This was a sweet, sometimes sad, letter to the author’s son about the world, climate change and the future.

To me, the constant addressing of his son was a bit overdone but I found the content and the stories to be well-written and delivered.

Thanks to RB Media/Recorded Books for the ALC!

Part memoir, part climate change for the masses, part adventure tale, at times it feels like Weir doesn't exactly remember what kind of book he's writing, but as a whole it works. Instead of the doom-and-gloom climate change fare we're more accustomed to, Weir takes a lens to the success stories that are already out there. As the title promises, this is life as we know it (and what it can be if we want it do be). The framework is a letter to his son born in the middle of the pandemic, which gives a reason for the sense of urgency, and gives Weir someone to talk to. However, it's a bit jarring when we're knee-deep in an analysis of zero-emissions building codes and there's an aside directed toward a son we forgot about. Perhaps that was just a function of my listening to the audiobook in sporadic chunks. Especially effective was the contrast of psychological principles (Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Kübler-Ross stages of grief) to the human responses to climate change. There's good storytelling here.

(More formal recommendation will be sent to subscribers of WordSmarts.com in June 2024)

This book by journalist Bill Weir is written as a letter to his children River and Olivia. I liked this format for the novel and his way of sharing his ideas and experience in a very conversational tone. The book is centered around climate change, and it's far-reaching impacts, Weir takes the readers on a journey to the furthest corners of the world-- intermixing his own personal anecdotes featuring his extensive experiences for work and pleasure and research being conducted by some of the brightest minds of our generation. There was a lot of really good information to ponder and think about. While this book is densely packed with information about our changing world and how we got to the situation, as well as descriptions of legislation and pioneers in the field of conservation, I thought Weir was a great narrator for his book and was good to listen too.

Thanks Netgalley for the audio arc copy of this book.

I think it is really important that we expand our bubble and learn from others' experiences and perspectives. Otherwise, we get topic tunnel vision and progress or change stagnates. Climate change and personal health are great hot button issues, worthy of a deep dive.

Life as We Know It (Can Be) gives us the opportunity to hear from Bill Weir's experiences as a journalist, sharing his first-hand accounts, his research, his consolidated perspectives, and his wishes for current and future generations. It's a story about climate change, as well as people and cultures throughout the world. I found the accumulated facts about the changes in our climate patterns staggering, but was encouraged by the new advances from creative problem solvers all over the globe. I was alarmed by the impacts of food, lifestyle, social media and more on our health; however, learning from the Blue Zones and having the knowledge to make change leaves me optimistic. That's important to emphasize that I said optimistic. This book has an overall tone of hope, positivity and encouragement even in the midst of alarming information.

Another final thought...Weir has left me with some great little phrases that I will no doubt be incorporating into my conversational lingo. FOMO - Now rephrased in my brain as the "Fear of Missing the Outdoors" versus the "Fear of Missing Out". This is an acronym that I will definitely pass along to all of the schools that I know who are embracing the joys of Forest School. "Wander list"...This is so much more positive than the concept of a bucket list. I'll be putting together my wander list as soon as possible! Last but not least, the use of the phrase "keyboard courage". I can't think of two better words to describe all of the bold sharing of thoughts, opinions and hateful comments that are showing up on various social media platforms. Keyboard courage is the one instant in which courage isn't a compliment, but has definitely expanded in the growth of social media.

Overall this book was informative, but it was also a look into the heartfelt thoughts of Bill Weir and his wishes for his children's futures. Thank you RB Media and NetGalley for the gift of reading this audiobook, in exchange for an honest review.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. So I want to thank first to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this.

Life as we know it (can be) it's an interesting story the author tells his daughter and to the people reading this book mostly about climate change and the impacts on our lives.

*I received a copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this opportunity*

Best described as a love letter to his children, and to all of us, LIFE AS WE KNOW IT (CAN BE) is a heartwarming exploration of everything going wrong with the world and, most importantly, how humanity is fixing it. Centered around climate change and it's far reaching impacts, Weir takes the readers (and his children) on a journey to the furthest corners of the world-- intermixing his own personal anecdotes featuring his extensive travels for work and pleasure (I'm not going to lie, I was laughing the entire time imagining a teenaged River being horrified by the lighthouse intro) and research being conducted by some of the brightest minds of our generation.

While this book is densely packed with information about our changing world and how we got to the situation, as well as descriptions of legislation and pioneers in the field of conservation, Weir did an incredible job of making this book approachable for all readers with a genuine and conversational tone.

I became a Bill Weir fan watching The Wonder List. Bill Weir as a narrator is next level great. I enjoyed his book and him reading it so much. He puts the perfect emphasis on his thoughts. This book was so well done and I can’t recommend it enough to family and friends.

ife as We Know It (Can Be) by Bill Weir
Overall Grade: B+
Writing: B
Audio: B
Historical Information: A-
Best Aspect: Great as a history/lesson audio very interesting (not much memoir even though it was listed as on Netgalley).
Worst Aspect: The parts in the audio when the author spoke directly to his four-year-old was very disruptive and weird.
Recommend: Yes. Available now.

This is an interesting and informative book. Gives you a look at humanity and our earth. Makes one think about how life was when most people were homesteading. Maybe we should go back to that.

OK. So I wasn’t really sure what to expect with this one, and once I began it, I did NOT think I was going to like it at all. I mean, this is somewhat out of my comfort zone...
BUT, Bill Weir does a great job at bringing out so many things that I’ve never even thought about, and yet it seems as if he’s dedicated his LIFE to some of this stuff...

And, it’s written in a way that he’s dedicated it to his toddler son, to be read on his 30th birthday. That in itself intrigued me...

He also dedicates some of the book to his daughter.

Again, not sure what I was expecting, but overall it was enlightening, and a good read!

#LifeAsWeKnowIt(CanBe) by #BillWeir (and narrated beautifully, by the author)

Thanks to #NetGalley and #RecordedBooksMedia for an ARC of the audiobook which is due to be released on 4/16/24...so about 10 days from now.

3 1/2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 for me, rounded up to 4!

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