"From the author of 1491--the best-selling study of the pre-Columbian Americas--a deeply engaging new history that explores the most momentous biological event since the death of the dinosaurs. More than 200 million years ago, geological forces split apart the continents. Isolated from each other, the two halves of the world developed totally different suites of plants and animals. Columbus's voyages brought them back together--and marked the beginning...

A pioneering and groundbreaking work of narrative nonfiction that offers a dramatic new perspective on the history of humankind, this text shows how through millennia, the mosquito has been the single most powerful force in determining humanity's fate.

"Global warming is one of the greatest dangers mankind faces today. Even as temperatures increase, sea levels rise, and natural disasters escalate, our current environmental crisis feels difficult to predict and understand. But climate change and its effects on us are not new. In a bold narrative that spans centuries and continents, Peter Frankopan argues that nature has always played a fundamental role in the writing of history. From the fall of...

Journey from Flevopolder, a Scandinavian region reclaimed from the sea, to Aokigahara, the Demon Forest of Japan and the world's second most popular spot for committing suicide. Elborough and Horsfield take you on a voyage to the world's most incredible destinations, and explore the truths and myths behind their creation. They exist as symbols of worship, testaments to kingships, and reflections on man's own relationship with the world around us.

"It has been nearly 60 years since the publication of Silent Spring, in which Rachel Carson brought to light evidence of the devastating ecological effects of pesticides. This book, by Frank von Hippel, is a sweeping history of these chemicals and our complicated relationship with them. It shows how they've made the modern world possible, while at the same time threatening its essential fabric. "This book starts with a tragedy that led scientists...

"1493 for Young People by Charles C. Mann tells the gripping story of globalization through travel, trade, colonization, and migration from its beginnings in the fifteenth century to the present. How did the lowly potato plant feed the poor across Europe and then cause the deaths of millions? How did the rubber plant enable industrialization? What is the connection between malaria, slavery, and the outcome of the American Revolution? How did the fabled...