Craig Childs' The Secret Knowledge of Water: There Are Two Easy Ways to Die in the Desert: Thirst and Drowning is difficult to review, as it is about one man’s fascination, really, enthrallment, fear and respect for water in the desert.
This simple sentence does not do justice to Child’s book. In his quest to find water in the desert, Child delves deep into what it means to be alive, to exist, to be a rock, a tree, or a simple organism. In this book Childs has created a meditation on life and death, fecundity and bareness - on the nature of the universe.
The book is unavoidably spiritual in tone, but Child is well-versed in the science of water. There is no divide between spirit and science here. The writing is superb; even if you have no interest in water, Childs will pull you in with his compelling language, his fascinating marshaling of facts, and his infectious curiosity - even his evident madness.
This is by far the most compelling book about “nature” I have read in a very long time.
This simple sentence does not do justice to Child’s book. In his quest to find water in the desert, Child delves deep into what it means to be alive, to exist, to be a rock, a tree, or a simple organism. In this book Childs has created a meditation on life and death, fecundity and bareness - on the nature of the universe.
The book is unavoidably spiritual in tone, but Child is well-versed in the science of water. There is no divide between spirit and science here. The writing is superb; even if you have no interest in water, Childs will pull you in with his compelling language, his fascinating marshaling of facts, and his infectious curiosity - even his evident madness.
This is by far the most compelling book about “nature” I have read in a very long time.
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