HURRICANE LIZARDS Now in Paperback!

 

 

A NY Times Editor's Pick and finalist for The Pacific Northwest Book Award, Hurricane Lizards and Plastic Squid is now available in paperback across North America!  For a review, check out this one in The New York Times, and for an introduction to some of the stories in the book, here a video Thor did for WIRED.

National Book Award Finalists Announced

 

 

More than 600 titles were submitted for consideration in the nonfiction category for the 2022 National Book Awards.  Thor and four other judges have winnowed that list to five finalists:   

Meghan O’Rourke, The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness

Riverhead Books / Penguin Random House

 

Imani Perry, South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation

Ecco / HarperCollins Publishers

 

David Quammen, Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus

Simon & Schuster

 

Ingrid Rojas Contreras, The Man Who Could Move Clouds: A Memoir

Doubleday / Penguin Random House

 

Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa, His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice

Viking Books / Penguin Random House

All of these are spectacular books worthy of attention.  The winner will be announced at the National Book Award Ceremony in New York on November 16th.  Read more about the award and the finalists here.

WarWilding Featured in The Guardian

  

Thor's comments on the idea of "warWilding" in Ukraine and beyond feature prominently in a recent article by journalist and photographer Vincent Mundy.  Click here to read the full story in The Guardian.

Thor Talks Feathers and Fashion on WIRED Currents

Thor returns to the popular WIRED Currents series to discuss feathers in the fashion trade.  Drawing from his book FEATHERS, Thor shows how people have co-opted plumage for adornment, using feathers for the same purposes (and often in the same places on the body) as they evolved in birds.  Watch the full video episode on YouTube or WIRED.

Thor Returns to WIRED Tech Support!

 

The folks at WIRED recently asked Thor to return and answer more biology questions gleaned from Twitter, including such queries as how ticks latch on, how salt kills slugs, and whether or not ostriches actually bury their heads in the sand.  The videos appear as part of the WIRED Tech Support series and have been viewed more than five million times.  Click these links to watch Biology Support 3, Biology Support 2, or the original Biology Support 1.

Warfare Ecology in Ukraine

Thor recently spoke with New York Times reporter Emily Anthes about the complex environmental consequences of the tragic conflict unfolding in Ukraine.  Click here to read Emily's excellent article about how nature is often a 'silent victim' of war.

Thor Helps Judge 2022 National Book Awards

Thor is honored to help celebrate the best in literature by serving as a judge for the 2022 National Book Award in non-fiction, alongside a fantastic panel including Janet Webster Jones, Oscar Villalon, Melissa Febos, and Carol Anderson.  Submissions and reading are already underway, with a longlist and finalists to be announced in the fall, and a winner declared on November 16, 2022.  Read more at The National Book Foundation website.

Review of Insect Crisis in NYT

 

When was the last time you had to clean the bug splatter from your windshield?  Chances are it's been a while.  Click here to read Thor's review of Oliver Milman's excellent new book, The Insect Crisis, in The New York Times. 

Olympians and Plastic Squid at PBS Nature Online

 

Why do so many Olympians train in the mountains?  It's not just for the snowy slopes.  Thor explains in this essay for PBS Nature, drawing parallels between elite athletes and how squid and other species are adapting to climate change.  Read the full story here.

Thor on Alan Alda's Clear + Vivid

 

As a longtime fan of the television show MASH, Thor was delighted have a conversation with actor Alan Alda for his popular podcast Clear + Vivid.  Click here to listen, or look for it wherever you get your podcasts: