A fascinating look at how wind has shaped the world and humanity as we know it, affecting all apsects of human and natural life--from geography to political history, plantlife to psychology, and biology to philosophy.
Lyall Watson (1939-2008) was the author of such well-known books as
Supernature, The Romeo Error, Gifts of Unknown Things, Lifetide,
Lightning Bird, and Whales of the World. He was also a producer for
BBC television, a zoo director, an expedition leader, and the
Seychelles Commissioner on the International Whaling
Commission.
Nick Hunt has walked and written across much of Europe. His
articles have appeared in theEconomist,theGuardianand other
publications, and he works as a storyteller and co-editor for the
Dark Mountain Project. He is the author ofWalking the Woods and the
WaterandWhere the Wild Winds Are- Walking Europe's Winds from the
Pennines to Provence.He lives in Bristol, England.
“You’ll learn how a thunderstorm is like a living thing, and what
happens when someone’s parachute is sucked into one. (Nothing
good.) . . . Other parts, especially on the spread of viruses, are
prescient. When travel is safe again, I’ll pay fresh attention to
the skies.”
—Thomas Lotito, The New York Times
“Collectors of curious bits of information and odd statistics will
find Heaven’s Breath a gold mine. . . . Mr. Watson discusses the
wind’s role in geology, plant and animal evolution, cultural
history, trade, health, mythology, art, literature and
language.”
—Patricia T. O’Conner, The New York Times
“This is the kind of book that answers dozens of questions first
arising in childhood and lingering unresolved until there was Lyall
Watson. . . . Watson’s pot-pourri of wind poetry, wind jokes and
wind facts is so diverting that one hardly minds losing the thread
now and then.”
—Dennis Drabelle, The Washington Post
"[Heaven’s Breath], both perplexing and delightful, is
appealing precisely because of how unclassifiable it is. . .
. [Watson’s] sense of scale, connection, and surprise
invite a deeper consideration of our entanglement with our
surroundings. If wind is an original, invisible force around
us, a force that’s nearly spiritual, perhaps it can help us
think more carefully about radical shifts in climate,
and about the interstitial truths that can’t always be grasped
by blandly stating the facts.”
—David Wallace, The New Yorker
"Watson’s masterpiece is an erudite and enjoyable compendium of
wind-lore, science, myth, history and the occasional joke. . . .
Watson delights as much in retelling myths and in conveying the
religious significance various cultures have invested in this
silent, life-sustaining emissary as he does in cataloging how
various plants pollinate with the assistance of the wind.”
—Stephen Sparks, Point Reyes Light
“A comprehensive and fascinating study.”
—Bernard Levin, The Observer, Bernard Levin’s 1984 Book of the
Year
“A book which fascinates, delights and stimulates with a thousand
fascinating facts.”
—Daily Mirror
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