Nature's Genius
Evolution's Lessons for a Changing Planet
Published on 9. April 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-83726-116-1 (ISBN)
Description
'Superb' ROBERT MACFARLANE
'Fascinating' ISABELLA TREE
'Inspiring' CAL FLYN
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR CONSERVATION WRITING
LONGLISTED FOR SCOTLAND'S NATIONAL BOOK AWARDS
For nearly four billion years, life on Earth has found new ways to adapt, reproduce and thrive. Now, in the face of climate change, nature is modelling ingenuity as never before.
David Farrier guides us through unexpected and hopeful examples of nature's genius: whether urban pigeons building nests in the spiked structures meant to deter them or tomcod in the Hudson River that have become immune to highly toxic chemicals, coral used to make a natural and self-healing cement or computer chips derived from mycelium skin. Farrier shows us how nature is offering a blueprint that could help us design sustainable cities, remake our economies, solve our waste problem, rescue animals from the brink of extinction and choose a better future.
'Fascinating' ISABELLA TREE
'Inspiring' CAL FLYN
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR CONSERVATION WRITING
LONGLISTED FOR SCOTLAND'S NATIONAL BOOK AWARDS
For nearly four billion years, life on Earth has found new ways to adapt, reproduce and thrive. Now, in the face of climate change, nature is modelling ingenuity as never before.
David Farrier guides us through unexpected and hopeful examples of nature's genius: whether urban pigeons building nests in the spiked structures meant to deter them or tomcod in the Hudson River that have become immune to highly toxic chemicals, coral used to make a natural and self-healing cement or computer chips derived from mycelium skin. Farrier shows us how nature is offering a blueprint that could help us design sustainable cities, remake our economies, solve our waste problem, rescue animals from the brink of extinction and choose a better future.
Reviews / Votes
Nature's Genius is a superb book: subtle, sharp-eyed and fascinating. Here, everyday beings and objects - dogs, buildings, spiders, clocks - are lit anew; thrown into surprising configurations and relationships. Damage and disorder are faced with clear eyes, but hope is also found in unexpected places. A tight, shimmering web of words -- ROBERT MACFARLANE A fascinating, boundary-breaking, shape-shifting chimera of a book that shows how we might evolve to solve the problems we have caused our planet. Brilliantly written, surprising, inspiring and, ultimately, hopeful -- ISABELLA TREE A book of hope and wonder. I learned something new and thought-provoking, even inspiring, on every page -- CAL FLYN A wonderful exploration of nature's unrivalled ability to adapt to changing environments, and what we might belatedly learn from these interconnected ecosystems that we're also a part of as we navigate a more perilous Anthropocene. Full of fascinating details and insightful observations about the richly diverse behaviours and interactions of the world's extraordinary creatures -- GAIA VINCE We are negligent: the natural world is vigilant. We spawn ugliness: the wild responds with beauty. Farrier's exhilarating, splendidly written account of nature's care for itself and us will help you sleep at night -- CHARLES FOSTER A bold vision * * New Scientist * * Persuasive and impassioned . . . Farrier's achievement is to make change feel not just possible but also exciting * * Literary Review * * Wise, eloquent and often very moving, Nature's Genius is a hymn to the power of possibility embedded in both the natural world and ourselves. -- JAMES BRADLEY Nature's Genus is a wide-ranging work of energy, sensitivity and subtle intelligence that offers glimpses of genuine possibility and hope -- CASPAR HENDERSON David Farrier argues that one day we will not only understand ecologies, but will be able to assemble them -- SIMON INGS * * New Scientist, 'Best Popular Science Books to Look for in 2025' * *More details
Edition
Main
Language
English
Place of publication
Edinburgh
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
197 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-83726-116-1 (9781837261161)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
David Farrier is Professor of Literature and the Environment at the University of Edinburgh. David's first book, Footprints: In Search of Future Fossils, looked at the marks we are leaving on the planet and how these might appear in the fossil record in the deep future. It was named by both The Times and Telegraph as a book of the year, earned praise from Robert Macfarlane and Margaret Atwood, and has been translated into ten other languages. He has had pieces published in the Atlantic, BBC Future, Emergence, Prospect, Daily Telegraph, Orion and Washington Post. He has spoken at numerous online events, has given an invited lecture at the Royal Geographical Society, and has appeared on radio and podcasts such as BBC Free Thinking and Little Atoms.
@David_Farrier
@David_Farrier