Overview

The epic stories of our planet's 4.54-billion-year history are written in strata―ages-old remnants of ancient seafloors, desert dunes, and riverbeds striping landscapes around the world. In this brilliantly original debut work, science writer Laura Poppick decodes strata to lead us on a journey through four global transformations that made our lives on Earth possible: the first accumulations of oxygen in the atmosphere; the deep freezes of ""Snowball Earth""; the rise of mud on land and accompanying proliferation of plants; and the dinosaurs' reign on a hothouse planet Poppick introduces us to the researchers who have devoted their careers to understanding the events of deep time. She travels to sites as various as a Minnesotan iron mine that runs half a mile deep and a corner of the Australian Outback where glacial deposits date from the coldest times on Earth. Ultimately, she demonstrates that the planet's oceans, continents, atmosphere, life, and ice have always conspired to bring stability to Earth, even if we are only just beginning to understand how these different facets interact. A work in the tradition of John McPhee, Strata allows us to observe how the planet has responded to past periods of environmental upheaval, and shows how Earth's ancient narratives could hold lessons for our present and future.

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Laura Poppick is a science and environmental journalist whose writing has appeared in the New York Times, Smithsonian, Scientific American, Wired, Audubon, National Geographic, Science, and elsewhere. She has been listed as a finalist for the National Association of Science Writers Science in Society Journalism Award and the Maine Literary Awards Short Works Competition in Nonfiction, among others. She lives in Portland, Maine. Jeannie Sheneman is a classically trained actor who has been acting in some form for over twenty years. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan's theater program with a minor in English literature, so what better career for her than audiobook narrator? Jeannie has launched into the industry with the down-to-earth-velvety sparkle she brings to narration. She has the uncanny ability to relay an author's story with truth and rawness, opportune wit, thoughtful introspection, and, if requested, some sass (or a lot). One high schooler, a middle schooler, and a couple of silver Labrador pups covers her time not spent in the booth. If she gets a free moment you may find her picking hornworms off of her tomato plants, dancing in her kitchen with knives (just making dinner, no worries), knitting a fine hat, baking like she's the next contestant-to-be on The Great British Baking Show, watching classic movies, or sitting on the porch with coffee, French wine, or a bourbon. And she always has a book in print nearby, and a book playing in her ears.

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