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Title: The Little Ice Age: How Climate Made History, 1300-1850 by Brian M. Fagan ISBN: 0-465-02272-3 Publisher: Basic Books Pub. Date: 24 December, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.64 (28 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Very Interesting Book
Comment: As a meteorologist, I take special interest in books such as this which relate weather to the bigger picture of world history and events. Sometimes, however, it seems as though authors (be it intentionally or simply through ignorance) sacrifice scientific integrity in favor of a more interesting story or to avoid confusing the reader, or fall into the related trap of getting really bogged down in a quagmire of equations and esoteric scientific terminology which have little place in a book written for the lay-person.
This book successfully avoids both of these traps. The author (an archaeologist) clearly demonstrates that he went to considerable effort to understand the science behind what he is discussing, and he effectively relates the climate fluctuations experienced in the "Little Ice Age" to the evolution of society at the time. This is done in a manner that anyone can understand, as he explains important concepts in a very readable fashion embedded within the text. Also, he is careful to note how little we still really understand about climate change, and shies away from the "Chicken Little" doomsday sensationalism so prevalent today. This said, he also notes that climate change is definitely an issue we should be concerned with, as one way or another it will have a strong impact on our future and should not be ignored.
Overall, I found this to be a very interesting book that read very well and recommend it to anyone interested in how weather can affect human life and world history. Fellow meteorologists out there may wish for a few more technical details, but hey, that's what the AMS journals are for. :-)
Rating: 3
Summary: frustratingly in between lay science and hard science
Comment: As a lay reader with a history background I found the early parts of this book useful because they 1) Informed me about European & North American climate trends from the early middle ages on; 2) Demonstrated the impact of climate on historical development. I also enjoyed reading about several of the major climate events he describes. However, as the book proceeds, his thesis does not develop much further. I got the impression of "more of the same with new data." He also has trouble balancing data with analysis. I skimmed the second half of the book because I wasn't that interested in the minutia he presented. I was convinced by his overall research (global warming notwithstanding), but I wished his analysis went further.
Rating: 5
Summary: Drought, discontent and decapitation
Comment: A few years ago historians proposing history was driven by climate aroused a squall of controversy. Global warming, so clearly impacted, if not driven, by humanity is leading to greater acceptance of the interaction of weather and society. Fagan's history of a period of mildly cooler conditions shows how a little change can have immense impact on the human situation. It takes little variation in "temperature", he shows, to change patterns of rainfall, crop success or failure and resulting social disruption. A phase of the Little Ice Age may not have brought the downfall of the French monarchy, he notes. Crop failures compounded with a selfish aristocracy demonstrates capped a long period of discontent with decapitation.
Reading Fagan's account of the impact of climate over half a millennium can be a daunting task. Although the focus on the period from 1300 to 1850 is largely European, that's merely due to the extensive written records kept there. The variations in climate were global and Fagan rushes you from place to place to demonstrate the impact of trends and "weather events". Scampering about the planet in time and space can be disconcerting, but there's a reason for his peripatetic approach. He wants you to avoid falling into the trap our ancestors did - thinking that a few freak storms or dry years will smooth out over time. If these events impinge on a weak social framework, disaster can, as it has before, follow. In modern times, with our huge global population, he reminds us, "smoothing out" is unlikely. Without the means to counter the effects on society of global warming, the result will be far more serious than ridding the world of another monarch.
Fagan's challenge to the reader is far greater than tripping about the globe. He wants you to understand the wide variety of subtle changes inherent in global weather patterns. A small change here means the loss of a whole fishery industry. Small drops in temperature there result in widespread drought, population dislocation or deprivation. Governments, and their supporting societies, need to instill programmes that can adjust to these changes. Social adjustments that modify lifestyle or inhibit vague promises of prosperity in order to provide survival mechanisms must be implemented. Short-term benefit programmes must be viewed with suspicion, he reminds us. Too many have already been proven illusory, and must not be repeated. And wholly unanticipated events, such as volcanoes, must be factored into the planning. The book's cap, "The Year Without A Summer", has been shown to be a significant time in the history of North America. When an eruption half-way around the world leads to crop failure in New England, the need for planning becomes starkly evident. Today's global warming suggests many little volcanoes are compromising climate stability. All those little volcanoes are called "automobiles".
With a captivating theme and an expressive prose style, this book is an excellent read. Fagan's use of graphics and maps enhances an already fine volume. Although the title gives the impression that it's a work of history, Fagan demonstrates clearly that conditions long ago are exemplary for modern times. We may have mechanised farming, for example, but the world exists on conditions no less marginal than they were in Medieval times. The same triggers, volcanic eruptions and, most importantly, the North Atlantic Oscillation controlling Europe's rainfall, El Nino and other anomalies, are set to invoke unpredictable conditions. He explains these forces with skill and clarity. You will learn much more than some historical pedantry from this book. If you fail to read it, your children, huddled around a weak fire, may ask you why. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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Title: Floods, Famines, and Emperors : El Nino and the Fate of Civilizations by Brian Fagan ISBN: 0465011217 Publisher: Basic Books Pub. Date: 01 March, 2000 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: The Long Summer: How Climate Changed Civilization by Brian M. Fagan, Brian Fagan ISBN: 0465022812 Publisher: Basic Books Pub. Date: 23 December, 2003 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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Title: The Two-Mile Time Machine: Ice Cores, Abrupt Climate Change, and Our Future by Richard B. Alley ISBN: 0691102961 Publisher: Princeton University Press Pub. Date: 01 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: After the Ice Age: The Return of Life to Glaciated North America by E.C. Pielou ISBN: 0226668126 Publisher: University of Chicago Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1992 List Price(USD): $22.50 |
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Title: Climate, History and the Modern World by H. H. Lamb, H.H. Lamb ISBN: 0415127351 Publisher: Routledge Pub. Date: 01 August, 1995 List Price(USD): $43.95 |
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