The Invention Of Nature by Andrea Wulf

 

The Invention Of Nature narrates the life and times of Alexander von Humboldt.  He was born in Germany in 1769 to a wealthy family.  He was trained as a mining engineer but felt stifled by his surroundings.  From the time he was a young boy he longed to travel to other countries and see things not found in his environment.  When his mother died in his twenties and he came into his inheritance, he had his chance.  

Humboldt went on expedition to South America.  He reveled in the new vistas, the plants, animals and even insects never seen before.  He climbed mountains, navigated rivers and crossed the endless plains.  His expedition lasted five years and more than just exploring, he began to sense a connection that tied all the earth together and was new to thoughts of the world and our relationship to it.

When he returned to Europe, his new ideas took hold everywhere.  He was revered as the most important scientist of his time and extremely influential.  Humboldt lived into his eighties and his work influenced other scientists such as Darwin, John Muir and Thoreau as well as poets and authors such as  Goethe and Wordsworth.  Although he is almost forgotten today in common knowledge, he is still considered one of the most forward thinkers of his time and his theory of the earth's interconnectedness fuels the environmental movement.

This book has won many prizes.  It was a Best Book of the Year by such publications as The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Economist, Publishers Weekly, The Telegraph, The Spectator and many others.  The author, Andrea Wulf, is a German-British writer who focuses on scientific works.  She is interested in nature and how it is perceived and plants.  Her work focuses on the influence Humboldt had on thoughts about the earth during his time and how his work is still felt today in the environmental movement.  This book is recommended for nonfiction readers interested in science.