The first rule of popular science is to reveal the wonder and mystery of the world. For that reason, Sentient (Picador), written by photographer and wildlife film-maker Jackie Higgins, is my pick of the year. According to my interviews with many readers, I select other four newly-published books in 2022.
Delicious
This book describes how our ancestors hunted and consumed ancient animals such as mammoths, bison, giant camels and many more now-extinct species. The diet of the Clovis peoples of North America was a menu described as "a record of a lost world". This book explains how our dinners robbed the world of so many large animals. It gives inspiration for how modern humans can be at peace with nature.
The New Climate War
In 1999, Mann published a graph showing the rapid post-industrial rise in global temperatures. Two decades later, his book The New Climate War remains convinced that we can prevent climate change. This book sets out a common-sense approach to carbon pricing and a revision of the Green New Deal. Of course, there are still many people who deny that climate change is even happening.
The Geodesic Dome
Physicist Kate Greene imagines that she spends four months in a geodesic dome in Hawaii, with five other people, to mimic living in a colony on another planet. The story describes the future of our Earth. Kate makes readers cherish the natural environment. "No sunshine on our skin, and no fresh air in our lungs," Greene turns the frustrations into a moving story.
Florida Scrub-Jay
The birds were once common across the peninsula. But as development over the last 100 years reduced the habitats on which the bird depends, the species became endangered. Mark Walters travels the state to report on the natural history and the current situation of Florida's flag ship birds. This book can raise people's awareness of protecting the birds' habitats.
