Home › Books › How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Crea…
How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures
by
80/99
Critics' Rating Index
40/99
Readers' Rating Index
n/a
Scholars' Citation Index
77/99
Volume of Reviews
81/99
Volume of Reader Ratings
Sign in to add to your shelf, rate, or review this book.
About This Book
A queer, mixed race writer working in a largely white, male field, science and conservation journalist Sabrina Imbler has always been drawn to the mystery of life in the sea, and particularly to creatures living in hostile or remote environments. Each essay in their debut collection profiles one such creature: the mother octopus who starves herself while watching over her eggs, the Chinese sturgeon whose migration route has been decimated by pollution and dams, the bizarre Bobbitt worm (named after Lorena), and other uncanny creatures lurking in the deep ocean, far below where the light reaches. Imbler discovers that some of the most radical models of family, community, and care can be found in the sea, from gelatinous chains that are both individual organisms and colonies of clones to deep-sea crabs that have no need for the sun, nourished instead by the chemicals and heat throbbing from the core of the Earth. Exploring themes of adaptation, survival, sexuality, and care, and weaving the wonders of marine biology with stories of their own family, relationships, and coming of age, How Far the Light Reaches is a book that invites us to envision wilder, grander, and more abundant possibilities for the way we live.
Reviews
"Weaving in personal experiences with sexual encounters whose tenor has changed to something sinister over the years, Imbler questions the way the stories we tell and the stories we hear affect what we understand about predators and about ourselves as potential prey ..."
"How Far the Light Reaches meditates radiantly on the ragged ways we adapt to the world around us, probing the lives of marine animals for strategies for our own survival."
"Imbler's posture throughout the book is watchful and quiet, intelligent, self-aware, sometimes victimized, sometimes passive-aggressive."
"Stunning and thoughtful ..."
"I was eager to get my own hands on Sabrina Imbler's memoir...to see what all the excitement was about."
"Occasionally, Imbler's juxtaposition of marine and human life feels forced, but the overall effect is heartening and encourages a reexamination of inherited ideas about family, community, and identity ..."
"Imbler's ability to balance illuminating science journalism with candid personal revelation is impressive, and the mesmerizing glints of lyricism are a treat."
Preview
Reader Reviews
0 reviewsSign in to write a review.
No reader reviews yet. Be the first!