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The Map That Changed the World
The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology | Simon Winchester
In 1793, a canal digger named William Smith made a startling discovery. He found that by tracing the placement of fossils, which he uncovered in his excavations, one could follow layers of rocks as they dipped and rose and fellclear across England and, indeed, clear across the worldmaking it possible, for the first time ever, to draw a chart of the hidden underside of the earth. Smith spent twenty-two years piecing together the fragments of this unseen universe to create an epochal and remarkably beautiful hand-painted map. But instead of receiving accolades and honors, he ended up in debtors' prison, the victim of plagiarism, and virtually homeless for ten years more. The Map That Changed the World is a very human tale of endurance and achievement, of one man's dedication in the face of ruin. With a keen eye and thoughtful detail, Simon Winchester unfolds the poignant sacrifice behind this world-changing discovery.
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TrishB
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#titlesandtunes #theworldismyoyster
Book about rocks and the world and the first geological map! As recommended by the rock mad daughter!
Song Everybody Wants to Rule the World 😁 not my fave Tears for Fears song but a good sing a long one!

slategreyskies I love rocks too! 9mo
Cuilin Love this!! 9mo
See All 9 Comments
squirrelbrain Great choices! 9mo
TrishB @Cinfhen always 😘 9mo
TrishB @slategreyskies cool 👍🏻 my daughter is very entertaining when describing the countryside via the rocks! 9mo
BarbaraBB I used to love Tears for Fears. This isn‘t my favorite either but it‘s good to see them anyway! 9mo
DGRachel Great song choice! 9mo
65 likes1 stack add9 comments
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iread2much
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Mehso-so

This book was interesting and I learned a lot about the beginnings of #geology and poor William Smith, but it never told me how the map changed the world. I found the first part of the book much better than the later half, and it was really interesting to learn about the debtors prison system, but I don‘t understand why the map was so important.
1.5/5 stars, long winded tangents ruin this book.

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Straycat
Panpan

I struggled my way through this book. While it does have some interesting parts, most of the book felt very dry. I picked this book after being recommended it for my interests in geology, but this book is mostly about the life and the downfall of William Smith.

rather_be_reading welcome to litsy 📚☕📚 @LitsyWelcomeWagon 5y
Straycat @rather_be_reading Thank you:) I found out about from a book club I‘m in on Facebook. (edited) 5y
LitsyWelcomeWagon Welcome to Litsy! Here are links to #Litsytips: http://bit.ly/litsytips and #LitsyHowTo videos: goo.gl/UrCpoU. There‘s lots of fun things to do: book exchanges, buddy reads, photo challenges and more!
5y
Nute Welcome to Litsy! It‘s a warm and friendly community. I know that you will enjoy yourself here. I‘m looking forward to getting to know you!🙂 4y
2 likes4 comments
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PippoRanito
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Bailedbailed

Reading this book about a map will ironically make you feel lost. Winchester's attempt at biography ends up as a pathetic exercise in marketing. Such a shame since the subject topic and person are both interesting.

Read my full review here: https://scidols.com/2017/11/06/book-review-the-map-that-changed-the-world-will-l...

#maps #history #science #biography

16 likes1 stack add
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AngelaG1
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The 75% off bin actually had something I‘ve been wanting! New book, plus stationary made from Measure for Measure scripts (my favorite Shakespeare play).

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GoneFishing

William Smith appeared on the stage at a profoundly interesting moment: he was about to make it more so.

28 likes1 stack add
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Tikabelle
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A lady next to me on the bus was reading this and coughing into her LIBRARY book, so I picked up the audio version (for safety), thinking it would be about the tapestry maps from Oxfordshire. Nope. It's about the geological map from 1815, but damned if it's not interesting all the same.

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hof1991
Pickpick

A history of geology in typical Winchester fashion. Lots of related facts and history. Love that.