The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World
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The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World
The acclaimed author of <i>Founding Gardeners </i>reveals the forgotten life of Alexander von Humboldt, the visionary German naturalist whose ideas changed the way we see the natural world€"and in the process created modern environmentalism.<br><br><b>NATIONAL BEST SELLER</b><br><br><b>One of the <i>New York Times </i>10 Best Books of the Year<br><b><br>Winner of the <i>Los Angeles Times </i>Book Prize, The James Wright Award for Nature Writing, the <b>Costa Biography Award, the Royal Geographic Society's Ness Award, the Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award<br><br><b>Finalist for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, the Royal Society Science Book Prize, the<i> Kirkus</i> Prize Prize for Nonfiction, the Independent Bookshop Week Book Award</b></b></b></b><br><b><br>A<i> </i>Best Book of the Year: <i>The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Economist</i>, <i>Nature</i>, <i>Jezebel</i>, <i>Kirkus Reviews</i>, <i>Publishers Weekly</i>, <i>New Scientist</i>, <i>The Independent</i>, <i>The Telegraph</i>, <i>The Sunday Times, The Evening Standard, The Spectator</i><br></b><br>Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859) was the most famous scientist of his age, a visionary German naturalist and polymath whose discoveries forever changed the way we understand the natural world. Among his most revolutionary ideas was a radical conception of nature as a complex and interconnected global force that does not exist for the use of humankind alone. In North America, Humboldt€s name still graces towns, counties, parks, bays, lakes, mountains, and a river. And yet the man has been all but forgotten. <br><br>In this illuminating biography, Andrea Wulf brings Humboldt€s extraordinary life back into focus: his prediction of human-induced climate change; his daring expeditions to the highest peaks of South America and to the anthrax-infected steppes of Siberia; his relationships with iconic figures, including Sim³n BolÂvar and Thomas Jefferson; and the lasting influence of his writings on Darwin, Wordsworth, Goethe, Muir, Thoreau, and many others. Brilliantly researched and stunningly written, <i>The Invention of Nature</i> reveals the myriad ways in which Humboldt€s ideas form the foundation of modern environmentalism€"and reminds us why they are as prescient and vital as ever.