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Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and People in America

Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and People in America

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  • Create Date：2023-10-25 03:20:46
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Dan Flores
  • ISBN：1324065915
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Summary

Winner of the 2023 Rachel Carson Environment Book Award
Shortlisted for the 2023 Phi Beta Kappa Society Ralph Waldo Emerson Award
A Kirkus Review Best Nonfiction Book of 2022

A deep-time history of animals and humans in North America， by the best-selling and award-winning author of Coyote America 。 In 1908， near Folsom， New Mexico， a cowboy discovered the remains of a herd of extinct giant bison。 By examining flint points embedded in the bones， archeologists later determined that a band of humans had killed and butchered the animals 12，450 years ago。 This discovery vastly expanded America’s known human history but also revealed the long-standing danger Homo sapiens presented to the continent’s evolutionary richness。 Distinguished author Dan Flores’s ambitious history chronicles the epoch in which humans and animals have coexisted in the “wild new world” of North America―a place shaped both by its own grand evolutionary forces and by momentous arrivals from Asia， Africa， and Europe。 With portraits of iconic creatures such as mammoths， horses， wolves， and bison， Flores describes the evolution and historical ecology of North America like never before。 The arrival of humans precipitated an extraordinary disruption of this teeming environment。 Flores treats humans not as a species apart but as a new animal entering two continents that had never seen our likes before。 He shows how our long past as carnivorous hunters helped us settle America， initially establishing a coast-to-coast culture that lasted longer than the present United States。 But humanity’s success had devastating consequences for other creatures。 In telling this epic story， Flores traces the origins of today’s “Sixth Extinction” to the spread of humans around the world; tracks the story of a hundred centuries of Native America; explains how Old World ideologies precipitated 400 years of market-driven slaughter that devastated so many ancient American species; and explores the decline and miraculous recovery of species in recent decades。 In thrilling narrative style， informed by genomic science， evolutionary biology， and environmental history， Flores celebrates the astonishing bestiary that arose on our continent and introduces the complex human cultures and individuals who hastened its eradication， studied America’s animals， and moved heaven and earth to rescue them。 Eons in scope and continental in scale， Wild New World is a sweeping yet intimate Big History of the animal-human story in America。 40 illustrations and 4 maps

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Reviews

Jeremiah Cunningham ，

A deep-time history of animals and humans in North America， by the best-selling and award-winning author of Coyote America 。 In 1908， near Folsom， New Mexico， a cowboy discovered the remains of a herd of extinct giant bison。 By examining flint points embedded in the bones， archeologists later determined that a band of humans had killed and butchered the animals 12，450 years ago。 This discovery vastly expanded America’s known human history but also revealed the long-standing danger Homo sapiens p A deep-time history of animals and humans in North America， by the best-selling and award-winning author of Coyote America 。 In 1908， near Folsom， New Mexico， a cowboy discovered the remains of a herd of extinct giant bison。 By examining flint points embedded in the bones， archeologists later determined that a band of humans had killed and butchered the animals 12，450 years ago。 This discovery vastly expanded America’s known human history but also revealed the long-standing danger Homo sapiens presented to the continent’s evolutionary richness。Distinguished author Dan Flores’s ambitious history chronicles the epoch in which humans and animals have coexisted in the “wild new world” of North America―a place shaped both by its own grand evolutionary forces and by momentous arrivals from Asia， Africa， and Europe。 With portraits of iconic creatures such as mammoths， horses， wolves， and bison， Flores describes the evolution and historical ecology of North America like never before。The arrival of humans precipitated an extraordinary disruption of this teeming environment。 Flores treats humans not as a species apart but as a new animal entering two continents that had never seen our likes before。 He shows how our long past as carnivorous hunters helped us settle America， initially establishing a coast-to-coast culture that lasted longer than the present United States。 But humanity’s success had devastating consequences for other creatures。 In telling this epic story， Flores traces the origins of today’s “Sixth Extinction” to the spread of humans around the world; tracks the story of a hundred centuries of Native America; explains how Old World ideologies precipitated 400 years of market-driven slaughter that devastated so many ancient American species; and explores the decline and miraculous recovery of species in recent decades。In thrilling narrative style， informed by genomic science， evolutionary biology， and environmental history， Flores celebrates the astonishing bestiary that arose on our continent and introduces the complex human cultures and individuals who hastened its eradication， studied America’s animals， and moved heaven and earth to rescue them。 Eons in scope and continental in scale， Wild New World is a sweeping yet intimate Big History of the animal-human story in America。 This book from award winning author Dan Flores is an extensive look at the history of the animals of North America and the forces which have continually threatened the species unique to this continent。 The book is well researched， expertly written， and a masterpiece in presenting complex scientific and historical data in a comprehensible way。For me， personally， while I appreciated the early sections of the book which really go into a significant amount of scientific research and theory regarding the migration of humans on the planet， the later sections detailing the actions taken towards animals on the North American continent and specifically in what is now the United States of America was the most interesting aspect。 I really appreciate how Flores took the time to detail the history of both the hunting and killing but also of early conservation efforts。Overall， if you are interested in this aspect of climate change -- the impact on the animals of the planet -- this is a must read。 。。。more

