As part of my continuing effort to learn at least a little bit about as many animals as possible in my lifetime, I recently listened to the audiobook version of Spirals in Time by Helen Scales. This book talks about mollusks, especially the ones that create cool external shells. It looks at various categories and specific species and talks about their evolution, their role in nature, and sometimes, their potential benefits for humans (beyond just being pretty).
What I liked about this book is that Scales actually studies mollusks. Don’t get me wrong, I love a nature book written by an enthusiastic journalist, but I feel like when a scientist writes about science, you learn what experts in that field believe is the most important interesting about their area of study, and they’re less likely to accidentally pass along some flim-flam.
That said, there were two things I didn’t like about this book. The first, and my apologies to Scales and everyone else who studies mollusks, is that actually, a lot of mollusks are… a little boring. Bivalves may be tasty and they may serve important roles in the ecosystem, but also they are simple little guys, some of whom just cement themselves to one spot and live out their lives there. Charismatic megafauna they are not, and while I believe they have a right to live and thrive, I found my mind drifting sometimes when I listened to Scales talk about them.
The second issue is perhaps partially an artifact of the fact that culture changes quickly these days, and even though the audiobook was recorded in 2023, it was based on the original text published in 2015. But the simple fact of the matter is that some of the language Scales uses in the book feels a bit… racist? Like not virulently racist, I want to be clear. Lazily racist. “I haven’t bothered to decolonize my language” racist. A very clear example is when she refers to something as being “like a game of Chinese whispers”, but some of her descriptions of people and places just left me feeling a little uncomfortable.
Likewise, I expect a scientist to not refer to animals that undergo a biological sex change as part of their natural life cycle as changing their gender, because a scientist should know that sex and gender are not the same, and that mollusks have no sense of gender. There’s also a random reference to some critter looking like something from Harry Potter, because god forbid we go a week without being reminded of JKR.
As such, I hesitate to recommend this specific book, because if these are the things I’ve noticed as your average white cis lady, what didn’t I notice?
If you are specifically interested in seashells and the creatures that make them, you’ll probably find some interesting information in Spirals in Time. I did learn some cool things! I just kept hearing things that gave me pause.
I will note that the audiobook is read by the author and she does have a very nice voice, even if she insists on pronounced cephalopod with a hard K sound.
TWs and CWs: In addition to what I mentioned in my review, the usual reminders of climactic doom that come with any book about nature these days. Plus some mentions of historical sexism, colonialism, and the like.
Format and Source: I borrowed this as an audiobook from Sno-Isle Libraries.
Book Bingo Prompts
Nook & Cranny (Card 2): S.T.E.M. Powered.
Brick & Mortar: About a STEM Topic.
I’m going to write about both of these prompts together, because they are essentially the same prompt, which made it so easy to find a book that fit both of them. Well. It should have been easy. Originally, I just figured I’d grab one of the many science-related books on my physical bookshelves. My spouse is a biology student, we’re both nerds, our house is full of science books.
However, as the other physical books I was reading started to take longer to finish than I expected, it became obvious that I was going to need to choose an audiobook for these prompts. I saw a book in a post from a bookstore that looked interesting, and put a library hold on it. My hold time proceeded to get longer instead of shorter, as people took a while to finish it and the library’s digital copies kept expiring.
Concerned, I found a cool-looking book about bees that was currently available. Started listening to it and lasted mere minutes before I decided I couldn’t stand the ebook narrator’s voice! I’ll probably read that eventually in a physical or ebook format, but it’s probably the quickest DNF I’ve ever had.
After I finished Spirals in Time, the other audiobook I was waiting for did suddenly become available, and I might have had enough time to finish it before the Brick & Mortar challenge ends, but I got about 20% of the way through before deciding that I didn’t like the author’s voice and I wasn’t convinced by his ideas, so it was a good thing I didn’t hold out hope for it.
ANYWAY, this book touched on a lot of STEMmy topics. Not just the biology and natural history of mollusks, but potential medical and engineering applications for them and the chemicals they make, and it’s written by a bona fide scientist, so I think it fits these squares very well.
Book Bingo Progress
Nook & Cranny (Card 1): 9 out of 25 prompts complete. 1 bingo.
Nook & Cranny (Card 2): 5 out of 25 prompts complete. 0 bingos.
Brick & Mortar: 22 out of 25 prompts complete. 7 bingos.