Books > SONG OF THE DODO

David Quammen's book, The Song of the Dodo, is abrilliant, stirring work, breathtaking in its scope,far-reaching in its message -- a crucial book inprecarious times, which radically alters the way inwhich we understand the natural world and our placein that world. It's also a book full of entertainmentand wonders.

In The Song of the Dodo, we follow Quammen's keenintellect through the ideas, theories, and experiments of prominent naturalists of the last two centuries. We trail after him as he travels the world,tracking the subject of island biogeography, whichencompasses nothing less than the study of the origin and extinction of all species. Why is this islandidea so important? Because islands are wherespecies most commonly go extinct -- and because, asQuammen points out, we live in an age when all ofEarth's landscapes are being chopped into island-likefragments by human activity.

Through his eyes, we glimpse the nature of evolution and extinction, and in so doing come to understand the monumental diversity of our planet, andthe importance of preserving its wild landscapes,animals, and plants. We also meet some fascinatinghuman characters. By the book's end we are wiser,and more deeply concerned, but Quammenleaves us with a message of excitement and hope.