John Carey ，

This was a hard read， like learning about the Holocaust for the first time。 It's hard to stare directly at the subject matter， but there's so much to learn from and hopefully say never again。 This was a hard read， like learning about the Holocaust for the first time。 It's hard to stare directly at the subject matter， but there's so much to learn from and hopefully say never again。 。。。more

Randall Spears ，

Simultaneously fascinating and devastating account of the interaction between humans and wildlife in North America。 Before reading this book， I was well aware of how humans have shaped the land， and in the process driven some wildlife species to extinction or to the brink of it。 But I wasn't aware of the extent of it - how plentiful wildlife was when the Europeans arrived， and the fact that Americans managed to do things like take an estimated population of 3 billion passenger pigeons all the wa Simultaneously fascinating and devastating account of the interaction between humans and wildlife in North America。 Before reading this book， I was well aware of how humans have shaped the land， and in the process driven some wildlife species to extinction or to the brink of it。 But I wasn't aware of the extent of it - how plentiful wildlife was when the Europeans arrived， and the fact that Americans managed to do things like take an estimated population of 3 billion passenger pigeons all the way to 0。 Stories of Grizzly bears， wolves， coyotes， pigeons， woodpeckers， parakeets， jaguars， bison， mammoths， pronghorn， eagles， all with varying levels of hope or sadness。 The good news is， it seems that—like the generations of Native Americans whose ancestors likely caused massive Pleistocene extinctions—we are learning from the mistakes of our predecessors （and unlike those Native Americans， we also have modern science to help）。 。。。more

Kayla Heinze ，

Useful big history perspective。

Book Post Ann ，

"The future of conservation， and our own survival， depends on busting some of the most stubborn myths that have embedded themselves in Western belief systems—ideologies that have， for centuries， steered us down a course of overexploitation of our planet’s resources。 In his latest book Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and Peoples in America， Dan Flores fully takes on the challenge。 It makes for uncomfortable reading。 But facing these demons has never been more crucial， and in Flores’ def "The future of conservation， and our own survival， depends on busting some of the most stubborn myths that have embedded themselves in Western belief systems—ideologies that have， for centuries， steered us down a course of overexploitation of our planet’s resources。 In his latest book Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and Peoples in America， Dan Flores fully takes on the challenge。 It makes for uncomfortable reading。 But facing these demons has never been more crucial， and in Flores’ deft hands the facts， fortified by the latest findings in ecology， genetics， and archaeology， fly off the pages in vivid and fascinating detail。" -Isabella TreeRead the full review here: https://books。substack。com/p/review-i。。。 。。。more

