The Age of Melt

The Age of Melt - What Glaciers, Ice Mummies, and Ancient Artifacts Teach Us about Climate, Culture, and a Future without Ice by Lisa Baril is a fascinating exploration into the glaciers that cover 10% of our Earth, that's 15 million square kilometers (5.8 million square miles) of glacierised areas (including Greenland and Antarctica)

I adore readng and learning about the natural world but at no point did I imagine that I could become so invested in the investigation and backstory of a body found in the ice of the Otzal (Alps) which was affectionately nicknamed "Otzi" by the researchers. This body defied all knowledge of those that had been trapped in such a way. It was not torn asunder, but perfectly preserved aside from an abrasion on the back of the head and weighing about 30lbs

This account got me hooked into the writing of Lisa Baril which is interesting, engaging and concise. This book gave me so much information but I did not feel overloaded due to it's affable, conversational style.

Watching and learning about glacier behaviour or Ice-Cap Archaelogy is a brilliant insight into the behaviour of our global eco-system and defines just how important they are on so very many levels. A book that would be loved by ecologists, climate watches, conservationists and indeed anyone with an interest in our natural world

Wonderful and highly recommended

Thank you to Netgalley, Timber Press and the author Lisa Baril for this fascinating ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

Despite the Global Warming/Climate Change controversy, most people agree something is happening to our temperatures. Wrath from God, mythical creatures, just natural occurrences, or volcanic action?

This book explores the consequences of melting glaciers: think fresh water supply. There is also knowledge hidden in those melting glaciers through ice patch/glacial archaeology. The ice thaw presents archaeologists with knowledge and First Nations with pieces of their heritage and culture by exposing, through melt, a wide assortment of artifacts nearly perfectly preserved.
Of particular interest to me is the fascinating details of the discovery and examination of Otiz, the Iceman, and the “Long Ago Person. The telling of their stories based on science was particularly interesting.
The writing style is simple to understand for so many age groups. I highly recommend this short nonfiction book.

Thank you to Timber Press for providing a copy of this book for review.

In the Age of Melt, Lisa Baril explains how ice patches and glaciers work and how they help us reconstruct and understand human history and our relationship with ice through time. Baril talks about how humans and ice bodies have experienced climate changes in the past, compared to how the current severe climate warming affects the melting of glaciers. As the ice melts, artifacts found get older, which helps us understand better how our ancestors lived and our climate history.

The book also analyses the implications of the loss of ice in how it affects the Earth's climate, our water supplies, and the challenges it represents to different communities and cultures. It also studies a few solutions some communities currently use for water scarcity. I believe the writing is accessible and explains concepts clearly so readers can understand scientific terms and ice patch archeology regardless of their background. I expected the book to expand more on the historical context and how our understanding of ice patches and glaciers has shaped human history and different cultures. I also wished it would have focused more on solutions and how our future may look instead of questioning whether we have done enough.

I highly recommend this book if you want to understand more about glaciers and how the ice and the artifacts found in them give us an insight into what the past looked like for the glaciers and the people living near them.

Thank you to Timber Press and Net Galley for the advanced copy of the book!