Re-assembling California: A Conversation with John McPhee

[frozenstrawbs]

laramide orgy

[AnaJana]

One of my favorite McPhees is "Oranges", but I think it's "A Sense of Where You Are: Bill Bradley at Princeton" that taught me the most about writing, about observation, about how I learn, and about how much there is to learn.

[davidich]

irons in the fire, i'm reading now. read some of travels in georgia.

i agree with your idea of his rhythm, he has a very natural flow of writing. and he writes so that things can be easily understood. which is much like a musician

[deniapavao]

John Mcphee's "prose geology" Annals Of The Former World" really turned me on. What a great book. Im reading "Coming Into The Country" and it's just a goddamn pleasure.

[bapyou]

I'm a huge McPhee fan, and, after watching this a second time, I can only say that the moderator seems disinterested and perfunctory. Also, wish this was a longer. Presently I'm reading 'The Founding Fish', McPhee's "fishing" book. As with everything he writes, it is a fascinating read containing his charcteristic vibrant prose and humor.

[railman55]

Honestly - McPhee's work in descriptive geology - prose geology, is nothing short of spectacular - easily work of the highest caliber and importance that tells us about the ground we stand on. This interview, although marred by a very poor moderator, gives a small glimpse of two very talented and generous people who clearly "get it"

[quitecontrary23]

However, Mcphee does enjoy these freedoms as a freelance writer, and with the help of a few geologists, he was able to create an appetizer, if you will, to geology.

the kind of thing you give the general public to provide a very basic, large picture of north american plate tectonics, but also an interest in a field which is not given much attention in schools. my score: awesome.

[quitecontrary23]

However, i do think his book was successful because it truely does effectively communicate geology to those who have no background in the field. It creates an appeal and enthusiasm for the subject as only one with the time and freedom to write that most researching geologists do not enjoy.

[bapyou]

Hello Mary. I agree with your thoughts on McPhee and the significance of his writings to the general public. Reading his first "geology book" (Basin & Range) twenty-five years ago turned me onto Earth science big time.

[quitecontrary23]

nice, thanks for putting this up. wow that was a kind of intense interview.

it actually clears up just how true the indication in the book it is something that would satisfy the general public as well as the geological community. seems as if geologists dont really see his work as of being of very much value in an academic sense.

[lyall56]

John McPhee- one of my heroes for "Annals of the Former World"; a scientific and literary classic.