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*****5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews here.
“Wonderful Book for Earth Day or any day!”
January 10, 2014 by mbscott “mbs” (Buffalo, NY)
“I read this for Eath Day every year to the K kids–great book about taking care of the planet. Good for budding Evolutionists, too, as it references the earth being way older than 6000 years–and prehistoric man! The illustrations are actually quilt squares–beautiful.”
Thank you Amazon reviewers for continuing to send in your kind thoughts!
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Tag Archives: evolution
I am a jellyfish. That explains a lot.
I went to the aquarium yesterday because my niece is in town. I am not huge on aquariums. I know that is a terrible thing to say because nobody likes an aquarium hater.
After all, the fish are obviously well cared for in their huge, gleaming, impressively realistic tank homes. I guess it’s just a bit hard to believe that they are actually buying that whole set up.
Or maybe it’s the funky lighting. Regardless, it never takes long before my lower back starts to ache, I am famished, parched, I have to go to the bathroom, my feet hurt and I am wondering why our tickets should have to cost more than the average health insurance co-pay.
But then I get to the jellyfish tank. And here, at the jellyfish tank, I am mesmerized. I am literally glued to the glass. I don’t ever want to leave this place.
All those bobbing, dangling blobs seem almost cultish. And I’m pretty sure they are beckoning to me. I don’t just watch the jellyfish at the aquarium. I actually feel that I am a jellyfish at the aquarium. Jeez, are they brainwashing me? Am I actually turning into a jellyfish?
I mean, if left for two minutes in their silent but echoing company I become a weightless, worryless, goalless, harmless, timeless coagulation of flotsam and jetsam (or whatever) effortlessly drifting and dipping though the portals of time and space. I can actually feel my blood pressure dropping. In fact, I don’t think I have any blood pressure at the jellyfish tank.
This morning I googled “jellyfish” in anticipation of writing a little ditty on what I used to think of as a weird, aquatic anomaly of mine… only to discover this breaking news: I am a jelly fish. Which kind of explains everything.
Or at least I was. In fact, scientists are now placing bets that all life descended from the jelly fish. Albeit we’ve advanced a bit. Jellyfish still don’t don’t have brains, lungs, hearts or plenty of other things that tend to cause humans a fair amount of angst. But boy do those guys know how to relax.
So before you head out for the aquarium take your over-evolved brain along to National Geographic and read the whole facsinating story: “Was Your Ancestor a Ball of Jelly? Evolution Study Surprises Experts”.
Please would you share this? Last free ship day on Amazon and 20% off
The big day is closing in but there’s still time to tuck Long Live Earth’s Anniversary Edition under the tree. Perfect for all those budding environmentalists… and no batteries required! Happy and safe holidays to all.
Many thanks and warmest wishes, Meighan
“Horrors! Environmental wacko nonsense… yuck!” Another favorite review.
This is one of my favorite Long Live Earth reviews. I get such a kick out of it:
Horrors!, July 10, 2002By Sherry Poppins
This review is from: Long Live Earth (Paperback)
“What a bunch of environmentalist wacko nonsense! Ms. Morrison is over the top. Of course recycling is a necessary thing, however, we didn’t crawl out of the sea and evolve from apes. This book starts out very depressing, going on about what a state the earth is in. This is not a book for any parent wishing to teach their child(ren) about God’s creation of the world. Yuck! Ironically, the trees cut down to print this book could have been much better served.”
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t also get a real kick in the pants out of this comment addressing Ms. Poppins’ review:
Initial post: Jan 23, 2012 12:41:37 PM PST
Anna M. Lightenberg says: “Oh, yes, by all means, let’s not teach our children things like reality, and facts. Let’s just stuff their heads full of superstition and fantasy. Really? I don’t understand when religious people morphed into these wacky anti-science people. Guess this will just be one more way that evolution will thin the herd, when the under-educated, magical thinkers die off. Sad, because when I was a kid the religious schools cranked out the best science students.”
What she said. 🙂
Charles Darwin’s BFF – A Paper Puppet Animation of A.R. Wallace
Speaking of evolution (see yesterday’s post “Evolution as Historical Fiction?” ) I think we’re all familiar with the term Darwinism. But have you heard of Wallacism? Nah, me neither. Probably because I just made it up.
Most of us automatically equate evolution with Charles Darwin, or Darwinism. We do not equate it with his determined, humble, largely forgotten and charmingly generous friend A.R. Wallace. In fact, most of us have never even heard of A.R. Wallace. Or Wallacism. Again, probably because I just made it up.
All the more reason to watch this quirky paper puppet animation celebrating Wallacism and the life and adventures of the other father of evolution. That was the third reference to the term Wallacism which now makes it an officially coined phrase. Maybe. I don’t know if it actually works like that. I just made that up. Sometimes it’s just easier to make things up than to go to the trouble of proving every little thing. Thankfully, Darwin and Wallace went to the trouble. They did not deal in fiction or make things up.
Speaking of fiction and making things up, let’s hope Amazon has not lumped Darwin (and Wallace’s) The Origin of the Species into their prehistoric fiction category alongside Long Live Earth. But if they did I hope it also made it into the top 100. I think. 
BY FLORA LICHTMAN AND SHARON SHATTUCKNovember 4th, 2013 from the New York Times.
EVOLUTION AS HISTORICAL FICTION?
Here’s a good one. Amazon just categorized Long Live Earth as historical fiction:
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54 in Books > Children’s Books > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction > Prehistory
I guess it was presumptuous of me but I assumed that an evolution theme would be lumped in somewhere (anywhere) amongst the non-fiction. Read the first first few pages of Long Live Earth below… pretty straightforward stuff.
Who is pulling those levers over there anyway? Is the Great Oz of Amazon a Creationist? Or is just his algorithm a Creationist?
Oh well. If Long Live Earth (and evolution) have to be categorized as prehistorical fiction I should at least be grateful that it has made the top 100 in that list. I think.
Meighan Morrison 