Summer Reading part 2

To match the previous, evolution related, posting I was going to recommend two more books, one graphic novel and one more conventional book. But I can't manage to restrict myself to a single graphic novel - there's too many good ones out there on environmental issues and ecology. For reasons that could take (and probably have taken) a whole thesis to examine, a number of comic book characters regularly cover environmental topics: Swamp Thing, Toxic Avenger, Dr Strange and the Silver Surfer to name just four.

But perhaps the most environmentally conscious 'super hero' is Paul Chadwick's Concrete. In two different graphic novels he addresses first the environmental movement as a whole (particularly the more radical side) and then he takes on population growth (again addressing some of the more radical viewpoints). In both books, the readers responses give valuable additional viewpoints.

Japanese manga comics have also covered environmental issues. Perhaps the best example is Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. I don't think I could begin to summarize the story. Oh, go on then: Joan of Arc like character helps defend people and planet, including lots of giant insects and toxic fungi, from warring factions. The story is collected in a 7 volume set or you can rent the movie, based around the first two books, by fimmaker and illustrator Hayao Miyazaki.

If you want to read an actual book, I'd like to recommend Laurie Garrett's 'The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World out of Balance'. We won't cover this topic until our final lecture but in many ways this book shows some of the practical applications of the material we cover. If you are interested in public health you really should read this book. The paperback is a bargain at a little over $10 for a 768 page monster and I have a spare copy if anyone wants to borrow one.