Book Review: A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future
David Attenborough, with Jonnie Hughes - Spoiler: Great book, good chronicle of days past, and solutions are offered. Read it!
A Life on Our Planet is a great book, I couldn’t put it down. It’s well written and understandable. Attenborough goes through his life, his work, and how earth has changed. And it certainly has changed in the last 90 years.
David Attenborough started his work in broadcasting over 60 years ago. He was out in forests and islands trying to bring incredible, then never seen before creatures to television for the first time. He chronicles the rise in human population, rise in carbon in the atmosphere, and the loss of wild habitats.
In the copy from my local library, there were many pages of photographs – some black and white, some color – that are gorgeous and well described. In a gripping middle of the novel, he walks through a bad case future scenario. Then, he talks about solutions – what needs to change in our current way of life.
It was an engrossing read, and I recommend it heartily. It’s only about 230 pages long. There is an extensive glossary and many citations. If you’re interested in any part of the novel – the Earth’s health, David Attenborough’s life, what Earth’s wild areas used to be like, what the future may hold – it’s worth a read.