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cody240fc's review against another edition
4.0
Technically it is a biography of Humboldt, but most of my favorite parts of this book involved the tangents in which Wulf illustrates Humboldt's impact in the world of science, politics and the birth of environmentalism. In fact you cannot really call them tangents. Yes, this book covers Humboldt's life in its entirety, but not to the microscopic level you often see with typical biographies. And there are two significant chapters that follow Humboldt's death. So Humboldt is the center of gravity to which this narrative revolves around. Quite good. Strong four stars.
I look forward to reading Wulf's newest book that was just published this year.
I look forward to reading Wulf's newest book that was just published this year.
brighroosh's review against another edition
4.0
Anrea Wulf ties together the life and writings/artwork of Alexander von Humboldt with the naturalists/writers/scientists who followed in his footsteps. Much the same way that Humboldt tied together his love of nature with poetry, scientific research, exploration, and the first stirrings of environmentalism.
How fascinating to learn of his relationships with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Thomas Jefferson, Charles Darwin, and Simon Bolivar, and how heartwarming to learn of his praise and assistance to his aspiring students throughout his long life. The 100th anniversary of his long life was commemorated throughout the world.
Wulf's tremendous research allows us to glimpse notes taken in the margins of books written by Humboldt (such as "Cosmos") by his devotees: Henry David Thoreau, George Perkins Marsh, Ernst Haeckel, and John Muir. All who were influenced by Humboldt and incorporated his ideas in their lives.
One of the astonishing things I learned was about how Haeckel's detailed drawings of microscopic sea creatures influenced the Art Nouveau movement. Everything from electric light switches to the entrance gate at the Paris World Fair of 1900. Who knew? Haeckel had embraced Humboldt's writings and they guided his life's work.
Bravo Ms. Wulf!
How fascinating to learn of his relationships with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Thomas Jefferson, Charles Darwin, and Simon Bolivar, and how heartwarming to learn of his praise and assistance to his aspiring students throughout his long life. The 100th anniversary of his long life was commemorated throughout the world.
Wulf's tremendous research allows us to glimpse notes taken in the margins of books written by Humboldt (such as "Cosmos") by his devotees: Henry David Thoreau, George Perkins Marsh, Ernst Haeckel, and John Muir. All who were influenced by Humboldt and incorporated his ideas in their lives.
One of the astonishing things I learned was about how Haeckel's detailed drawings of microscopic sea creatures influenced the Art Nouveau movement. Everything from electric light switches to the entrance gate at the Paris World Fair of 1900. Who knew? Haeckel had embraced Humboldt's writings and they guided his life's work.
Bravo Ms. Wulf!
savento95's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
andrewspink's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
slow-paced
3.5
In the beginning, the book was a bit heavy going, but after a while the narrative took over and I read it with pleasure. Humbolt was clearly an interesting and important man and having worked as a field ecologist, I could certainly relate to a lot of his exploits. In parts the book verges on an hagiography, with a stream of superlatives about how wonderful he was, and that was a sometimes a bit much. But, to be fair, Andrea Wulf also points out some of his shortcomings, like being disorganised and liking the sound of his own voice too much.
She is at pains to point to his active opposition to slavery (which was by no means normal at that time) but rather skates over the effect that he and his fellow naturalists had on preparing the ground for colonial exploitation. The treatment of Native Americans (bizarrely called 'Indiaanen' in my version, the Dutch translation) is condemned, but Wulf still presents it as obviously within the colonists' rights to conquer their land.
There are a huge number of footnotes, but (fortunately or otherwise) they are missing in my e-book. Also the publisher has not taken care that the photos are properly presented in the e-book, they are so small as to be almost useless, which is a pity.
I was not so sure about the last two chapters. It is good to see that he also influenced people after his death, but I did get the impression that it was wandering off topic and the relationship between e.g. Walden and Humbolt was perhaps less direct than Wulf implies. The book is very long, it might have been better to have stopped with Humbolt's death.
When I was a student, studying botany and ecology, I think Humbolt might have been mentioned in passing, but no more than that. This book does a great job in showing what a contribution he made and how it important it is to remember that. In many ways he was a very modern thinker and Wulf has done us a favour by reminding us of his life and work.
She is at pains to point to his active opposition to slavery (which was by no means normal at that time) but rather skates over the effect that he and his fellow naturalists had on preparing the ground for colonial exploitation. The treatment of Native Americans (bizarrely called 'Indiaanen' in my version, the Dutch translation) is condemned, but Wulf still presents it as obviously within the colonists' rights to conquer their land.
There are a huge number of footnotes, but (fortunately or otherwise) they are missing in my e-book. Also the publisher has not taken care that the photos are properly presented in the e-book, they are so small as to be almost useless, which is a pity.
I was not so sure about the last two chapters. It is good to see that he also influenced people after his death, but I did get the impression that it was wandering off topic and the relationship between e.g. Walden and Humbolt was perhaps less direct than Wulf implies. The book is very long, it might have been better to have stopped with Humbolt's death.
When I was a student, studying botany and ecology, I think Humbolt might have been mentioned in passing, but no more than that. This book does a great job in showing what a contribution he made and how it important it is to remember that. In many ways he was a very modern thinker and Wulf has done us a favour by reminding us of his life and work.
cutcamera's review against another edition
3.0
What do the Humboldt Current along the western coast of South America, Humboldt Park in Chicago, Illinois, the Pico Humboldt in the Sierra Nevada de Merida, Venezuela and hundreds of other locations around the globe have in common? They’re all named after Alexander von Humboldt, naturalist, adventurer and historical hero.
In this long-winded telling of Alexander von Humboldt’s story, we’re taken through his life and adventures – both the exciting and the mundane. Humboldt traveled on four continents, wrote more than 36 books and was the first to promote an interconnectedness of nature, seeing it as one whole. He theorized the spreading of the continental landmasses through plate tectonics, mapped the distribution of plants on three continents, charted the way air and water move to create bands of climate at different latitudes and altitudes, observed how deforestation changed local climate, alluded to evolution and so much more. His works and theories influenced some of the brightest minds and most well-known thinkers of the era, including Darwin.
The book ends with a brief explanation of why we should care about him today, which is good because, despite how exciting Humboldt’s life was and how important his influence still is, you might wonder why you dedicated so much time to hearing his story when a lengthy article could have done the job just as well. With that said, I’m glad I took the time to find out who he was, and how important his impact and views were – I just wish I had learned about him in school.
In this long-winded telling of Alexander von Humboldt’s story, we’re taken through his life and adventures – both the exciting and the mundane. Humboldt traveled on four continents, wrote more than 36 books and was the first to promote an interconnectedness of nature, seeing it as one whole. He theorized the spreading of the continental landmasses through plate tectonics, mapped the distribution of plants on three continents, charted the way air and water move to create bands of climate at different latitudes and altitudes, observed how deforestation changed local climate, alluded to evolution and so much more. His works and theories influenced some of the brightest minds and most well-known thinkers of the era, including Darwin.
The book ends with a brief explanation of why we should care about him today, which is good because, despite how exciting Humboldt’s life was and how important his influence still is, you might wonder why you dedicated so much time to hearing his story when a lengthy article could have done the job just as well. With that said, I’m glad I took the time to find out who he was, and how important his impact and views were – I just wish I had learned about him in school.