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The World Without Us | 
 enlarge | Author: Alan Weisman
Publisher: Virgin Books
Category: Book
List Price: £8.99
Buy New: £4.00
You Save: £4.99 (56%)
New (28) Used (4) from £4.00
Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 3707
Media: Paperback
Pages: 336
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.1 x 1
ISBN: 0753513579
EAN: 9780753513576
ASIN: 0753513579
Publication Date: April 3, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Marvellous modern memento mori August 6, 2008
C. Young (Glasgow, Scotland)
Reflections on the impermanence of man's creations and corporeal form have long been part of both Christian and Buddhist tradition as antidotes to human hubris. Weisman's very modern mortality tale however serves not God or enlightenment, but the Earth itself. What would happen in the unlikely event that everyone on the planet simply disappeared? What would the legacy of our species be in terms of our buildings and cultures? Would the natural environment simply take over again, or have we done irreparable damage to our planet? The fascinating television programme based on this book focused on the GCI-enhanced mouldering of our monuments and gradual crumbling of our cities. The book however is much more ambitious in its scope, addressing the far-reaching effect of Homo sapiens on our environment since we first stood upright on the African plains a relatively (in geological terms at least) short time ago. Weisman skilfully and entertainingly constructs this complex story with evidence from geology, archaeology, anthropology, physics, chemistry and the environmental sciences. It is a brilliantly-written tale of a planet both seriously ravaged but strangely resistant. Very few of our creations would actually survive our departure except our nuclear and toxic waste and, just as alarmingly, microscopic fragments of almost all the plastic we have ever produced (...even the plastic from toys we played with as children is apparently still out there somewhere). But, according to Weiseman, a planet that recovered from the Permian extinction 250 million years ago when 95% of everything alive was wiped up can surely survive a bunch of rather nasty Johnny-come-lately primates. Maybe a memento mori, a reminder of man's mortality, is indeed spiritually uplifting as Wiseman ends not with a gloomy prognosis (although he presents ample evidence to justify such a conclusion) but on an almost mystical and rather hopeful note.
 Disappointing July 30, 2008
A. Cunningham (Cardiff UK)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I had high hopes for this book when I bought it. The premise is fascinating and I expected an insightful look at what would remain of human civilisation in 100, 1000 and even 10,000 years. Unfortunately this book ended up written as a loosely linked set of anecdotes in the style of a travel book.
There are some interesting issues covered, such as long term storage of radioactive materials. Whereas this would have been a good opportunity to deal at some length with the subject of how to warn future generations of danger (the evolution of language and symbols and the fall of civilisation seem quite appropriate in this context) the subject is dismissed in a couple of paragraphs. The one aspect of our civilization almost guaranteed to endure longer than any other, our space probes and our satellites, are given far less space than they deserve too - just a half a dozen pages. The author could quite easily have spent more time of describing how to deliberately make things last, a sort of message to the future, but that chance has been missed. When the book ventures into the territory of technology and transhumanists the author gives the impression of having no clue of the technical issues or even the arguments about the issue of consciousness and immortality.
This book comes across as more of an environmentalist crusade than about the legacy of civilisation, particularly the positive side of that. You get the impression that Weisman just wanted to concentrate on his pet areas in this book, rather than doing the in-depth and complete job that the title deserved. It's a book that I'm glad that I read, but it was a frustrating experience rather than an enjoyable one.
One of the most thought provoking books I've ever read July 17, 2008
P. Whitehouse (London, UK)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This started with an interesting premise - what would happen to the Earth if humans suddenly disappeared - and leads the reader down a fascinating labyrinth of subjects. How would our buildings and bridges disintegrate? What would happen to nuclear reactors? How would other animals evolve? What evidence of humanity would last the longest? What could cause such a sudden extinction? And what can we do about it?
The answers to all these questions are well researched and well written. One can't help dwelling on the impact humanity has had on our planet (is still having!) and our failure as a species to do something about it. It's certainly made me see China's one child per family policy in a different light - and I've got two children.
All in all, a fantastic, engaging, enlightening and informative read. Top notch.
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