We have reached week 2 of Nonfiction November, hosted by Julie@Julz Read. I have actually been following my list of reading, which I posted in my initial post about Nonfiction November.
Patrik Svensson won the August prize (in Sweden) in 2019 for best nonfiction book with his The Gospel of the Eels. The Eel, Anguilla Anguilla, it seems, is one of of the most enigmatic creatures nature has created. Within the world of natural science, it is referred to as 'the eel question'. People from Aristotle to Sigmund Freud have tried to understand the eel without succeeding. Now it is threatened with extinction and scientists don't know enough of how the eel is living, reproducing and dying.
Patrik Svensson mixes his own childhood memories of eel fishing with his father, with scientific research on the life of eels. A little touch of philosophy and psychology and he has us hooked. Although scientific research has been going on for centuries, the answer to the enigma of the eel and its life, reproduction process and death is still alluring mankind. The only thing we know is that the Sargasso Sea plays an important part in the life of the eel. That is the place where they are born, reproduce and die. The rest of their lives they live elsewhere.
The Gospel of the Eels is a charming book and the author holds our interest on both accounts; sweet memories of childhood and interesting scientific developments. One can also consider it as a warning. The eel will disappear if nothing is done within the near future. Mankind usually manages to maintain most species by adding a little bit of 'help' in the process of protection and reproduction. However, when one does not know exactly how the eels reproduce and live their life this is not an option.
A book for anyone interested in nature and its wonders.
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