The World Without Us

Alan Weisman

All living creatures and matter on Earth affect each other and how the other survives. Humans, with our imaginations and desires, reshape and redefine the Earth more than any other creature. We have left a huge mark (many say scar) on our planet and its inhabitants.

Alan Weisman was challenged with a question. What would the earth be like if humans were to disappear? That question went from a possible article to this complete book, The World Without Us. He traveled the world looking at the few natural habitats left and the places where mankind has left an obvious mark. It would never have occurred to me to envision a whirlpool of garbage and plastic in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Now that's a picture that is hard to shake off. Another one is the West Virginia mountains - I didn't have a clue as to what is happening there.

Weisman's coverage includes all the continents of the world. The human devastation he describes comes mostly from "civilized" cultures. Humans' abuse of the Earth is the main topic of The World Without Us, but not all of it. He also describes what will happen to humans' accomplishments as well, using examples like the Mayan civilization in Central and South America.

This is a very challenging "what if" book that has hit the non-fiction best seller list within the first month of its publication. It jives with a lot of my science fiction reading - recently Sheri S. Tepper's new novel, The Margarets. It also kept bringing another novel I recently read to mind, Arthur C.Clarke's 30+ year old novel, Imperial Earth. Both use population control to start to return the Earth to a manageable condition. But Weisman doesn't broach that topic until the very end of his book.

If you go into this book thinking that our affect on the Earth is lessening and our conservation measures are working, The World Without Us will quickly disabuse you. Yet Weisman gives us hope. Earth can survive without mankind. We can't survive without the Earth. Weisman reminds us that everything dies eventually. But until then, we can take care of what we have. This book is easy, fascinating reading. It is worth the time and effort.