Steve Jones.
Coral: a pessimist in paradise.
Abacus. 2007
While writing this book, Steve Jones had beside him a keepsake of his childhood in Wales:
the coral brooch that his sea captain grandfather brought hack across the Indian Ocean
as a gift for his wife. This simple object is a starting point for a dazzling narrative
that uncovers some of the unexpected truths that coral reveals about the earth’s
chequered past and its uncertain future.
Coral: A Pessimist in Paradise is an inspired, eclectic book that links science with history, literature, politics and myth. It belongs to a vivid tradition of thinking and writing about humankind and its place in Nature.