Carter Tielkemeier ，

If I could give it 100 stars， I would。 Wild New World is the Magnum Opus of Dan Flores illustrious career。 Successfully weaving in deep history， personal knowledge， and cutting edge science， Mr。 Flores creates an enthralling masterpiece of non fiction， with great despair for what we’ve lost， and small hope for the future。 It should be considered as one of the best books on North American Ecological history and Flores a modern Thoreau with North America his Walden Pond。

THOMAS E。 TONEY ，

Wild New WorldGreat Book that tells about the history of America's animals and how we wasted this abundant resource with no regard for the species that were destroyed！ Wild New WorldGreat Book that tells about the history of America's animals and how we wasted this abundant resource with no regard for the species that were destroyed！ 。。。more

Richard Blackmore ，

Wow， this seems to be a popular book。 I'm still not changing my rating or review， though。 :P I reviewed this book as a book about the Pleistocene， and there it is extremely lacking。 --------------------------DNF at 21%（I am reviewing the audiobook version of this book， which was unfortunately the only version available on my Hoopla app）。Why does this book exist？ No， seriously。 I was exhilarated when I heard about this book in the New York Book Review and quickly added it on Hoopla。 I listened at Wow， this seems to be a popular book。 I'm still not changing my rating or review， though。 :P I reviewed this book as a book about the Pleistocene， and there it is extremely lacking。 --------------------------DNF at 21%（I am reviewing the audiobook version of this book， which was unfortunately the only version available on my Hoopla app）。Why does this book exist？ No， seriously。 I was exhilarated when I heard about this book in the New York Book Review and quickly added it on Hoopla。 I listened attentively to what I thought was going to be a wonderful new ADDITION to the thoughtful discussion of the Pleistocene world。 I mean， isn't that why people write books？ Apparently not， because there is nothing new here。 At all。 The only way that a reader could possibly get anything out of this book is if they had never come across any book about the Pleistocene， never seen a gallery or exhibit about the "Ice Age" at a natural history museum， or never watched a documentary on the subject。There is nothing new in this book。 at all， and Dan Flores is way out of his depth， merely borrowing from better， more comprehensive books on the subject。 And no it is not subtle。 Flores will quite literally bring up a paleontologist or archaeologist （this book also covers the migration of homo sapiens into North America; a subject which has also been covered thoroughly by experts）。So， knowing this， why would a reader read this book， rather than simply reading the original books by those scientists？ That is a very good question that I lack an answer to。 Because they aren't available？Yes， they are。 So， alas my last thought is that people just aren't aware of them， so without further ado， here is a list of books about the Pleistocene from the "Life of the Past" series （this is a brilliant book series published by Indiana University Press， written exclusively by ACTUAL PALEONTOLOGISTS）; so as not to cheat， this is only the books on the subject that can be found on Hoopla:Megafauna: Giant Beasts of Pleistocene South America， by Richard Farina et。 al。Horned Armadillos and Rafting Monkeys， by Darin CroftRhinoceros Giants， by Donald ProtheroAfter the Dinosaurs: the Age of Mammals， by Donald Prothero （this book covers the entire Age of Mammals， not just the Pleistocene）Sabertooth， by Mauricio Anton （this covers all sabertoothed creatures through time， including and especially the Smilodon cats）Other Books about the Ice Age:The Last Lost World， by Lydia Pyne （available on Libby）The Ice Age: A Very Short Introduction， by Jamie WoodwardAtlas of a Lost World， by Craig Childs （another journalist， but at least this book is ONLY about humans in Pleistocene North America）The Rise and Reign of Mammals， by Steve Brusatte （I should add that Brusatte's expertise is in dinosaurs， not mammals。 Not sure why he wrote this book， but he IS a paleontologist and a brilliant writer。） 。。。more

