Rachel Carson (1907–1964)

Writing in the 1950s Rachel Carson combined marine biology with a warning about the dangers of global warming. She provided considerable biological detail about the fauna and flora (animals and plants) found in the strip of land between the tide lines, i.e., the area between the lines created by low tides and high tides along the North American east coast from Newfoundland to the southern tip of Florida. This long stretch of coastline naturally breaks into three parts: rocky shores in the north, sandy beaches in the middle, and coral reefs in the south, and she discussed in detail the plant and animal life in each section. This book would make an excellent field guide, and the fact it is still available for purchase in bookstores in 2024 adds considerable credibility to its relevance and soundness.

Readers also benefit from the detailed drawings of illustrator Bob Hines.… (more)

Book 268. Also 36/100 books that changed the world. Rachel Carson. "Silent Spring took Carson four years to complete. It meticulously described how DDT entered the food chain and accumulated in the fatty tissues of animals, including human beings, and caused cancer and genetic damage. A single application on a crop, she wrote, killed insects for weeks and months—not only the targeted insects but countless more—and remained toxic in the environment even after it was diluted by rainwater. Carson concluded that DDT and other pesticides had irrevocably harmed animals and had contaminated the world's food supply. The book's most haunting and famous chapter, "A Fable for Tomorrow," depicted a nameless American town where all life—from fish to birds to apple blossoms to human children—had been "silenced" by the insidious effects of DDT."
Jo Barkworth do you know this book?… (more)