geology and plate tectonics so well you’d think he was a geologist. I was especially taken with his chapters about the Sierras/foothills and the Loma Prieta earthquake.
darwin8u's review against another edition
3.0
“He said, “Americans look upon water as an inexhaustible resource. It’s not, if you’re mining it. Arizona is mining groundwater.”
― John McPhee, Assembling California
This year I've been reading the separate segments of McPhee's Pulitzer Prize winning 1998 opus [b:Annals of the Former World|78|Annals of the Former World|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924382s/78.jpg|88676], but skipped (for now) [b:Rising from the Plains|83|Rising from the Plains|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1350425564s/83.jpg|1391039] because I was going to be driving with my brother from San Francisco to Mesa, AZ. We were going to hang in Berkeley and hit Yosemite, Sequoia, etc., on our trip South and East and I figured it was a perfect time to read 'Assembling California'.
Like all McPhee writing, 'Assembling California 'is an amazing conglomeration of good writing, great characters, and interesting technical facts. However, unlike the earlier books in this series ( [b:Basin and Range|19894|Basin and Range|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388755256s/19894.jpg|1665814], [b:In Suspect Terrain|54972|In Suspect Terrain|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1332449042s/54972.jpg|75439]) it just doesn't set up as nicely. I'm not sure if it had more to do with the messiness of California's geology, the limits of Eldridge Moores as an engaging character, or if McPhee had just grown a bit tired of his own Great I-80 Geology Project. He is engaging, but there just wasn't as much sparkle or heat as with Karen Kleinspehn, Kenneth Deffeyes, or Anita Harris. A solid McPhee and a good addition to the series, just not the strongest piece. I hope that 'Rising from the Plains' works out a bit better.
― John McPhee, Assembling California
This year I've been reading the separate segments of McPhee's Pulitzer Prize winning 1998 opus [b:Annals of the Former World|78|Annals of the Former World|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924382s/78.jpg|88676], but skipped (for now) [b:Rising from the Plains|83|Rising from the Plains|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1350425564s/83.jpg|1391039] because I was going to be driving with my brother from San Francisco to Mesa, AZ. We were going to hang in Berkeley and hit Yosemite, Sequoia, etc., on our trip South and East and I figured it was a perfect time to read 'Assembling California'.
Like all McPhee writing, 'Assembling California 'is an amazing conglomeration of good writing, great characters, and interesting technical facts. However, unlike the earlier books in this series ( [b:Basin and Range|19894|Basin and Range|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388755256s/19894.jpg|1665814], [b:In Suspect Terrain|54972|In Suspect Terrain|John McPhee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1332449042s/54972.jpg|75439]) it just doesn't set up as nicely. I'm not sure if it had more to do with the messiness of California's geology, the limits of Eldridge Moores as an engaging character, or if McPhee had just grown a bit tired of his own Great I-80 Geology Project. He is engaging, but there just wasn't as much sparkle or heat as with Karen Kleinspehn, Kenneth Deffeyes, or Anita Harris. A solid McPhee and a good addition to the series, just not the strongest piece. I hope that 'Rising from the Plains' works out a bit better.
davely's review against another edition
3.0
Finally finished this book. McPhee does a great job talking about the geology of Northern California and the geologic history of California as it came together and grew against the western margin of the North American plate.
Apparently this book is a best seller, but I'm not too sure how exciting of a read it would be to someone who isn't too familiar with geology or even locations in Northern California. I did find his descriptions of ophialite sequences (basically ocean crust material) found in California and Cypress helped lend support to the relatively young theory of plate tectonics.
Towards the end of the book are many unpublished accounts of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, giving a hint of what San Francisco could be in for when the next large temblor decides to strike. Rather intense and humbling.
Apparently this book is a best seller, but I'm not too sure how exciting of a read it would be to someone who isn't too familiar with geology or even locations in Northern California. I did find his descriptions of ophialite sequences (basically ocean crust material) found in California and Cypress helped lend support to the relatively young theory of plate tectonics.
Towards the end of the book are many unpublished accounts of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, giving a hint of what San Francisco could be in for when the next large temblor decides to strike. Rather intense and humbling.
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