J。A。 Ironside ，

Audio ARC provided by NetGalley。 All opinions are my own。Audio review: Narrator was good， kept me engaged with subject matter that was both interesting and upsetting。Main review: This is a very ambitious book。 Basically a full natural history of North America from the Pleistocene onwards， and in many ways the author pulls it off。 The look at the direct result of evolving populations of humans and human culture on wildlife populations was very interesting - in fact it's pretty hard to argue that Audio ARC provided by NetGalley。 All opinions are my own。Audio review: Narrator was good， kept me engaged with subject matter that was both interesting and upsetting。Main review: This is a very ambitious book。 Basically a full natural history of North America from the Pleistocene onwards， and in many ways the author pulls it off。 The look at the direct result of evolving populations of humans and human culture on wildlife populations was very interesting - in fact it's pretty hard to argue that we have not caused huge amounts of extinction。 Nor does Flores lecture without exploring why extinction occurs - aside from human greed and economical concerns， there's also competition between groups of humans， the issue of biological first contact and the speed of adaptation of other species。 There was a lot of interesting examination of animal culture - how the difference between human intelligence and other higher mammal intelligence is one of degree not kind。 And there are notes of hope here as well。 That said， this was also a profoundly upsetting book。 Our ancestors reached through time and stole a different future from us （and we appear to be doing the same thing to our future descendants）。 This brought back all the distress I felt when I was six years old and really grasping what extinction was and humanity's place in that process。 So be warned， if you are sensitive to accounts of animals being hunted for sport and profit and just because， this book is pretty depressing。 Overall though， it's a fascinating read and Flores does a great job of putting humans back within the context of the animal kingdomw where we belong。 。。。more

Rob ，

Some similarities to his 2017 book American Serengeti， but here， Flores really gets things off his chest。 And it is glorious。

Andra ，

Every American should read this

Ben ，

3。5。 While this book was still worth reading， there were several problems with it in my opinion。 First， this book talks about people （mostly dead， white， male Americans） as much as it talks about animals。 While the title tells you that， I was hopeful it would actually talk more about how native peoples interacted with animals before colonialism。 While native people were not necessarily erased， their stories， history， culture， etc most of the time felt like an afterthought to the white American s 3。5。 While this book was still worth reading， there were several problems with it in my opinion。 First， this book talks about people （mostly dead， white， male Americans） as much as it talks about animals。 While the title tells you that， I was hopeful it would actually talk more about how native peoples interacted with animals before colonialism。 While native people were not necessarily erased， their stories， history， culture， etc most of the time felt like an afterthought to the white American stories。 Second， you can tell the author is not a scientist。 He is just plain wrong a lot of the time （calling humans carnivores instead of omnivores）， and other times when I was hoping for deeper scientific scrutiny or information， it wasn’t there。 Lastly， the book is all over the place。 While it’s kinda chronological， it doesn’t feel that way at a lot of points and it can be very confusing。 Still worth a read if you like this sort of thing but would not recommend to people more casually interested in ecological history。 。。。more

Nick Buccongello ，

Interesting and valuable information。 Dan Flores clearly has done his home work and cares deeply about sharing his knowledge with the world。 Unfortunately I couldn’t finish this book due to his writing style。 Bouncing back and forth between the past and the present so often left me struggling to follow along and stay invested。

