A World in a Shell Snail Stories for a Time of Extinctions is a layman accessible examination of the impact of invasive species, loss of habitat, and climate change told through the lens of the snails of Hawaii, written and presented by Dr. Thom van Dooren. Released 13th Sept 2022 by MIT Press, it's 288 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats.
Although written in language that an average reader can easily access and understand, this is a meticulously researched and annotated book. The chapter notes and bibliography alone are quite honestly worth the price of admission. Additionally, the book itself is very well written and interesting (and quite sobering). The ecosystem is changing and is poised on a knife edge. Habitat loss, climate change, and invasive species have all contributed to a bleak present-day. Much of the book describes academic discussions not about *what* is happening, so much as *why* species are failing to thrive or disappearing altogether. Scientists universally acknowledge what is going on but research is still out as to what can potentially be done to counteract or mitigate some of the effects.
It's a sobering, but ultimately very interesting book. Highly recommended for fans of nature writing. There are so few new books on terrestrial gastropods that any new addition to the malacological literature is an event.
Five stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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