A great scientific history of CA for a recent transplant. ' Makes you want to drive/hike/paddle to see many of the formations he describes. It's a pleasure to learn something from such a word artist. ' McPhee's writing, even on technical subjects like geology, is lucid and powerful. It is also one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read. ' I have read this book - and then again within Annals of a Former World - at least 4 times. We fly a lot so the book has provided me new insight into the terrain I am watching. ' Fascinating discussion of the geologic history of CA. It's a fantastic series, and this book is among the best. ' A multiple-year project to finish this author's Annals of The Former World series ends with completion of this book. Now, despite all the science, it was hard to put this book down. Reading this book makes me wonder why I found geology so boring when I was in public school. ' The description of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, which I experienced myself, was incredibly interesting. ' Full of delicious nuggets - chert, diabases, gabbro, variolitic basalts, serpentine, ophiolites, protopangaea, plate-tectonic history, transform faults, volcanology, earthquakology, crust, pebbles, faults, dust - it's the colission of geek geology love and writerly prowess.

' Like all McPhee books, I learned so, so much-about geology, about politics, about water, about geography. The chapter on the gold rush era mining was entertaining and sort of sad from an environmental point of view.

' so far it is a popular geological history of california, from east to west on I-80. Great line: 'Here is the one thing to remember from reading this book, the rock on top of Everest is marine limestone.' ' - Faye, ' Classic John McPhee but still enjoyable, perfect after visiting southern California. ' Geology is never far from the minds of Californians, and this book uses that as a template for exploring California.

Also, Annie do not read this unless you're about to leave/have already left the Bay Area. Not sure how much I got out of it, but enjoyable reading. Rhythmic and really beautifully written for being about, essentially, continental drift and mountain formation. I always enjoy John McPhee's writing, whatever the topic. ' Creative non-fiction style essays about the geologic and human/cultural history of California. I loved the portion about the Gold Rush too. ' His description of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, tracing the seismic waves from the epicenter and depicting what happened along their route, is spellbinding and terrifying. ' My only criticism is that I would have liked more visual material. Overall Performance: Narration Rating: Story Rating:.

Assembling California by John McPhee