Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks - Paperback

$20.99

Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks - Paperback

Name: Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks - Paperback
Brand: BooksCloud
SKU: 9781250875914
Price: 20.99 USD
Availability: InStock

by Marcia Bjornerud

$20.99

Book Overview

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by Marcia Bjornerud (Author)

Winner of the 2025 John Burroughs Medal for Natural History Writing

"A beautiful book--at once intimate and sweeping, informative and moving." --Elizabeth Kolbert, author of Under a White Sky

Earth is vibrantly alive and full of wisdom for those who learn to listen.

Earth has been reinventing itself for more than four billion years, keeping a record of its experiments in the form of rocks. Yet most of us live our lives on the planet with no idea of its extraordinary history, unable to interpret the language of the rocks that surround us. Geologist Marcia Bjornerud believes that our lives can be enriched by understanding our heritage on this old and creative planet.

Contrary to their reputation, rocks have eventful lives-and they intersect with our own in surprising ways. In Turning to Stone, Bjornerud reveals how rocks are the hidden infrastructure that keep the planet functioning, from sandstone aquifers purifying the water we drink to basalt formations slowly regulating global climate.

Bjornerud's life as a geologist has coincided with an extraordinary period of discovery in the geosciences. From an insular girlhood in rural Wisconsin, she found her way to an unlikely career studying mountains in remote parts of the world and witnessed the emergence of a new understanding of the Earth as an animate system of rock, air, water and life. We are all, most fundamentally, Earthlings and we can find existential meaning and enduring wisdom in stone.

Author Biography

Marcia Bjornerud is a professor of Environmental Studies and Geosciences at Lawrence University, and is the author of Reading the Rocks, Timefulness, and Geopedia.

Number of Pages: 320

Dimensions: 0.8 x 8.2 x 5.3 IN

Publication Date: August 12, 2025

ISBN	9781250875914
Author	Marcia Bjornerud
Publisher	Flatiron Books
Genre	Hobbies & interests and Education
Format	Paperback
Published	August 2025
Language	ENG- English
Pages	320
Weight	1.0 lb
Target Audience	Adults
Print Size	Standard Print