Living on Earth is an epic examination of life on our planet. The author, Godfrey- Smith takes a sweeping look at biology and evolutionary theory, but in an accessible and interesting way. Godfrey-Smith brings philosophical musings to the front and center. Kant and his categorical imperative are discussed, along with the views of utilitarianism and Pete Singer’s animal welfare perspective. Godfrey-Smith delves into intentionality and the choices made in nature that affect our planet as a whole.

I listened to the audiobook in advance for free from NetGalley. It was an enjoyable experience, with great narrators (including the author) who had a calm and knowledgeable way of presenting the material. The information shared was fenced and nuanced, so I did have to re-listen to several parts to comprehend. The book itself was very descriptive, really bringing the reader into the topic at hand. Overall, I felt this audiobook was worth the time I put into to listen and puzzle over the contents. It was interesting, with a plethora of scientific information shared in a fun, understandable way. Living on Earth gave me a lot to digest and mull over.

I love our planet so much. This book was lovely. I was hooked immediately. I did cry when we got to the part about how we have deeply betrayed animals. I keep chickens as pets and they all have unique personalities. They're lovely creature. I wish we could outright abolish factory farming or at least the way we mass produce eggs.
Anyway, the narration is great too. I have a lot to think about after listening to this one. It caused a lot of reflection for me.

One of my favorite things about reading is the way books end up in conversation with each other, sometimes on purpose if I am reading to a theme, and sometimes by happenstance. I recently read Todd May's Should We Go Extinct which takes a philosophical approach to whether humanity is a net good or not. That laid the groundwork for Peter Godfrey-Smith's latest which examines the question of what is life and its value. Living on Earth is the perfect companion read and I appreciate both books so much more together. One focuses on philosophical questions and the other on the scientific and practical answers and applications. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the audio ARC.

I had a great time reading this book. It was excellent fodder for endless dinner conversations. I appreciated that it was scientific but not so scientific that I couldn't follow the author's thought process. Even when I disagreed, I could see how Godfrey-Smith got from point A to point B. The audio narration was a pleasure, like hearing from your adventurous uncle about his latest escapades. While the author acknowledges current challenges, Living on Earth is more hopeful than doom and gloom. I recommend this book to anyone wanting to reawaken a sense of wonder at the world around us, explore interesting questions about that world, and be challenged to live in a way that leads to mutual flourishing between humanity and the rest of creation.

This fascinating book examines how living organisms have shaped the world, from cyanobacteria oxygenating the atmosphere to human activity increasing the levels of carbon dioxide. Informative and easy to read, the book also confronts the ethical implications of human actions, exploring issues like factory farming, habitat destruction, and animal experimentation. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The bestselling author of Other Minds shows how we and our ancestors have reinvented our planet.

Thank you Macmillan Audio & Netgalley for the audio ARC! The audiobook was narrated by the author. I enjoyed reading this book. It has nature writing in it but at the same time, it’s also philosophical. I found it very interesting.

This one is a bit of a difficult one to rate as I found the flow/structure of this book a bit meandering and not super cohesive; that said, I did find myself interested in the content overall even if I never did find the underlying thread to tie it all together.

The first part of the book was a bit of a rehash of a lot of things that people who are interested and read a lot of science have already heard, but I still thought the author did a good job of comparing and contrasting different theories about how the world and life came to be. The second part of the book is where it started to go off the rails; I didn't understand how some of the questions posed tied into the first half of the book and definitely went in a different direction than the title would have led me to believe. I thought the questions posed were interesting, especially as someone who's gone vegetarian/mostly vegan with the environment and animals in mind but didn't feel like they were fully hashed out from the philosophical perspective the author brings. Again, the content was interesting enough to me that I can overlook some of the shortfalls of the structure of the book.

I haven't read the other two books in the series -- in the beginning of the book it was noted that it wasn't necessary to read this book but perhaps that would have helped? Not sure but I am interested in looking into the other two, particularly the one on the octopus.

A thoughtful discussion of life on our planet. The author has a curious mind and delves deep into evolution, differentiating traits developed for survival vs superficial “showy” advantage. He takes on the definitions of life, consciousness, and sentience, making a case for how much animals understand and therefore how that might (or should) impact how we treat them. While decrying abuses at Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), he also doesn’t suggest we simply let all the animals roam free. He offers a workable alternative that would improve conditions for animals being raised for food. The book is part science, part ethics, part philosophy.
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes. Available September 3, 2024.