Turning to Stone: Discovering the Subtle Wisdom of Rocks

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 3 ratings

Price: 17.71

Last update: 09-02-2024


About this item

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.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.


Top reviews from the United States

LilMissMolly
5.0 out of 5 stars Such a delightful surprise without being to scientific!
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2024
Turning to Stone was such a delightful surprise! It is part memoir, part science, delving into the life experiences of the author, using different rocks and rock formations to give context to the varying chapters.

From the very beginning of the book, I recognized my eldest daughter in the prose written by the author: thinking about where sand came from to studying and collecting rocks on vacations. While fictional stories are my preference of choice, I chose to listen to this audiobook because my eldest daughter is currently working toward a PhD in Earth Science (Geology). After five years of her studying in Australia, I wanted something to talk to her about other than “how is your thesis going.”

This book was perfect and helped me understand my daughter just a little bit more (when she was 4 years old, she carried one of my old purses slung around her like a field bag collecting interesting rocks). Turning to Stone provided insight, clarity, and wisdom that few books include this days.

I highly recommend this audiobook to anyone who enjoys learning something while listening to an interesting story. I enjoyed it so much, I bought a hardcopy of it to give away to a friend.
Tawney L. Mazek
4.0 out of 5 stars Rocks = Life on earth
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2024
A geologist writing a book that is part life story, part story of stones makes sense. But I’m probably not the only one who wishes the two threads were separate. I found the geological information fascinating. It is not some wide overview of present day geology, but gives glimpses of the changes in the field in the past half century. The book is structured in chapters that each concentrate on one type of stone and one period of Bjornerud’s life. This allows for more detailed information about some of the rocks and how they fit in to the Rock Cycle (yes, like the Water Cycle, etc.). Although I didn’t find the autobiographical passages very interesting, the entire book is very well written and easy to read.

Thanks to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for a digital advanced readers copy.

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