Thomas Ray ，

Dewey 591。97 F663w

Richard Reese ，

Dan Flores is a historian who has been studying the stormy relationship between humans and the family of life for many years。 He calls this subject Big History。 Wild New World is a fascinating and disturbing masterpiece。 It’s a thick book loaded with ideas gathered over a long career。 The core focus is on North America， which was once an Eden-like paradise of abundant wildlife。 What happened？Our species emerged in beautiful Mother Africa maybe 300，000 years ago。 Maybe 60，000 years ago， adventuro Dan Flores is a historian who has been studying the stormy relationship between humans and the family of life for many years。 He calls this subject Big History。 Wild New World is a fascinating and disturbing masterpiece。 It’s a thick book loaded with ideas gathered over a long career。 The core focus is on North America， which was once an Eden-like paradise of abundant wildlife。 What happened？Our species emerged in beautiful Mother Africa maybe 300，000 years ago。 Maybe 60，000 years ago， adventurous folks began wandering off into the outer world。 Our exploration of the planet was underway。 Folks went east to Asia， and north to Europe。 By maybe 45，000 years ago， folks were in Siberia and northern Asia。 So far， the earliest evidence of humans in America dates to maybe 25，000 years ago。 Flores described two important discoveries in New Mexico。 At Folsom （1908）， the bones of 32 extinct giant bison， 12，450 years old。 At Clovis （1914） the bones of extinct mammoths， 13，000 years old。 At both sites， flaked flint points were found with the bones， smoking gun evidence of human hunting。 A huge surprise！Humans were team hunters skilled at killing delicious wild animals， preferably jumbo sized megafauna。 As bands of pioneers migrated into new frontiers， a number of megafauna species gradually went extinct， in one region after another， a sequence corresponding to the timeline of human arrival。 Today， our culture celebrates human brilliance。 We’re simply too smart to disrupt the planet’s climate — global warming is a hoax！ We deny responsibility — not our fault。 Similarly， we’re too smart to cause mass extinctions — not our fault。 It’s much more comfortable to blame prehistoric climate change。 But the wiped-out species in America had survived for millions of years， including numerous eras of unusual heat and cold。 They weren’t dainty weaklings。 Why did this killer climate shift only exterminate large animals， not small？ Why did it just affect America， but not other continents at the same time？ Hmmm…In the 1960s， Paul Martin began using a new technology， radiocarbon dating， a better tool for dating prehistoric artifacts。 This enabled him to compare the dates of human presence in North America with the dates of extinctions。 He learned that human arrival came first， and extinctions came later — during a process that took maybe a thousand years。 Stunned， he referred to this process as “blitzkrieg overkill，” because of its unusual speed。 To Native Americans， this implied that their venerable ancestors foolishly hunted too hard。 They’ve never been fond of the paleface settlers who foolishly obliterated their ancient homeland， and they especially disliked Martin。 We’ve now learned that as the human diaspora advanced around the world， the same pattern followed: arrival first， then extinction。 By 2006， Martin had learned more。 He wrote， “I argue that virtually all extinctions of wild animals in the last 50，000 years were anthropogenic。” Yikes！ The indigenous white folks of Europe had done it too！Evolution had fine-tuned us for living in tropical climates。 Many of the new lands we wandered into had uncomfortably chilly non-tropical climates。 We were forced to develop innovative solutions， like needles， awls， sewn clothing， and protective shelters。 When we arrived in new regions， the wildlife was clueless。 Mysterious bipedal primates did not trigger danger alarms， because we didn’t fit the standard predator template。 “We were a brilliant new predator with sophisticated weapons， dogs， and fire。” For a while， hunters enjoyed the pursuit of fearless prey， many of whom became victims of fatal tameness， like dodos。 During the Lewis & Clark expedition， Clark once bayoneted a wolf that calmly walked past。 Hunting focused on jumbo sized animals that didn’t breed like bunnies， or zoom like gazelles。 Small groups of humans roamed across vast roadless wilderness on foot， armed with Stone Age weapons。 Game was depleted over the course of centuries， and the process of decline could have been imperceptible to living generations。 As game got scarce， the diaspora advanced into new regions。Everywhere we migrated， the megafauna had evolved large strong bodies， a traditional defense against fierce predators， like sabertooth cats。 Unfortunately， when the predators were bloodthirsty primates from outer space， jumbo size was a vulnerability， and high speed escape was not an option。 The big guys could be killed with primitive spears。America was the last major stop of the human diaspora， which had begun maybe 35，000 years earlier。 During this long process， pioneers had become highly skilled survivalists。 When the Beringia land bridge emerged from the sea， they advanced from Siberia into the “American Serengeti。”I was shocked to realize the very long time spans of evolutionary history prior to human arrival。 The camel family in North America blinked out 10，000 years ago， ending a 40 million year residence。 Horses went extinct 9，000 years ago， after enjoying four million years here。 Mammoths wandered in from the Old World 1。5 million years ago。 It’s heartbreaking to comprehend the impact of the blitzkrieg。IMPORTANT！ So， a number of species blinked out。 When the American megafauna extinction surge wound down， what came next was 10，000 years （100 centuries） of relative stability， according to Flores。 The human pioneers remained， and eventually coevolved with the species that survived。 This preserved the continent’s downsized wildlife community。 