When Life Nearly Died

When Life Nearly Died  Michael J. Benton 335 pp.

Michael J. Benton’s When Life Nearly Died was an interesting piece of science journalism. While ostensibly a book about the extinction event at the end of the Permian era, the majority of the book was spent on the history of our understanding of mass-extinctions, especially the K-T extinction event. Discussion of other subjects notwithstanding, I found the book to be tremendously enjoyable-when ingested in manageable chunks.

Benton displayed no lack of pride at When Life Nearly Died’s lack of equations, reducing all the difficult science down to a discussion of one simple equation. However; for a book with such an evocative title, I found myself wanting more vivid description of a paleontological view of life in the late Permian and early Triassic, painting a bold picture of the devastation in the wake of the calamity. What Benton delivered instead was a thorough discussion of the history of paleontology. Much to my surprise, I found myself drawn into discussions of rock beds, following along breathlessly.

Nonetheless, Benton’s writing is lively and enjoyable, if a little dense at times. I found myself eagerly devouring the book in chunks of three to four chapters at a time. Like candy, good science writing is best indulged in quantities just large enough to satisfy. At the end of the book, however, Benton took advantage-to marvelous effect- of the trust he had built up with the reader of the preceding three-hundred pages.

When Benton launched into a full chapter-length description of speculative life-forms and habitats in the late Permian era, I ate it up voraciously. Moreso than any other section in the book, Benton’s ability to paint a picture of an ecosystem which has been absent from the planet for more than three hundred million years, set a flame in my mind and a burning desire to turn the page and explore the next life form on the next page. Despite only giving the reader our experience of the late Permian ecosystem in small, broadly painted descriptions, Benton’s world-building was skillfully executed, allowing the reader to walk away with a good grasp on what the Earth must have been like at that time.

Would I recommend When Life Nearly Died?

Heartily yes.

Score: 4.0/5

Would I keep this on my bookshelf? Probably not.

-Mr. Cheddar