Rain: A Natural and Cultural History

Rain: A Natural and Cultural History by Cynthia Barnett held my attention from the first paragraphs. Invoking the use of rain in the works of one of my most beloved authors, Ray Bradbury grabbed my attention. But her beautiful and descriptive use of language held it, and I found this book difficult to put down. Every single chapter is filled with facts, history, unexpected bits of trivia and it is entertaining, throughout !

The author used rain to link everything from the creation of our planet, to popular literature, to historic and biblical events. She brought to our attention the connection of rain to everything from the plauge to migration and use of agriculture in various parts of our world. Even film, filmakers, poets and poetry show more make an appearance, as does, of course, science. The very lengthy notes make it clear just how much research has gone into writing this book. The compilation of these notes into a beautiful story about one of the most important elements of our survival is something only a gifted author can accomplish.

We all know in some small part of our mind that we need rain to survive. But Rain: A Natural and Cultural History makes it very clear just how much we need it, and explains in very readable chapters just how much and exactly why it matters, and how everything is connected with rain.I mean Rain, because of there is any word in our language tht deserves to be capitalized Rain is the word, and rain what drives so much of history, of life itself. The opposite of Rain, Drought, also has a distinct impact. An impact that most of us give little thought to, unless we are the ones experiencing it.

Climate change, is it real, does it matter? Do you care? I strongly recommend this book ! It is as beautifully written as it is informative. show less

Дождь за окном – самое время пристроиться где-нибудь в тепле с чашечкой чего-нибудь погорячее и начать про этот самый дождь читать. Для этого занятия как раз подойдет книга, собравшая немало премий и рассказывающая об этих осадках немало такого, о чем ни в школе не учат, ни Гидрометцентр не просветит. Дождь из рыбин, регулярно выпадающий в Гондурасе, породил популярный фестиваль; американский show more метеоканал-сенсация (в него, как и в MTV, сперва никто не верил) был куплен за 3,5 млрд долларов; в Индии особой популярностью пользуются духи с ароматом дождя, а капли воды, падающие с неба, на самом деле похожи на парашюты, а не на привычные конусы. Дождь помогает некоторым орхидеям размножаться, армия США разрабатывала против него операции, а Фредерик Шопен лучше всех «сыграл» дождь в прелюдии «Дождевая капля». Дождеведение действительно получилось занимательным: непогода пролетит за чтением незаметно, если конечно вы не в Уганде на озере Виктория, где грозы грохочут 242 дня в году. show less

Rain as life; love; sex; death; Janus, the two-faced god; masculinity; chaos; enemy; weapon; memory; inspiration. Phew, talk about a lyrical history. In Rain, Cynthia Barnett creates a personable and inviting history of rain and water. Moving water is life for fragile humanity yet we are incapable of mastering it. The world lives by rain, adapts to rain, dies by rain. Honestly, this is one of the best natural and cultural histories I've read because it's so incredibly engaging and visual. Barnett paints images with her writing that are as vivid as color after a storm.

Rain is separated into five subsections centered on a different aspect of rain. Section 1, Elemental Rain, was my favorite section. It described how humanity evolved with show more rain and how both rain and drought influenced humanity's and civilization's development from the very beginning of evolution. (Finger wrinkles after being in water, anyone?) Section 2, Chance of Rain, described how humans tried to predict, define, and protect from rain. Section 3, American Rain, is pretty self-explanatory. Apparently Americans have always been big on trying to control everything, including the elements, without really paying attention to science. Section 4, Capturing the Rain, is about how artists, including writers, have used the rain as inspiration and setting; how the smell of rain can define a culture; and how cities have fought rain and, more recently, tried to work with rain to create a sustainable and healthy region. The last section, 5, Mercurial Rain, is about "strange" rain, maybe a frog or two, and climate change.

I really, really enjoyed this book, though it was a little jarring when the author inserted her own personal narratives, especially in the later sections. The book is well organized and very well written. It satisfied both the history/science nerd part of me and the yearning for lyricism part. This book even inspired me to a tweet my amusement with a line jabbing at inefficient political systems. Barnett's sources are nicely varied, though leaning toward secondary and news articles. Plus, I always appreciate an index.

Overall, if you're interested in natural history or human nature at all, or just enjoy a well written poetic non-fiction, read it! show less

Summary:

Rain is elemental, mysterious, precious, destructive.

It is the subject of countless poems and paintings; the top of the weather report; the source of the world's water. Yet this is the first book to tell the story of rain.

My take: 5 looks

I was intrigued by the premise of writing about rain. Not water, not floods, not weather. Rain. When I started it, I will admit that it was a tiny bit on the dry side (hehe). However, Barnett's skill at segueing from one topic to another, while weaving both scientific facts with myths, stories, and real events soon became quite mesmerizing. I have never used so many sticky tabs in a book to remember to make notes later.