Humans learned ecosystem limits， established wise taboos to avoid overhunting， and nurtured a culture of profound respect and reverence for the entire family of life。 Species that survived extinction now had less competition。 With the giant bison gone forever， the much smaller bison we know today exploded in number。 They reached reproductive age faster， and successfully coevolved with the remaining survivors。 Sadly， the 100 centuries of stability zoomed off a cliff 500 years ago， when visitors from the Old World began washing up on the Atlantic coast — something like a bloody asteroid strike。 The aliens brought with them an assortment of deadly infectious diseases for which natives had zero immunity。 There were maybe four million natives in 1492。 Epidemics rapidly spread westward， killing about 90 percent of them within 100 years。 This die-off sharply reduced hunting pressure on the wildlife， which was free to grow explosively。 In 1585， Thomas Hariot was astonished by the fantastic abundance of animals he saw in Virginia。 It was an Eden created by disease。 Settlers were free to hunt like crazy in a wilderness where there were no rules or regulations。 In addition to diseases， colonists also imported their infectious worldview。 Their religion had roots in a herding society that treasured enslaved livestock， and detested predators。 Their Old World culture was built on a foundation of human supremacy， domestication， civilization， manufacturing， fanaticism， patriarchy， environmental devastation， and pathological self-interest。 From time to time， Flores stopped to take a long hard piss on the notion of self-interest， a demonic quirk in the settler’s worldview。 I suspect it emerged with the rise of farming， herding， personal property， and individual salvation。 Its one all-consuming question has been “how can I get what I want？” We suffer from an insatiable lifelong pursuit of social status， to the fullest extent possible， by any means necessary。 Nothing else matters。 Sorry kids！ Sorry wolves！The traditional worldview of most tribal cultures majored in cooperation instead。 It nurtured mindfulness， and profound reverence for the family of life， the mother of their existence。 They were something like the folks who made the passionate cave paintings at Chauvet。 With few exceptions， the named gods of Native Americans were animals — coyote， raven， rabbit， etc。 In the Old World religion， humans were very special critters， the other animals were not。 By and by， settlers from the Old World flooded into America。 They had domesticated animals and religions and economic ideas wherein “animals were not kin but resources。” Their lives had no sacred significance。 So， the more hides， pelts， and furs you could take to market， the more cool stuff you could get。 Yippee！Native folks thoroughly detested the monstrous colonists， but were fascinated by the unusual stuff they had。 Fifty deerskins could be traded for a metal pot。 Hatchets， axes， and knives were more expensive。 Whiskey was intoxicating。 The desire for this stuff was powerful， but it wasn’t free。It was in the self-interest of the market， and the colonies， to leave nothing of monetary value unmolested。 Wild animals were pests that stood in the path of progress， and their extermination would continue until it was no longer profitable。 For natives， all options sucked。 They struggled to do their best。In 1972， I was a roller coaster operator。 Riders slowly went up the steep hill， and then rapidly zoomed downhill screaming their brains out。 Flores provides readers a similar experience。 Most of his book describes the terrifying mass insanity that ravaged America in the last 500 years。 Readers will scream their brains out as they plunge deep into the cesspool of Big History， our horrifying monster closet。Flores wrote that the invaders forced “a transformation of a hundred centuries of Native America into a re-creation of Old World civilization on a new continent。” Five centuries ago， Old World folks and animals arrived， “and then， like some new contagion spreading inland from the coasts， proceeded to effect a widespread demolition of almost all that was here。”In one year， 1743， the port at La Rochelle， France “took in 127，000 beaver pelts， 30，300 marten furs， 12，400 river otter furs， 110，000 raccoon pelts， along with its big haul for that year， the stripped skins of 16，500 American black bears。” “In 1874 Bozeman market hunters were hip-deep in the big bonanza。 That year they shipped out 48 tons of elk skins， 42 tons of deerskins， 17 tons of pronghorn skins， and 760 pounds of bighorn skins。” “Governments at all levels paid money for the heads or ears or scalps of a suite of animals — wolves， coyotes， mountain lions， grizzly and black bears， jaguars， bobcats， lynx — for the single purpose of promoting agricultural economies。” Dead animals （or meat chunks） injected with strychnine were put everywhere to poison scavengers — wolves， coyotes， eagles， vultures， ravens， magpies， foxes， skunks。 It was sold in bulk in every store。To delight ranchers， Montana put out 3，567，000 poison baits to kill predators。 Between 1883 and 1928 Montana shelled out payments on 111，545 wolves and 886，367 coyotes。 In one year， a wolf killer earned enough to buy a ranch and livestock。Passenger pigeons， had been in America for 15 million years。 My father was in diapers when the last one died in 1914。 “The largest nesting site ever reported， near Sparta， Wisconsin， in 1871， spread across 850 square miles （2，200 km2）。” One flock was estimated to have 3。7 billion birds。 Life on Earth is powered by energy。 Sunbeams feed the plants， and plants feed the critters。 Agriculture and herding amplified the energy flow for humans。 More recently， the flow has been explosively accelerated by burning fossil hydrocarbons， which are not limitless or harmless。 We can now temporarily feed more than eight billion。 We’re heating the planet into a toasty concentration camp crematory。 The machine’s guiding force is insanely clever childish self-interest， which is dumber than dog shit， but far more powerful than foresight， wisdom， cooperation， and mindful self-control。 SCREAM！！！ 。。。more

