Stephen's Reviews > The Oldest Living Things in the World

(Probably, sadly, a 2.5: I feel a little magnanimous giving 3 stars [sorry]).

I don't remember where I first heard about this book, but the concept interested me and I've finally been able to read it.

I... enjoyed the anticipation of reading this book more than reading it.
Which was disappointing, because I enjoy thinking more about slow, patient living. And I thought nothing would provide a better example or opportunity for that than ancient organisms.

Something just didn't click into place with me and this book. Part of me thinks (perhaps) that this would be better viewed in a gallery/art exhibit format. Take this from the intro essay:

"I make large-format prints that have a physical presence meant to put the viewers into human-scale context with the subjects, while simultaneously obscuring the organisms' exact scales"

- I don't know what "large-format prints" means. Is this book an example of that? Or does that mean something the size of a wall?
- The quote also points to one of my major complaints: I would have preferred the organisms' scales were more accessible. Sometimes this means I could have used an example of the same species at a juvenile age. Sometimes it means I would have liked to see the scale of the organism in comparison to something recognizable. It turns out, I'm not good at judging cyanobacteria colony sizes.

Given that lack of calibration, most of the results seem like a lot of effort for... not great pictures?

Compounding that is the awkward(?) text accompanying photos of each organism. Most of the time the tales felt incomplete or unfocused or bland. (I just didn't care). Here is my humorous attempt at boiling down all the essays into one sentence: "I'm physically unprepared for this trip, surprised that I'm not everyone's top priority (I'm making a photo-essay, people!), and oh hey, old things have learned to survive in trying times: will they survive climate change?"

A few other thoughts:
- I'm glad that some of these things have survived against odds of human encounters (e.g. old trees in Northern Europe, like the Yew in Fortingall, Scotland).
- I did think the infographics were detailed/interesting.
- I would have liked a bit more detail on some of the science (instead of having to infer, e.g. how bits work to determine tree-age and somehow don't hurt/maim/kill the trees [I guess I'm a biology ignoramus] )

- Some of the more interesting photos for me were:
* The Llareta, in Chile (one of the prettiest organisms)
* Antarctica (some photos were actually geared toward 'epic' scales)
* Baobabs (some human scale in the photos)
* Huon Pine, Tasmania (seemed more prehistoric/isolated than most of the photos)

I think you should look at things around you carefully, appreciating the ways nature works.
Take pictures of the oldest things around you. Talk about them with your friends/neighbours.
The world is full of wonderful things, and we shouldn't take it for granted.