Edge of Memory

The Geology of Folk Tales and Climate Change

288 pages

English language

Published Aug. 8, 2018 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc.

ISBN:
978-1-4729-4326-2
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3 stars (1 review)

4 editions

So much geology

3 stars

This book is about indigenous stories that were passed on orally, for millennia sometimes, and that recount ancient geologic events (volcanic eruptions, dramatic sea level rises that engulfed coastal cities, islands that suddenly disappeared...), generally disguised as tales, probably because it made them easier to remember and pass to the next generation.

On one hand it's fascinating to think that peoples have been able to retain the memory of events that happened maybe 10 000 years ago, or that - at the coldest time of the last ice age - the global sea level was ~120m lower than it is today, which gave some parts of the world a very different geography. On the other hand, some chapters just felt like long lists of stories that were actually describing a certain kind of geologic event. I would have liked to learn more about how these stories were transmitted, and not …

Subjects

  • Tales, australia
  • Tales, history and criticism
  • Floods
  • Environmental sciences
  • Science