Nancy Lewis ，

A fascinating account of how humans have influenced the North American ecosystem since arriving here towards the end of the last ice age。

Kristopher Olson ，

You would think you know the stories covered in this book， for example， how the fur trade destroyed beaver populations， but the details provided in this book are incredibly enlightening。 Chapter after chapter demonstrates how capitalism really is the biggest evil ever released on the natural world。

Michael ，

Good: lots of information and data one could use as research material。Bad: lots of editorializing that leads one to wonder whether the information content has been skewed to support the editorializing。 Flores has a poor understanding of Adam Smith。

Tallie ，

natural history of north america！ interesting read and flores does a good job at painting the picture of what our continent looked like a long time ago up until how our modern day understanding/laws around wildlife came to be。 While the book title does highlight "america" flores really only talks about north america and doesn't dive too deep into south america。 natural history of north america！ interesting read and flores does a good job at painting the picture of what our continent looked like a long time ago up until how our modern day understanding/laws around wildlife came to be。 While the book title does highlight "america" flores really only talks about north america and doesn't dive too deep into south america。 。。。more

S。B。 Harrison ，

What a dazzling story of wildlife in America。 There is such an astonishing array of facts in this book。 I was practically drooling in the first couple of chapters reading about things that happened millions of years ago。 Things only become more interesting as we move further along in time rapidly approaching the present。 To be honest it is mostly sad and depressing facts that need to be learned so the same mistakes aren’t repeated。 It truly is a sin what humans have done to so many beautiful and What a dazzling story of wildlife in America。 There is such an astonishing array of facts in this book。 I was practically drooling in the first couple of chapters reading about things that happened millions of years ago。 Things only become more interesting as we move further along in time rapidly approaching the present。 To be honest it is mostly sad and depressing facts that need to be learned so the same mistakes aren’t repeated。 It truly is a sin what humans have done to so many beautiful and amazing animals just in the name of a “free market。” It is also incredible what we have done to make up for it， and how when we put or minds to it， can truly accomplish incredible things。 Dan Flores truly does a magnificent job at detailing the journey humans， animals， and our planet have endured together。 I highly recommend this book for anyone even remotely interested in natural history。 。。。more

