Becoming Earth

“A convincing, mind-opening case that ‘the history of life on Earth is the history of life remaking Earth.’”—The Atlantic“A glorious paean to our living world.”—Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of An Immense World“Infectiously poetic … The way he revels in the wonder of this world is exhilarating… . The overall uplifting outlook that he imparts is sure to reenergize even the most hardened climate pessimist. An absolutely delightful read.”—Science“Wide-ranging and thought-provoking … The best books manage to entertain, educate, astonish and even galvanize the reader… . They expand awareness [and] serve as celebrations and warnings, challenges and pleas… . With Becoming Earth, Oregon-based journalist Ferris Jabr achieves all of these aims and more.”—The Guardian“Poetic … punctuated with thunderstorm-like downpours of ideas.”—Sierra“An electrifying debut … With a bit of literary legerdemain … Jabr readies us for wonder… . We see the planet that sustains it, and us, more clearly, as if with new eyes. We see Earth for the revelation, the anomaly and the prodigy that it is.”—Red Canary Magazine“A compelling account of interconnectedness … Science writer Ferris Jabr weaves a tapestry out of the complex relationships that life forms have not only with each other, but also with the stuff of Earth itself.”—New Scientist“This exploration of the Earth as a living entity is lyrical, smart, and will make you appreciate our home planet in countless new ways. It’s really a fascinating book.”—Science Friday“A fantastic book for becoming aware of the great beauty and power residing on this planet we live on and to which we give so little attention.”—Big Think“A remarkable achievement.”—Ben Goldfarb, award-winning author of Crossings“Astonishing.”—Steve Silberman, author of NeuroTribes“Fascinating, thought-provoking, and inspiring.”—Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sixth Extinction“Quite simply, a work of genius.”—Robert Moor, bestselling author of On Trails“A story so important and compelling that I am going to be recommending it for years.”—Hank Green, New York Times bestselling author and science communicator“As fascinating as it is enlightening.”—El Español

Ferris Jabr is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. He has also written for The New Yorker, Harper’s, The Atlantic, National Geographic, and Scientific American. He is the recipient of a Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant and fellowships from UC Berkeley and MIT. His work has been anthologized in several editions of Best American Science and Nature Writing. Ferris Jabr lives in Portland, Oregon, with his husband, Ryan, their dog, Jack, and more plants than they can count.