It's hard to resist a sentence that contains "C. Leonard Woolley - think show more Indiana Jones with high cheekbones and kneesocks - ..."; and this book abounds with them. From the first meteorologists to the de-feminization of the umbrella, the story of rain as presented by Barnett is both educational and compelling.

Oh, and read the book yourself to find out why I am going to start calling windshield wipers "marys".

Highly recommended.

Thank you to Blogging for Books for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. show less

Who would have thought that a nonfiction book about rain could manage to maintain my interest throughout its almost-300 pages? This one certainly did, but then it is about much more than “just” rain.

It began with a lovely quote from Ray Bradbury, but the author's own words were quite wonderful too. It is obvious that she developed a great love and respect for the subject, that it became close to her heart.

The story covers rain and its relatives over the history of time, how it has and does affect us physically, culturally, politically. It explains in a very clear way why what we used to call global warming but now more commonly call climate change can make the wet areas wetter and the dry areas drier, the cold colder and the hot show more hotter.

The prognosis is not good. The prognosis is frightening.

Some of it I knew, like Rick Perry's solution:

“At Texas A&M University, the atmospheric scientists said global warming was making the hellish conditions worse. The governor of Texas, Rick Perry, was skeptical of the professors. But he could sink his black-leather boots into prayer. Perry called upon his fellow Texans to join him in three days' prayer for rain.”

Congress has not been our friend in solving the issues:

“In recent years, Congress has resembled the rainmaking 1890s more than the emissions-lowering 1990s – ears open to the influential uninformed rather than its own scientists. U.S. Senator John Inhofe of Oklahoma, perhaps the most prominent national opponent of meaningful legislation to reduce fossil-fuel emissions, has said that humans cannot possibly control the climate because only God can do that.” I am not as kind as the author – these people are not uninformed, they just choose to not believe the evidence they are given.

Still, this book is about rain, too much, too little, and its affects. Its about culture around the world shaped by rain. It is not foremost a political book. It's about witchcraft and rainmakers, evolution and plagues. For a book about rain, it has an amazingly wide and interesting scope.

Our decisions about trying to control rain and its effects have devastating consequences. Writing of southern California, the author states, “Now, imported water from the Sierra to the north and the Colorado River convinced the region to divert all its rain to sea and rely on someone else's.”

“An estimated 85 percent of Los Angeles in urbanized, 65 percent of it paved over – sealed by impervious surfaces. Every subdivision and shopping mall, parking lot and pancake house prevents rain from soaking back into the ground. The rain that used to find its natural course to the aquifer or sea is now channeled, given a new name - “stormwater”- and poisoned as it rushes over dirty streets and down gutters.”

This book caused me to Google several of the things the author mentioned. If you have never heard of the Double Decker Tree Bridge, it is well worth searching for images.

While I wanted to learn more about the subject of rain and weather, I was afraid this book would be dry, no pun intended. It was not. It was fascinating but more frightening than a Stephen King novel.

I was given an advance reader's edition of this book for review. The quotes may have changed in the published edition. show less

It's raining and I've been complaining even though I'm at work and it really shouldn't matter. After reading Rain: A Natural and Cultural History, I know I should be grateful for those wonderful drops especially since we're three inches behind for the year and I need to put in a garden. This is a well-written look at the meaning of rain to our culture. Barnett ponders the mythology, the associated rituals, the literary response, the science and the history of man's relationship with rain. Too much, or the lack thereof has had a profound effect on civilization and our very existence. No more complaining about the rain, go out and dance in it.

This ranks among the group of particularly successful popular science/history books I've read. It is ordered well, and gifted at covering topics in enough depth to get you interested (vs too little information or too much given to one event/issue) and yet still feel like a full picture. The writing is good, with bits of humor which come across as natural rather than forced.

The book is divided into five sections, which cover different aspects of rain and our relationship with it, with a very good introduction about the origins of rain (why we have it and Mars and Venus lost it, the transformation of earth, etc...). One section deals with the early weather recorders and studiers and the invention and marketing of rain gear. Another covers show more American Rain with chapters on Thomas Jefferson (and the poor placement of Monticello when it came to water access), the insane belief that 'rain follows the plow' by which the great plains were settled (a region formerly called the Great American Desert before a brief wet period), and the rainmakers that showed up during droughts (including those who tried to practice actual science, not just the outright charlatans).

I really enjoyed reading it, learned a lot of new information and made notes on books covering some topics in more depth (a home run for me and any similarly broad non-fiction work). My favorite factoid being about the origin of the "Neither rain nor sleet nor dark of night..." phrase coming from Herodotus's descriptions of Persian couriers (favorite partly because my mom was a mail carrier for most of my life).

This review is based on an ARC copy of the book, and I do hope the final edition has included some pictures and maps. show less