Fire: A Brief History (Cycle of Fire Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books)

Rating:
Summary: Style overpowers substance
Review: Pyne has won a deserved reputation as the leading cultural historian and philosopher of fire. This book should have been an opportunity to summarize his findings in a clearly written, easily read way for people who are unlikely to read his more detailed studies. Pyne does offer us many interesting observations and perspectives on the history of fire. Unfortunately, he imposes a pretentious "writerly" style on his material, making his book laborious to read. His self-conscious literary artistry obscures as much as it reveals. Many of his poetic statements are not explained with supporting facts. A more straightforward telling of this story would be welcome.

Rating:
Summary: Style overpowers substance
Review: Pyne has won a deserved reputation as the leading cultural historian and philosopher of fire. This book should have been an opportunity to summarize his findings in a clearly written, easily read way for people who are unlikely to read his more detailed studies. Pyne does offer us many interesting observations and perspectives on the history of fire. Unfortunately, he imposes a pretentious "writerly" style on his material, making his book laborious to read. His self-conscious literary artistry obscures as much as it reveals. Many of his poetic statements are not explained with supporting facts. A more straightforward telling of this story would be welcome.

Rating:
Summary: Use this book for kindling!!!
Review: Ugh! May the lord have mercy on Weyerhaeuser for their misguided economic support of this book, which should stand forever as an object lesson in what happens when corporations start actually acting on their own airy-fairy mission statements. This book ought more accurately be titled `a brief AND UNBEARABLE history of fire' -- Pyne apparently fashions himself to be the dylan thomas of fire history, inundating us page after page with rompous and ridiculous artistic alliterations, with ceaseless inversions poetic, and anthropomorphisms that would be hilarious if not so awful. Can we possibly believe that fire is `unique to earth' (p. xv), where the `biotic broth broiled over' (p.3) and `humanity's restless hand and roving mind' (p. 7) is `the keeper of the vital flame'? Can we speak sensibly of fire when it appears like a ludicrous singles advert, `fickle if powerful', ignited by lightening... excuse me, I meant to say ignited by a force `relentlessly restoring electrical equilibrium'? Pyne, are you losing your mind? Fire deserves much better treatment than this goofiness. Use this book for kindling!!!

Rating:
Summary: Use this book for kindling!!!
Review: Ugh! May the lord have mercy on Weyerhaeuser for their misguided economic support of this book, which should stand forever as an object lesson in what happens when corporations start actually acting on their own airy-fairy mission statements. This book ought more accurately be titled 'a brief AND UNBEARABLE history of fire' -- Pyne apparently fashions himself to be the dylan thomas of fire history, inundating us page after page with rompous and ridiculous artistic alliterations, with ceaseless inversions poetic, and anthropomorphisms that would be hilarious if not so awful. Can we possibly believe that fire is 'unique to earth' (p. xv), where the 'biotic broth broiled over' (p.3) and 'humanity's restless hand and roving mind' (p. 7) is 'the keeper of the vital flame'? Can we speak sensibly of fire when it appears like a ludicrous singles advert, 'fickle if powerful', ignited by lightening... excuse me, I meant to say ignited by a force 'relentlessly restoring electrical equilibrium'? Pyne, are you losing your mind? Fire deserves much better treatment than this goofiness. Use this book for kindling!!!