Awards

• Winner of ALA Notable Books (Nonfiction) 2025

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9780593133972

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Reviews

“With the curiosity of a reporter, the mind of a scientist, and the lyricism of a poet, Jabr explores the extraordinary tapestry of life.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review “A glorious paean to our living world.”—Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of An Immense World “A remarkable achievement.”—Ben Goldfarb, award-winning author of Crossings “Astonishing.”—Steve Silberman, author of NeuroTribes “Fascinating, thought-provoking . . ., inspiring.”—Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sixth Extinction “Quite simply, a work of genius.”—Robert Moor, bestselling author of On Trails: An Exploration “Mesmerizing . . . I found myself gasping at revelations on every page.”—Sabrina Imbler, author of How Far the Light Reaches “A candy store of mind-blowing facts and fascinating anecdotes.”—Kate Marvel, climate scientist and author “Wow. This wondrous book reveals our living planet for the miracle that it is.“—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words “Gorgeously written and brimming with fascinating science and provocative ideas.”—Dan Fagin, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Toms River “A compelling argument that Earth is a living planet.”—James Kasting, professor of geosciences, Penn State University “Beautiful and insightful.”—Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Poison Squad “Thrilling . . . More than excellent science journalism—it evokes wonder.”—Tyler Volk, Earth system scientist, New York University, and author of Gaia’s Body ”A fresh and mesmerizing meditation on what it means to be alive.”—Andrew Revkin, renowned environmental journalist and author ”A story so important and compelling that I am going to be recommending it for years.”—Hank Green, New York Times bestselling author and science communicator

“A convincing, mind-opening case that ‘the history of life on Earth is the history of life remaking Earth.’”—The Atlantic “A glorious paean to our living world.”—Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of An Immense World “Infectiously poetic. The way he revels in the wonder of this world is exhilarating . . . The overall uplifting outlook that he imparts is sure to re-energize even the most hardened climate pessimist. An absolutely delightful read.”—Science “Wide-ranging and thought-provoking . . . The best books manage to entertain, educate, astonish and even galvanize the reader…They expand awareness. They serve as celebrations and warnings, challenges and pleas. With Becoming Earth, Oregon-based journalist Ferris Jabr achieves all of these aims and more.”—The Guardian “Convincing . . . poetic . . . punctuated with thunderstorm-like downpours of ideas.”—Sierra “An electrifying debut …with a bit of literary legerdemain, Jabr readies us for wonder…we see the planet that sustains it, and us, more clearly, as if with new eyes. We see Earth for the revelation, the anomaly and the prodigy that it is.”—Red Canary Magazine “A compelling account of interconnectedness . . . Science writer Ferris Jabr weaves a tapestry out of the complex relationships that life forms have not only with each other, but also with the stuff of Earth itself.”—New Scientist “A remarkable achievement.”—Ben Goldfarb, award-winning author of Crossings “Astonishing.”—Steve Silberman, author of NeuroTribes “Fascinating, thought-provoking . . ., inspiring.”—Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Sixth Extinction “Quite simply, a work of genius.”—Robert Moor, bestselling author of On Trails: An Exploration

“With the curiosity of a reporter, the mind of a scientist, and the lyricism of a poet, Jabr explores the extraordinary tapestry of life.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review   “Becoming Earth is a glorious paean to our living world, full of achingly beautiful passages, mind-bending conceptual twists, and wonderful characters. Ferris Jabr reveals how Earth not only gave rise to life, and now teems with it, but has also been profoundly, miraculously shaped by it.”—Ed Yong, Pulitzer winner and bestselling author of An Immense World   “I fell into this book and when I emerged, it had deeply changed the way I see what is, by far, the best planet.”—Hank Green, New York Times Best-Selling Author and Science Communicator   “Becoming Earth is an astonishing book . . . To read it is to be transformed by a new understanding of our place in what Jabr calls the 'collaborative and improvised performance' that sustains our marvelous home in the Universe.”—Steve Silberman, author of NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity   “Becoming Earth is fascinating, thought-provoking, and, ultimately, inspiring.”—Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth Extinction   “There are times, reading this paradigm-shifting book, when you will feel like you are peering right down into the very heart of our living planet. It is, quite simply, a work of genius.”—Robert Moor, bestselling author of On Trails: An Exploration   “Gorgeously written and brimming with fascinating science and provocative ideas, Becoming Earth is a book about transformation that is itself transformative.”—Dan Fagin, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Toms River   “We tend to take our rare jewel of a home planet for granted. In his startlingly beautiful and insightful book, Becoming Earth, Ferris Jabr shows us exactly why we shouldn't.”—Deborah Blum, Pulitzer-Prize winning author of The Poison Squad   “This wondrous book reveals our living planet for the miracle that it is. By the end, you may even feel that 'miracle' is an understatement. The story of Earth is the story of a planet reworked, remade—and, to an astonishing degree, created—by life itself. Wow.”—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel   “Thrilling. Ferris Jabr reveals the fascinating and cutting edge science of life’s intricate connections with Earth’s chemistry, water cycle, rock record, soil, and air. The result is more than excellent science journalism—it evokes wonder.”—Tyler Volk, Earth system scientist, New York University, author of Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth “Ferris Jabr presents a fresh and compelling argument that Earth is a living planet. A fascinating read that should help everyone appreciate the splendor of our natural environment.”—James Kasting, Professor of Geosciences, Penn State University

Author Information

Ferris Jabr is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. He has also written for The New Yorker, Harper’s, The Atlantic, National Geographic, and Scientific American. He is the recipient of a Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant and fellowships from UC Berkeley and MIT. His work has been anthologized in several editions of Best American Science and Nature Writing. Ferris Jabr lives in Portland, Oregon, with his husband, Ryan, their dog, Jack, and more plants than they can count.

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