Name: World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments
ISBN: 9781571313652

Aimee Nezhukumatathil

World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments

Steve Wood

I really wanted to like this a lot more than I did. I love the subject matter, and Nezhukumatathil can certainly write well, but something about it didn't totally resonate with me. I think it was a bit too poetic and a bit soft on the biology and natural history.

Lexie 

I thought it was thoroughly fine. Bethany's unhinged one-star comment made me like it more.

Steph Zymowski

Stephanie Ridiculous

3.5 rounded up

Not exactly what I was expecting, but a charming & light read all the same. The world is full of wonderous things we often over look, and this encourages us toward appreciating bug, bird, and plant along the way. 

I learned some cool new facts & will be looking up the authors other works, so all in all a good time.

Eloise

“It is this way with wonder: it takes a bit of patience, and it takes putting yourself in the right place at the right time. It requires that we be curious enough to forgo our small distractions in order to find the world.”

When I started this book, I was expecting it to be like any other nature-writing book, but it was so much more. Aimee Nezhukumatathil mixes anecdotes from her life with different parts of the natural world, each chapter being headed by an animal or plant. My favorites were the chapters on the Corpse Flower, the Ribbon Eel, and the Peacock. 

Her writing is poetic and beautiful and gave me a greater appreciation to the natural world around me, and all the creatures I’ve taken for granted. It is as much a loving journal as it is a work to bring attention to conservation.

Kelsey Holtaway

This may be the most beautiful book I’ve ever read. 

A WORLD OF WONDERS is a unique take on a memoir. This is a collection of short stories, going through the authors life, sharing important stops on her roadmap through her love of nature and the natural world. 

It was lovely, poetic, delightful, tender, and honest. It made me swoon, tear up, laugh, and shout out animal facts. I devoured it in a day, and it’s one of those books I want to share with pretty much everyone in my life.

Abby N. Lewis

Nezhukumatathil’s collection of short essays draws comparisons between her life and creatures of the natural world such as fireflies, axolotls, and octopuses. The illustrations in this small book are what drew me to it. I read a digital copy of this book, though, so I’m not sure if I got to appreciate the full extent of the illustrations.

World of Wonders is a great concept. Pairing informational facts about animals with personal anecdotes about one’s life is bound to be interesting to read about, and for the most part, I enjoyed this book. There were, however, some instances where the comparisons between Nezhukumatathil’s life and the wildlife seemed a little tenuous, and some of the entries seemed to lack direction while other entries vibrated with meaning, power, and true connection. Despite this collection being a little over 150 pages, it took me ten days to read. I found myself losing interest in the collection and my mind wandered to other books I wanted to read every time I sat down with this book. Perhaps I’m just not the right audience for short nonfiction essays.

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