Camille ，

Dan Flores stated on page 352 that Golden eagles are endangered？ Can someone explain that to me？ It's driving me nuts。Also， first third of the book is fascinating。 Once he hits Colonial America， it's one of the most boring books I've ever read。 Dan Flores stated on page 352 that Golden eagles are endangered？ Can someone explain that to me？ It's driving me nuts。Also， first third of the book is fascinating。 Once he hits Colonial America， it's one of the most boring books I've ever read。 。。。more

John Pledger ，

Humans， particularly Europeans， caused the extinction of many animals in the Americas。 A little too anti-human， not enough stories of animal adaptation and interesting facts。

Mark ，

On the facts and history this is a very engaging， well-written， and informative book。 When Flores steps out into more explicit editorializing outside of the physical sciences， he comes off as myopic and under-informed。

Eric ，

Fascinating tour through the last 13，000 year history of human interaction with wildlife in what is now the US。 It was tiresome to hear him repeatedly talk about how Christianity is incompatible with environmentalism and how belief in Darwinian evolution automatically results in valuing animal life and the maintenance of biodiversity。

Kurt Basham ，

The subject matter was really interesting， but the audiobook version， boy oh boy， the narrator's voice is what brought it down -2 stars for me。 Distractingly bad。 The subject matter was really interesting， but the audiobook version， boy oh boy， the narrator's voice is what brought it down -2 stars for me。 Distractingly bad。 。。。more

Julian Ticehurst ，

Enthralling。

Rodrigo Meza ，

Learned a lot about the human influence on Pleistocene and contemporary fauna。 Would like to see Dan Flores to open his horizons and think further than the US borders。 nature doesn’t stop over imaginary 200 year old borders， why should he？

Teddy ，

dnf @ 12% / Ch 2

Sharman Russell ，

A wonderful book。 So broad and encompassing in its history and analysis。 Also， an emotional and emotionally-satisfying book from someone who cares very much。

Kylie Sparkle ，

I was excited to order this book thinking it would be a deep dive into North America's ancient animal behaviors and interaction。 Intertwined with native American tribes and European colonialism。 Unfortunately， that is not what this book is。This book is a sporadic and unorganized 'neat facts' collection regarding various naturalists， pioneers， and scientists。 These 'neat facts' are also repetitive because there is no structure to the book， so later on， the same naturalist that only got a few para I was excited to order this book thinking it would be a deep dive into North America's ancient animal behaviors and interaction。 Intertwined with native American tribes and European colonialism。 Unfortunately， that is not what this book is。This book is a sporadic and unorganized 'neat facts' collection regarding various naturalists， pioneers， and scientists。 These 'neat facts' are also repetitive because there is no structure to the book， so later on， the same naturalist that only got a few paragraphs devoted to them is reappearing。 It's also 200+ pages of bemoaning the unchecked killing of animals。 Do I agree that it's a pity our ancestors murdered wantlessly？ Yes。 Do I want continuous chapters that blur together with no sense of timeline nor focus other than moaning about animal overkill？ No。 There's a few sentences that try and cover all the various native American tribes religious deities and the stories behind them。 Not what I was expecting from a book proclaiming itself an "epic" starting from North America's origins。Too much narrative and author insertion as well。 Page 240 Flores felt it necessary to write "f***ing pathetic" in regard to the massacre of buffalos in the plains。A huge let down of a book since I was considering it to be laymen academic。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and People in America

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and People in America&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Wild New World: The Epic Story of Animals and People in America&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0