Publisher's Weekly Review
Technical writer McKay positions the mammoth as a "focusing problem for a scientific revolution" between the late 17th and early 19th centuries, taking the idea that figuring out what mammoths are "required new tools and new ways of looking at nature and the past." It's a well-organized history of science, with McKay delving deeply into primary sources, some uncovered quite recently, to trace the development of thinking about the prehistoric origins of northern ivory and massive bones. That thinking, McKay posits, was driven by disparate worldviews that led, for example, ancient Romans to envision such bones as derived from giants and devout Christian Europeans to see them as remnants of the Flood; by lively intellectual debate based in both personality and science; by trade-driven cultural exchange; and by physical discoveries that culminated in the 1801 recovery of a complete mammoth skeleton. McKay shows how, in order to understand the mammoth, natural philosophers needed to develop the concepts of evolution and extinction and to make advances in anatomy, classification, and geology. He keeps his narrative human centered, maintaining respect for scientists' discovery processes even when their ideas turned out to be incorrect. McKay avoids probing modern research on the mammoth despite his personal enthusiasm for the subject, making it clear to the end that his story is not about ancient creatures, but about how humans approach the world's mysteries. Agent: Jessica Papin, Dystel & Goderich (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Humans and mammoths coexisted until 10,000 years ago, but in the intervening years, humans lost that knowledge, even though they continued to find mammoth bones and trade in their ivory. In the seventeenth century, the recovery of teeth and bones of giant land mammals validated, for some, the existence of the mythical creatures described in the Christian Bible and local folklore until a modern elephant skeleton was first seen in Europe, and observational connections were made. But how could elephants, hot-weather animals, have gotten to North America and Europe? The great deluge described in the Bible was one explanation. Giant bones from a similar time frame were found in North America. Russian expeditions to map routes to Asia led explorers through some of the most fertile areas for mammoth ivory and bones. A nearly complete mammoth found in Siberian glacial ice helped to fill gaps in scientific knowledge and place this extinct species in the animal kingdom. McKay masterfully weaves an intricate story of the events, politics, people, and scientific development associated with the rediscovery of mammoths.--Kaplan, Dan Copyright 2017 Booklist
New York Review of Books Review
GHOSTS OF THE TSUNAMI: Death and Life in Japan's Disaster Zone, by Richard Lloyd Parry. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $27.) A British journalist, long resident in Tokyo, probes the emotional and spiritual effects of the catastrophe that killed thousands of men, women and children in 2011. THE DOOMSDAY MACHINE: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner, by Daniel Ellsberg. (Bloomsbury, $30.) When the Cold War ended in 1991, nuclear weapons vanished from the minds of most Americans. But Ellsberg, the former Defense Department analyst who leaked the Pentagon Papers, sounds an impassioned alarm, warning that the dangers of nuclear conflict remain. MEGAFIRE: The Race to Extinguish a Deadly Epidemic of Flame, by Michael Kodas. (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $28.) An account of the misguided history and dire results of America's wildfire management policy that also captures the Sisyphean struggles of the men and women who battle blazes for a living. PALE RIDER: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World, by Laura Spinney. (PublicAffairs, $28.) The Spanish flu tends to be overshadowed by World War I in our cultural memory, but Spinney, a novelist and science writer, draws on medical mysteries and haunting vignettes to give the pandemic its due. THE GREAT QUAKE: How the Biggest Earthquake in North America Changed Our Understanding of the Planet, by Henry Fountain. (Crown, $28.) In 1964, Alaska experienced an earthquake so powerful that, in one town, the resulting tidal wave swept away a third of the residents. Fountain avidly explains both the science and the human toll. WINTER OF ICE AND IRON, by Rachel Neumeier. (Saga, $29.99.) The plot of Neumeier's epic fantasy of magic and political intrigue feels familiar, but her writing has a spare, haunting quality that makes up for it. The characters hook; this is more satisfying comfort food than most. THE ENDS OF THE WORLD: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth's Past Mass Extinctions, by Peter Brannen. (Ecco, $27.99.) Earth has undergone five major mass extinctions and Brannen tells us about all the destruction in great detail. DISCOVERING THE MAMMOTH: A Tale of Giants, Unicorns, Ivory, and the Birth of a New Science, by John J. McKay. (Pegasus Books, $27.95.) McKay examines our long fascination with the mysterious, extinct pachyderms that once roamed the earth. INHERITORS OF THE EARTH: How Nature Is Thriving in an Age of Extinction, by Chris D. Thomas. (PublicAffairs, $28.) Perhaps our "ecological despair," as Thomas puts it, is overblown; he argues we are seeing a sixth evolution rather than a sixth extinction. The full reviews of these and other recent books are on the web: nytimes.com/books
Library Journal Review
When people first encountered the extinct mammoth remains, opinions varied on what these creatures were. In a thorough look at the beginning of paleontology, especially cultural influence and assumptions, technical writer McKay traces how people interpreted this mystery. The author organized centuries of sometimes messy findings into a coherent report spanning continents. History enthusiasts will appreciate learning how the mammoth and other discoveries were documented or lost. Shipwrecks, fire, and improper preservation destroyed evidence; inaccuracies in maps, sketches, and written descriptions impeded comprehension. Readers will find it humbling that the greatest minds of past centuries were adamantly wrong and will enjoy reading about their rationales: of course, it made sense to believe that mammoths lived underground and couldn't survive upon reaching the earth's surface. Similarly, those who held to a literal interpretation of the Bible assumed that the mammoth skulls belonged to giants who once roamed the land (the concept of a defunct species would have implied a flaw in God's design, a heretical thought). VERDICT For those seeking a scholarly, straightforward examination of paleontology's origins and key players.-Elissa Cooper, Helen Plum Memorial Lib., Lombard, IL © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.