(September 2014) 6. Missing Microbes, Martin Balser, MD, Henry-Holt, 2014
Our August 2014 book is: Missing Microbes, Martin Balser, MD, Henry-Holt, 2014. This book considers the human microbiome, its natural balance and role in common disease and well-being. Although this may be an anomaly in the longer list of books focused exclusively on Appalachian natural history an occasional foray into the larger picture of ecology may be informative on multiple levels.
(August 2014) 5. The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden, by Rick Darke & Doug Tallamy
For the August book(s), the BRDC Book Club has chosen: The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden, by Rick Darke & Doug Tallamy. "A home garden is often seen as separate from the natural world surrounding it. In truth, it is actually just one part of a larger landscape that is made up of many living layers."
As a complimentary book we are also recommending: The New American Landscape: Leading Voices on the Future of Sustainable Gardening, edited by Thomas Christopher. "Gardeners are the front line of defense in our struggle to tackle the problems of global warming, loss of habitat, water shortages, and shrinking biodiversity"
(July 2014) 4. The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, Elizabeth Kolbert
"Over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs."
(June 2014) 3. A Natural Sense of Wonder, Rick Van Noy
"The technology boom of recent years has given kids numerous reasons to stay inside and play, while parents' increasing safety concerns make it tempting to keep children close to home. But what is being lost as fewer kids spend their free time outdoors? Deprived of meaningful contact with nature, children often fail to develop a significant relationship with the natural world, much less a sense of reverence and respect for the world outside their doors."
(May 2014) 2. The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time, Jonathan Weiner
"On a desert island in the heart of the Galapagos archipelago, where Darwin received his first inklings of the theory of evolution, two scientists, Peter and Rosemary Grant, have spent twenty years proving that Darwin did not know the strength of his own theory. For among the finches of Daphne Major, natural selection is neither rare nor slow: it is taking place by the hour, and we can watch."
(April 2014) 1. Hollows, Peepers, and Highlanders - An Appalachian Mountain Ecology, George Constantz
"In this revised and expanded edition of Hollows, Peepers, and Highlanders, author George Constantz, a biologist and naturalist, writes about the beauty and nature of the Appalachian landscape. While the information is scientific in nature, Constantz's accessible descriptions of the adaptation of various organisms to their environment enable the reader to enjoy learning about the Appalachian ecosystem."